The July 22 attacks in Oslo and Utøya have been a shocker to many, including myself. From my visit to Norway and my experiences with Norwegian friends, I know Norwegians to be such peace-loving people–worlds away from the hatred in the manifesto and the actions of the gunman.
I admire the resilience of the Norwegian people. What I admire even more is their refusal to be consumed by hate. Not once have I heard, from TV interviews nor from my Norwegian friends, anyone spread hatred against the perpetrator.
I came across a Norwegian status message on Facebook: Morderen fra Utøya har uttalt i sitt “manifest” at han heller vil hates enn glemmes. Ja, da glemmer vi han, dere. Vi avtaler med hverandre at vi ikke skal si navnet hans, ikke skrive det, ikke google det. Kommer vi over navnet hans på trykk, så hopper vi over det. Så husker vi heller dem som fortjener å bli husket!
Roughly translated: The killer from Utøya has stated in his “manifesto” that he’d rather be hated than forgotten. Yes, we will forget him. We agree with each other that we will not say his name, not write it, nor google it. If we come across his name in print, we skip it. So we will only remember those who deserve to be remembered.
The reactions from Norwegians have been so different from the way many people around the world have reacted to previous acts of terror. We are so used to seeing and hearing hateful responses to hateful actions–a bomb for a bomb, a life for a life. Being reactive and passive aggressive can sometimes be so much easier than being proactive.
We in the Philippines have had our share of hateful actions–the November 2009 Ampatuan massacre, August 2010 bus hostage situation, and the bomb blast in Isabela City last month, to name a few. The world has also had its share of hateful actions. One would think we would know how to proactively respond to such actions by now. Instead, many of us opt to simply express hate against the perpetrators, or worse, choose to take no action at all. Getting educated about the situation and spreading information; talking about the issue among friends, colleagues, or students; signing petitions; even rallying in the streets are more proactive solutions.
Let this be a learning situation. There is a wealth to be learned from the recent events in Norway.
