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ANGRY: Culture Minister Abid Raja is, according to himself, “furiously cursed” by VG’s revelations about convicted trainers who travel abroad and get a new job with children and youth. Photo: Frode Hansen
Culture Minister Abid Raja (V) will work to improve the flow of information about prisoners between European countries.
This comes after VG revealed on Sunday that it is practically free for abused coaches to continue working with children and youth in sports in other countries.
They can because the police certificates that must capture the convictions for abuse when displays judgments in the country in which it was issued.
The rules of the sport refuse to train children and youth in Norway to abuse convicts. Many European countries have the same regulations.
The revelation provokes the Minister of Culture:
– All of us who have a family worry that our children are not exposed to grotesque things. That they should be free of such. That interests me as a sports minister, but also as a father. I feel so provoked and furiously cursed.
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Now he will do what he can to close the gap.
– We must turn all the stones to minimize this as a problem, it begins.
– I will enter into a dialogue with Justice Minister Monica Mæland at the first opportunity. We must discuss how we can achieve better cooperation within the police and courts in different countries, so that people who have been convicted in one country cannot just travel to another country and continue there, Raja told VG on Wednesday.
The Minister of Culture believes that it may be easier to achieve cooperation at the Scandinavian or Nordic level than at the EU level.
The same loophole applies not only to sports, but also to other groups that work with children, such as teachers, social workers, or doctors.
– These are questions that affect sports more, but when we see these problems in VG, we can use this as an example when we want to achieve better cooperation across national borders. It’s about protecting children. The problem that VG has raised means that we must convert the stones that exist and see what we can achieve, says Raja.
The Liberal deputy leader also takes the opportunity to praise the victims who have submitted their stories.
– I would like to pay tribute to the young adults who have presented their stories on VG. It is extremely demanding for them to give this a face. The story of Susanne, who was ostracized by the local community: it is absolutely horrible. You are so deeply moved by that story. It shows that there are people and destinations behind all the statistics and numbers.
SAME TEAM: Sporting President Berit Kjøll and Abid Raja, here from a press conference in September. Photo: Terje Pedersen, NTB Scanpix
Following this weekend’s reveal, sporting president Berit Kjøll also spoke to VG.
He then invited Raja to raise this issue in the Council of Europe. Raja is not sure if the Council of Europe is the right setting, but he has accepted Kjøll’s invitation.
Kjøll also says that the Norwegian Sports Confederation will try to ally with the other Nordic countries.
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– At our next Nordic meeting, we will also address a similar initiative and in which we recommend that other countries raise this issue accordingly with the authorities of the respective countries. If we have a common Nordic voice towards the Council of Europe, this will also strengthen the possibility of a breakthrough, says Kjøll.
Sunday’s VG reveal has also attracted attention in Denmark. Subsequently, Denmark’s Minister of Culture, Joy Mogensen, invited Save the Children, the Danish Sports Confederation and DGI (another sports organization, journal. Note) to meetings to discuss the matter.
VG has been able to document that there are more than 200 victims in cases of abuse in sport where a verdict has been rendered since 2005. See all the cases here:
