Spying in Norway

In September last year, a former Sudanese intelligence officer was sentenced by the Norwegian Supreme Court to one year and three months in prison for spying on people of Sudanese origin in Norway. The man is said to have been paid for collecting detailed information from the Sudanese exile community, which he provided to the officers of the Sudanese Embassy in Oslo.? of this granted asylum. The man is the only one so far convicted of conducting refugee espionage in Norway.
The police security service defines refugee espionage as a foreign intelligence activity aimed at foreigners in Norway. The purpose of this type of business is to undermine, neutralize or eliminate political opposition by monitoring, controlling, and in various ways threatening opposition in exile in Norway. In recent years, Norwegian media have revealed that several countries should be involved in this type of business in Norway.
According to NRK, the police receive around 20 reports annually from people who have been exposed to refugee spying in various ways.
Ny Tid has been in contact with several people from the Ethiopian community in Oslo who have been exposed to threats or attacks from people they believe are supporters of the regime in the country. Some of them do not want to appear in the newspaper, for fear of reprisals against themselves or against the family. Ethiopia is an authoritarian regime, and the authorities commit extensive human rights violations against their own people. According to organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, the regime spends considerable resources on persecuting and imprisoning critics, including opposition politicians, journalists and civilian activists.

In June, Ethiopian Yeshihareg Bekele Zeleke (32) was attacked during an event organized by the Ethiopian embassy in Sweden: "I and several opposition supporters were present during an event they held at Rica hotel somewhere in Oslo," says Zeleke , who together with Yonas Tameru from the same organization meets Ny Tid in central Oslo. "During one of the breaks, I went to get coffee. In one hand I held my phone. Suddenly someone took my phone from me. With the other hand, he held my neck so that I would not see who he was, "she says.

Threats. Tamaru and Zeleke have received threats – both personally and over the phone. During a demonstration in support of British-Ethiopian Andargachew Tsige, who is imprisoned in Ethiopia for his political views, several of the participants received a text message from a Swedish telephone number. The sender of the text message must have claimed to know who the participants were and made threats to their family in Ethiopia. The man who attacked Zeleke in June should also have claimed that he knew who she and her family were: "I was terrified," Zeleke says. "I screamed and tried to run to the front desk. The receptionist tried to calm down the situation, and eventually the police came too. " Zeleke says she reported the incident to the police, but that she was told that they did not have the capacity to follow up on the case.
Zeleke is the head of the women's secretariat in the organization Democratic Change in Ethiopia Support Organization Norway, and is also active in the Association for Ethiopian Asylum Seekers in Norway. She says that she has witnessed several times that people associated with the Ethiopian government have appeared during events, and that they have both filmed the events or tried to stop them. "The police cannot have known what happened or how extensive this problem actually is. I am afraid, both for myself and for my family in Ethiopia. I've fled a country where democracy is a foreign word, but I don't even get protection in a country that is said to be democratic, "Zeleke says.

Arrested. Former Ethiopian diplomat Yohannes Alemu is currently the leader of the organization Democratic Change in Ethiopia Support Organization Norway and active in one of Ethiopia's opposition parties. He tells Ny Tid that his political activity has had consequences for his family in Ethiopia. "Four months ago, my sister-in-law, who works in Saudi Arabia, was arrested by the police while on holiday in Ethiopia. She interrogated and kept in prison for several days, "Alemu tells Ny Tid. "One of the things they asked her about was her contact with me."
This is not the first time Alemu or his family has been subjected to serious threats. Three years ago, Yohan's Alemus wife and the couple's two children were arrested by Ethiopian security services during a visit to the Addis Ababa family. She and the children were deprived of their Norwegian passports and held in house arrest for 20 days, while the security service tried to get Alemu to give information about their colleagues in the opposition. He refused, and his wife was allowed to return to Norway.

"I've fled a country where democracy is a foreign word, but I don't get protection in a country that is said to be democratic."

“I got really scared when they took my family captive and they are still affected by the incident. This was neither the first nor the last time they threatened me and my family, ”he says. After the episode, he should have contacted several agencies in Norway, hoping to get help and protection for the family. Alemu, who is a Norwegian citizen, thinks the authorities are not doing enough to counteract refugee espionage in Norway: "I do not feel that I am getting enough help from the Norwegian authorities, so I have had to hire a lawyer."

Surveillance. According to a report released by Human Rights Watch last year, it also involves advanced technological monitoring, including phone calls and data traffic. Yohannes Alemu says he got an email infected with spyware that allowed Ethiopian authorities to view the contents of his computer and keep track of who he was communicating with. Human Rights Watch reports in the report that they have observed several instances of similar privacy violations against other activists.
"I had to throw away my computer and buy a new one," Alemu says. He says that even the part of his family who still lives in Ethiopia is regularly exposed to threats and pressure from the security service in the country. “Ethiopian government officials are pushing me through threatening my family in Ethiopia. They are scared, "Alemu says.
Last spring, he experienced being approached by people he believes are affiliated with the Ethiopian government: Ethiopian opposition representatives had lent Antiracist center premises in support of an Ethiopian opposition leader's imprisonment in Ethiopia. “Just before the event, I received an email from the leadership of the Antiracist Center telling me not to get there, but to call the police. People who support the regime in Ethiopia had contacted the center and asked them why they wanted to lend premises to the marquee, ”says Alemu.

