Norwegian tamils demonstrated in Oslo again yesterday, this time outside the central government offices in Akersgata. This is the latest in a series of demonstrations which all look the same: hundreds and thousands of tamils marching to and fro, and then quietly disappearing. A few newspaper articles. A little something on television, on radio. It’s nothing compared to what Oslo experienced during the war in Gaza.

The UN estimates that 6 500 civilians have been killed in Sri Lanka since January. This is almost 5 times as many as the civilian casualties Hamas claimed in January. Does Sri Lanka get 5 times as much publicity? In the table below we see the number of civilian fatalities in two wars, as well as the number of newspaper articles they generated in Norway. For Sri Lanka, one fifth of the publicity looks closer to the mark. 

War	Fatalities	Newspaper articles
Gaza	1200	3048
Sri Lanka	6500	514

Yet even more lives are lost in Congo and in Sudan, and these countries receive less attention in the Norwegian media than Sri Lanka does. In the table below we see how many fatalities it takes to generate a mention in a Norwegian newspaper. So was Gaza really about the loss of human life?   And is Israel still critisized “like any other country”? Melanie Philip writes about the same double standard in Selective Moral Outrage – so this is not just a Norwegian phenomenon.

War zone	Duration	Dead pr. article
Congo	2004-2009	860
Chechnya	1993-1995	30-100
Bosnia	1992-1996	26
Gaza	2008-2009	0,67

Norway has been politically engaged in Sri Lanka for some time. From the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, January 2008:

Since 2000 Norway has assisted in facilitating the peace process between the authorities and the tamil tigers (LTTE). In February 2002, with Norwegian collaboration, the parties signed a reciprocal armistace. On the basis of the agreement the parties held direct peace negotiations in 2002-2003…Norway stands by her commitments in Sri Lanka and we view our engagement in a long term perspective… Norway will support attempts to find political solutions to the conflict which are acceptable for all ethnic groups…  

On a formal, political level Norway is committed to Sri Lanka. Indeed Sri Lanka has often been mentioned as an example of Norway’s internationally lauded role as a peace facilitator. Yet we do not see our politicians condemning Sri Lanka like we saw them condemn Israel.

Where is Gry Larsen, adviser to the Minister of Foreign Affairs? Where is Dr. Mads Gilbert? Where is artist Håkon Gullvåg? Where is Kåre Willoch? When will we see Minister of Finance Kristin Halvorsen lead a march of thousands in solidarity with the people of Sri Lanka? Where are all our intellectuals and artists and othe prominent citizens? Why have they so little time for the plight of the tamils?

They are all busy fighting Israel.

Last week Sri Lankans demonstrated outside the Norwegian embassy, protesting against the attacks on Sri Lanka’s embassy in Oslo. VG writes: “After the attack on Sri Lanka’s embassy earlier this month, the government of Sri Lanka made it clear that it no longer requires Norway in the role of peace negotiator.”  From what we understand, the people of Sri Lanka are disillusioned with Norway’s role in the peace process. The people of Norway have likewise good reason to be disillusioned with our own elites.