- Right-wing extremist killed 77 people in 2011 in Norway's deadliest attack since World War II
Norwegian
mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik has won part of his lawsuit
against the state over his solitary confinement in a high-security
prison, a court announced Wednesday.
The
Oslo district court found the 37-year-old's treatment in prison
violated Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights,
prohibiting "inhuman or degrading treatment," and ruled that his
conditions must be eased.
The court also ordered the government to pay legal costs of 331,000 kroner ($40,600) for the right-wing extremist, who killed 77 people in a shooting rampage and bombing attack in the year 2011.
Norway has the right to appeal the ruling. It has not announced whether it intends to do so.
The
court dismissed Breivik's claim that the government had violated
Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which guarantees
respect for "private life" and correspondence.
The
ruling outlined areas of concern in regard to the conditions of
Breivik's confinement, which, taken as a whole, constituted a breach of
his rights.
These included the
duration of his isolation, and inadequate consideration of the mental
impact of the regime. It also said the routine nude checks Breivik had
to go through were not sufficiently justified from a security
perspective.
But it did not give concrete directives on how the conditions should be changed.
Breivik: Conditions 'sadistic'
Inside a gymnasium at Skien prison, the suit was heard about four days in the previous month which was temporarily converted into a courtroom.
Appearing
in public for the first time since his trial, Breivik gave testimony
during the suit, alleging that his isolation in prison constituted a
"sadistic" attempt by Norwegian authorities to kill him.
Since
his arrest, he has been separated from other inmates, and virtually his
only visits have been with professionals, who meet with him separated
behind a glass screen.
His
incoming and outgoing mail is also censored to prevent him from
building far-right networks and inciting sympathizers to violence.
Observers expressed concern that Breivik was using his court appearance as a platform to publicize his extremist ideology.
Breivik's
killing spree on July 22, 2011, was the deadliest attack in Norway
since World War II. Eight people were killed when a bomb he planted
detonated in Oslo before he methodically shot to death 69 young people
at a Labor Party youth camp on Utoya island. He blamed the party for the
rise of multiculturalism in Norway.
Bjorn
Ihler, one of the survivors of the Utoya massacre, said on Twitter that
the ruling was a "sign we have a working court system, respecting human
rights even under extreme conditions."