– None of the three girls who came here are natives of Østfold. They got help here from the Red Cross, which was present at the national meeting in Halden.
This is what the head of the abuse center in Østfold, Ann Helen Lomsdalen, tells VG. She says that the reception has a good collaboration with the Red Cross.
The Russian era has just begun. Buses roll, darts are broken and the national meeting is filled to the brim with students who will celebrate that 13 years of ordinary schooling will soon be over.
Before the party is fully underway, the Russians should have made up their minds about what they want to participate in, is the call from Lomsdalen:
– We humans quickly get used to things. In the Russian era, for example, there are many Russian knots with sexual content that create a pressure of expectation among boys and girls. If you wade in it, it doesn’t seem scary in the end.
Cooperation! That is the mantra of the reception manager.
– For example, switch who should be the most sober. Take care of each other.
– I usually joke that “you must remember that there is a life after the Russian era too”. Of course, this does not apply to the victims.
– Tragic to send them back
In 2023, the abuse center had no cases linked to the national meet in Halden. But last year was the exception.
– In previous years, we have experienced that there are victims from the festival. Unfortunately, says Lomsdal.
Of those who come to the reception, there are several who remember little or nothing of the incident.
– Sometimes they wake up in an unfamiliar tent. Sometimes without clothes on. But then they have a feeling that something has happened. This is what we call sleep rape.
When they arrive at the reception, they work diligently to look after the victims. But they are often not resident in Østfold, which poses an additional challenge, the reception manager explains.
– It is tragic to send girls back to the crime scene.
The police with extra resources before this weekend’s national meet
On Friday 3 May, the country’s biggest Russian festival takes place in Kongeparken outside Stavanger, with space for 15,000 Russians from all over the country.
To secure the event, both the police and volunteers cooperate with the organiser.
– It is a good collaboration that covers a wide range. Volunteers who assist with everything from cleaning to the Red Cross who assist with relief crews.
That’s what Magnus Jåtun, police station chief in Sandnes, says. The police are also putting in extra resources for the weekend.
Police station commander in Sandnes
While some will be responsible for traffic safety and presence at the national meet, others will have a focus on abuse cases, among other things.
– We are deploying a small team that includes, among other things, investigators and a prosecuting attorney. It should make it easier to institute criminal proceedings if necessary.
At the same time, he points out that in this type of case there is always a delay from when the assault takes place until the case ends up with the police.
– This is due, among other things, to the fact that the Russians are spread out. Beyond the festival area, they are in hotels, tent pitches and on the buses.
– Another reason why there is often a delay is that the victims often report only when they get home to their place of residence.
Last year, the police went out to 28 missions at the national meeting, where one of the cases was investigated as rape or attempted rape after a woman herself contacted the emergency crews.
In 2019, there were 85 assignments related to the event, two of which are said to have been attempted rapes.
Tags: Russian girls receiving abuse Russian meeting police deploy extra resources weekends meeting Stavanger
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