2011 Norway attacks survivor says human rights of mass killer Anders Behring Breivik should be respected

As Norwegian terrorist and mass killer Anders Behring Breivik stepped into court on Tuesday with claims that his treatment in the hands of the state was a violation of his human rights, one of his victims say denying Breivik of his right to a fair trial would be similar to “going down his path”.

Breivik is serving time for the worst massacre in Norway since World War Two -- the 2011 Norway Attacks. He was convicted in 2012 after admitting to killing eight people with a bomb blast in Oslo, and shooting dead 69 others on the nearby Utøya island, where an island youth camp was running.

But now the 36-year-old, who last year won a place to study political science at the University of Oslo, is suing the state over his prison conditions. Breivik has been kept in solitary confinement since 2013, after being transferred to a high security prison in south Norway, Skien, and according to the New York Times, has had no communication with fellow inmates and limited phone access.

He is allegedly also allowed to spend only one hour outside his cell every day, and was not granted ‘furlough’ to attend his mother’s funeral in 2013.

Breivik's appearance in court on Tuesday -- which saw him give a Nazi salute at the start of proceedings -- was the first time he has been seen in public since 2012, with multiple reports noting his lawyer Oeystein Storrvik argued that his client’s isolation in prison signified “inhuman and degrading treatment” under the European Convention on Human Rights.

"There is no tradition in Norway for this type of isolation," Storrvik told the special court, which is being held in the prison for security purposes.

However, the state is rejecting the charges, saying Breivik had been given opportunities for interaction with others – opportunities he had declined, www.reuters.com/article/us-norway-breivik-idUSKCN0WH0LZ reports. The government’s lawyer, Marius Emberland, also said the conditions of Breivik’s confinement were justified considering his crime and continued threat.

While some families of victims of Breivik’s 2011 attacks are reportedly avoiding following the case, saying they do not want to be reminded of the attacks, one survivor believes Breivik has a right to a fair trial, and was present on Tuesday.

Bjørn Ihler, a 24-year-old Utoya survivor who saved the lives of two young boys during Breivik’s shooting spree, said in a Facebook note that it was important to meet “violence with humanity”.

“To beat violent extremism we have to acknowledge that we all are human beings worthy of human rights, that's why I'm going to this trial. To deny Breivik human rights and thus his humanity would be going down his path,” Ihler wrote.

“Instead I hope we've stayed true to our principles, that we have met violence with humanity as we promised, and that we haven't let the magnitude nor horror of Breiviks [sic] acts change who we are as a society by changing how we view the humanity of others. ”

“I think it’s important that we give him this trial,” Ihler added in an interview with the Times. “It is a victory in itself for us, as a society, not for him. Even terrorists have human rights.

Ihler also tweeted that it was strange to see Breivik do the nazi salute in court.

The case is being heard by a single judge, Helen Andenaes Sekulic, who is expected to make a ruling in the coming weeks. If Breivik loses, his lawyer says they may take their appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.

Below are pictures of Skien prison, where Anders Behring Breivik is currently serving his sentence: