At exactly 2015hrs on 18th November, I got a notebook from Joshua in my hands. It is 26 pages long and handwritten. I had already been contacted by journalists on Monday evening (16th November) regarding the notebook. There were further calls. Some journalists were so cheeky that they asked if they could actually get the notebook themselves!
What astounds us is that the media don't seem in the slightest interested in the article which has been shown on the website, concerning the breaches of human rights that Joshua has experienced during the Congo case. From this material, there could have been some exciting headlines, such as "Simulated execution, loss of sight." Er, "Threats to Kill Family in Norway!", or even "Filmed for Propaganda", or "Beaten - blood in urine."
But no, no interest whatsoever for the human rights that have been breached for these two Norwegians.
And the press haven't even called us about Furuholmen's interviews with the three young men who attended the training camp in Uganda. Do the media really have no interest in what they have to say about the case? There was a huge ruckus when VG published their own stuff, not least of all about this dog. Aftenposten were actually given a unique chance to write about it, but made little of it.
Rune Edvardsen and Mathilde Moland had a complete flock of newspeople on their tour to Kisangani. The money from the "Inmate to Inmate" donations facilitated amongst other things 2 tonnes of food deliveries to the two prisons. No-one, with the exception of one journalist, was interested in attending the distribution of the donated-funds food supplies at the infamous Osi prison. It should have been of interest to write about how conditions were at the prison where Tjostolv and Joshua nearly ended up. And it should have been of interest to write about how the two Norwegians compassionate care for their fellow inmates has resulted that the donation account was set up, and that aid has been initiated after a very short time. In addition, Dr Erild and two Congolese doctors treated around 55 prisoners on the Sunday that the team was there.
So, what are the press interested in? I don't know. And if they've not been interested in all this, then we really don't understand why the contents of the notebook should be so interesting either. We will probably publish something, and then leave the rest.
Kari Hilde French, 21st November 2009
