Propaganda, Ukraine | Local Frp politician shared pro-Russian propaganda on Facebook: – Sad

– Ålesund Frp is fully aware that Russia has attacked Ukraine in a war of aggression which is completely unacceptable. That is everyone’s view here in Ålesund Frp.

That’s what group leader in Ålesund Frp, Harald Tom Nesvik, says, after Nettavisen made him aware of several Facebook posts from one of his party colleagues in the city council.

The posts come from city council member Daniella Baarholm. The content of some posts lies on the spectrum between pro-Russian talking points and pro-Russian propaganda.

“The British killed Alexei Navalny and here’s why” is the title of a YouTube video shared by Baarholm in February.

The claim, which is not documented, comes from the independent British analyst Gilbert Doctorow, who is interviewed in the video by a right-wing populist American YouTube channel.

– Hmm. Timing is everything, and there are no coincidences, especially with where the wife was at the time, writes Baarholm when the video is shared.

A series of posts

On March 17, Baarholm shared a YouTube video that will show how much better Russian-occupied Mariupol has become after Russia began to rebuild the city they bombed and occupied in the spring of 2022.

The video opens with a young man showing off a mural of a Russian military man he calls a “hero of this war.” The man was injured in the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhya and has received a medal from Putin, according to the video.

The FRP politician writes in another post that the death of opposition politician Alexei Navalny serves the United States, not Russia. Navalny died in a Russian prison in Siberia on February 16, and there is no indication that the US was involved in the death.

In other posts, Baarholm suggests that Ukraine should find its place at the negotiating table, criticizes NATO for the bombing of Serbia in 1999 and writes that she is slightly sickened to see that Norway invites Ukraine, and not Russia, to the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Finnmark.

– The content was shared as a private person on my private Facebook page and does not represent the Progress Party’s view, says Daniella Baarholm to Nettavisen. She has deleted the posts after Nettavisen made contact. Read her full answer further down.

– Something Russia is “pushing” very hard

Nettavisen has asked the leader of the Norwegian-Ukrainian Friends Association, Jørn Sund-Henriksen, to look over the posts and explain the content.

– I have looked at her Facebook profile and I do not think she is an evil person with ill will. But she shares what is a central, false narrative that comes from Russian information warfare, he says.

Sund-Henriksen reacts particularly to the video of how much nicer things have become in Mariupol after Russia took over the city and began to rebuild it.

– This story about Mariupol is something they are “pushing” very hard. The same with Navalny, he says of Russia’s information war.

Hundreds were killed when Russia bombed the theater in Mariupol in March 2022. The theater was a refuge for women and children, and “CHILDREN” was written outside in large letters.

Large parts of the city were destroyed in the bombing, which took place when up to 200,000 civilians were trapped inside. It is still not known how many civilians were killed in the city, but it may have been several tens of thousands.

– It is a macabre and ugly crime against humanity. By passing on the false narrative about the liberation of Mariupol, one joins a narrative that covers up a genocide, says Sund-Henriksen and adds:

– The Russians have razed buildings to the ground so that the bodies will not be found, to cover up the genocide. Then they build new buildings and show how nice it is to be in Russia.

Sund-Henriksen is a fixture in Nettavisen’s podcast Ukrainapodden, which follows the war week by week.

Want to contribute to the debate

Baarholm says that she has shared the posts to start a debate, not necessarily because she supports the content.

– In general, I want a factual and well-informed debate and have wanted to contribute to it. However, I see that the content I have shared has not necessarily contributed to this. On this basis, I have deleted the posts in question.

– When it comes to the post about Mariupol, I was not aware of the claims from Sund-Henriksen. I have therefore, as previously mentioned, deleted the post. In conclusion, I want to be clear that I do not support war, wherever it is in the world, says the FRP politician.

Baarholm also sits on the board of LO in Ålesund and surroundings.

– Shouldn’t have been shared

FRP has the mayor in Ålesund, but mayor Håkon Lykkebø Strand says he is on Easter vacation and refers to group leader Nesvik.

– She shouldn’t have posted that video. That should not be the case and therefore it has been deleted. She is not pro-Russian. She fully supports the view of everyone in the West, which is that Ukraine is under attack, says Nesvik to Nettavisen.

– I have spoken to her. All this stuff has been deleted and that kind of stuff will not be posted.

– In the video you are talking about, a mural of a Russian who is said to have received a war medal from Putin is shown. He is referred to as a hero. Is there something that could be misunderstood?

– No, and that is why I say that it should not have been shared. She shared a video she got from friends who live over there. Those concerned agree that it should not have been shared. That’s not how we should share, replies Nesvik.

– She also shared a video in which the title was that Britain has killed Navalny. Do you share that view?

– No. I don’t think she does either. The person has obviously shared videos and statements that others have made. It is important that we always go in and see clearly what is written. Therefore it is deleted.