Inhumanity wrapped in a friendly smile

“I have a dream that we will take care of each other,” Prime Minister Erna Solberg said when she opened the national meeting of the Conservatives on Friday.

Four hours earlier, he argued vigorously in the “Political Quarter” why Norway should only accept 50 people from the burned-out Moria camp, even though municipalities have the capacity to receive at least ten times more.

It is difficult to understand how you resolve what must be a cognitive dissonance. In one moment she defends why Norway should not help with the evacuation when disaster has struck hell, only to appear in the next with warmth and apparent care for everyone from the stands to her own party.

Erna and I agree in caring for others. But does your care limit go to the immediate family? At the party? With those who vote for it?

In any case, it cannot include children, the elderly, rescued children, people in wheelchairs and the 13,000 who now spend their nights on the tarmac of the island of Lesbos in Greece after the Moria refugee camp has been completely burned down. . She wants to keep them at bay and insists Norway will only bring 50 here. And it emphasizes that it is not an emergency measure. This is what the government would do anyway.

The right answer in the fire in Moria is to help the Greek authorities, he believes. Authorities who for years have been requesting assistance for redistribution and that Europe must be involved in relocation as their systems simply do not address the humanitarian situation or do not comply with fundamental human rights.

– No more Moria

Saying that “we will help them where they are” when the disaster in Moria is complete and everything burns down, is like asking a child exposed to incest to stay with the abuser, because it is better to help him where he is. We can’t live with it. We cannot realize that.

Because let’s be honest: Conservatives have been at the forefront of the process of helping Greece and helping refugees. They have stepped on the ground and resisted when the Liberal Party and KrF asked for a margin of maneuver. They are the ones who made the decision in May that Norway could evacuate some children “if between 8 and 10 countries did it before us”, as it was.

An unclear, vague, and disclaimer decision that no one has seen before. A bit like this: yes, they can put pressure on us if the whole of Europe absolutely insists, but we really don’t want to contribute, so if we can postpone or even avoid it, we will be happy to do so.

We have a huge municipal apparatus who are ready to receive refugees from Moria. Those who have fled from everything and lost the last thing they had in the fire. Competent professionals who want to contribute to good integration and give people in need of protection a fresh start.

125 municipalities support the evacuation call. Half have reported capacity so far and it is already over 600. Beds are ready for reception tomorrow. In light of this, the government’s decision to accept 50 seems petty. And Solberg’s defense of that seems hollow and inhuman.