National memorial opens 15 years after 22 July attacks

OSLO — A permanent national memorial to the 22 July 2011 terror attacks was inaugurated on Sunday in the Government Quarter, marking the 15th anniversary of the assault that killed 77 people.

The memorial, designed by artist Matias Faldbakken, features a stone mosaic of a redshank, a wading bird native to Lake Tyrifjord. More than 300,000 hand-cut stones form the image, intended as a place of remembrance and reflection for survivors, bereaved families and future generations.

Digitalisation and Government Administration Minister Karianne Tung said in her opening address that the attacks remain a dark chapter in Norwegian history. “It was a right-wing extremist attack on us, on the Labour Youth League, on the Labour Party and on our democracy,” she told the assembled crowd, which included Crown Prince Haakon, Knowledge Minister Kari Nessa Nordtun and representatives of the 22 July Support Group and the AUF youth movement.

Merete Stamneshagen, leader of the 22 July Support Group, told attendees that the attacks struck at both lives and democracy. “When the bomb exploded here in the Government Quarter nearly 15 years ago, eight people were killed. The same day, 69 were killed on Utøya. Many more were scarred for life,” she said. “22 July was a brutal attack not only on people, but on our democracy.” She urged those present to turn the phrase “never forget, never be silent” into action.

Knowledge Minister Nordtun said the memorial’s completion signals that Norway has reclaimed the space once occupied by the temporary memorial. “Once again we have defeated the terrorist. We have taken back the Høgblokka building, just as the AUF took back Utøya,” she said, noting that public debate has grown harsher in the years since the attacks and that a new generation lacks first-hand memories of the events.

Gaute Børstad Skjervø, leader of the AUF, said 15 years is both too long to wait for a national memorial and too short to grasp the full impact of the terror on Norwegian society. “Fifteen years is too long to spend on a national memorial. Fifteen years is also too short to know what the terror has changed in us as Norwegians,” he said. “Fifteen years is the start of a new Norway, forever marked by the senseless and evil mass murder of our children.”