Named people. The head of the Anti-Racist Center, Rune Berglund Steen, confirms to Ny Tid that supporters of the regime contacted the center in connection with lending the premises. "I myself experienced being called by regime supporters who wanted to know why we lent our premises to a celebration for an Ethiopian opposition leader who is imprisoned in Ethiopia. Pro-regime Ethiopians have been calling on Norwegian supporters for years to try to persuade them to refrain from assisting opposition figures, "said Berglund Steen. He has been following Ethiopian refugee espionage in Norway since 2005. He says that he knows the names of several of those behind espionage on Ethiopian refugees in Norway. "We have the names of a number of different people who have made threats and taken pictures of protesters," says Berglund Steen. "This type of monitoring extends from taking place at street level, to advanced technological monitoring. It is both costly and difficult to implement, and difficult to detect. From what I know, there is little doubt that the Ethiopian authorities are behind this activity and are pulling the strings, "he says.
He believes there are several reasons why the Ethiopian government wants to control Ethiopian diaspora in Norway. “Ethiopia is a country that is largely dependent on emergency aid – making it important for the country to keep track of how the country is perceived outwardly. At the same time, Norway has a fairly strong Ethiopian diaspora, which in turn helps to support the opposition in the country. That is what the Ethiopian government wants to counteract, ”says Berglund Steen.
He points out that refugee espionage in Norway is a very widespread problem that affects many. He believes that the police must now invest more resources in counteracting refugee espionage in Norway. "This is a long story with many incidents, but notifications are not prioritized by ordinary police. This is something the police or PST should take, ”he says. He points out that the police attitude makes it easy for these spies to continue. "As of today, no one from the Ethiopian environment has been punished for persecuting Norwegian citizens on Norwegian soil on behalf of a foreign regime, including a dictatorship. This, in turn, makes it harmless for them to continue. The Norwegian police are not doing enough to bring this to life. If nothing else, it could help to have some concerns with those suspected of espionage, to emphasize the seriousness of this, ”says Berglund Steen.

Starting at reception. Filmmaker Solveig Syversen has followed refugee pioneering in Norway closely for several years: "I have talked to several asylum seekers from Ethiopia who have experienced being approached by people with connections to the Ethiopian government already at the asylum reception center," Syversen told Ny Tid. "They register activity at the reception, and report this back to the Ethiopian authorities."
She can tell of several episodes of violence in which regime supporters have attacked supporters of the Ethiopian opposition. «This type of refugee espionage is difficult to detect for Norwegian immigration authorities. Some come to Norway on direct orders from Ethiopian authorities, with the aim of spying on opposition supporters in Norway. They are happy to leave for another country, such as Eritrea, and travel back to Ethiopia when their assignment in Norway is completed, ”Syversen explains.
She points out that there is no direct line between PST and the Norwegian Immigration Administration today, and that the road to reporting to the police is for many to be a burden.
Senior adviser in the UDI's communications department, Therese Bergwitz Larsen, tells Ny Tid that the UDI is cooperating with the police and PST to map espionage of refugees. "The UDI is aware that refugee pioneering is taking place, and we have an ongoing collaboration with the police and PST on specific cases that can be linked to security issues," she says. "We are aware of this problem when we process cases, and the reception centers must report to the UDI and the police when they experience something suspicious. The UDI reports all we have of information in such cases to PST, and they are the ones with the overall responsibility when it comes to refugee pioneering, says Bergwitz Larsen. She points out that much of the information about this is graded for security reasons, and that it is therefore PST that should provide further comments on the scope, cases and how to work to prevent this.

All cases closed. According to the Oslo Police District, since January 2014, a total of eight reports of refugee espionage have only been received in Oslo. Two of the cases must have been closed because the perpetrator was unknown, while the others were closed for capacity reasons.

"There is little doubt that the Ethiopian authorities are behind this activity and pulling the strings."

"The police are not aware of the extent of refugee espionage on a national basis, but of course take these cases as seriously as all other cases," says Jørgen Brodal of the Oslo Police District.
“However, investigating these cases will require a good deal of resources, and we have had to prioritize. The cases I refer to are about threats, not violence. As of today, the police offer no protection, but if it should escalate, the case is obviously another, "Brodal says." Spying on political refugees in Norway has been discussed in the PST's threat assessment for several years. The threat assessment for 2015 states:
“Several states use intelligence to map their own dissidents when they have settled abroad and engage in political activity there. Such activities are also taking place in Norway, "and beyond:" We expect this activity to continue, and that political refugees may be exposed to mapping, pressure and in some cases also threats. These intelligence services also occasionally try to influence the Norwegian authorities to limit dissidents' freedom of expression in Norway. ”
Communications director at PST, Trond Haugbakken, says that it is PST's responsibility to prevent this type of illegal intelligence activity, and that they also have a role in mapping the business. “The times it is revealed, it can be handled in several ways. When it comes to notifications and possible protection, it is the local police districts that have a responsibility, ”says Haugbakken. He says that PST works continuously to uncover forms of refugee espionage in Norway, but that many different factors make it difficult to gain knowledge about how extensive refugee espionage is in Norway. “Refugee espionage is difficult to uncover for several reasons. Many of those who come to Norway as refugees have poor experience with police and government officials. These may have a high threshold for reporting the case, ”Haugbakken believes. “Another reason may also be that they are afraid of reprisals against family left in the country of origin. In some cases, it may also be unclear what is the agenda of the applicant – for example, for people who have been denied an application for asylum in Norway, ”he says. He also emphasizes that PST is working to improve police confidence. "The PST is aware of this, and we hope that people who are in contact with us feel that we are a professional police organization that is worthy of an open democracy," concludes Haugbakken.
Ny Tid has been in contact with the Norwegian Police Directorate, which stated that as of today they do not have an overview of the number of reports concerning refugee espionage, despite the fact that NRK has previously stated that 20 reports are received annually on a national basis.

carima@nytid.no