The Norwegian King Harald V asked his compatriots to speak to young people about the terrorist attacks in Oslo and on the island of Utøya. "As a nation, we have a shared responsibility to initiate the teachings of July 22nd to new generations," he said Thursday evening at a national memorial service honoring the 77 people who died in the attacks ten years ago. "We owe it to all those killed, the relatives, the victims and ourselves. To become better people, to become a smarter people and to create an even better Norway for those who come after us."
At the same time, the monarch pointed out that one must realize that Norway as a society had by far not done enough to shoulder the burden of July 22, 2011 together and counteract dark forces.
He regrets that, said Harald.
The right-wing extremist Anders Behring Breivik killed a total of 77 people on July 22, 2011 with a car bomb in Oslo's government district and a massacre among the participants in the annual summer camp of the youth organization of the Social Democratic Workers' Party on Utøya.
At a memorial service a month later, the king had given what was probably the most difficult speech of his life.
"I hold on to the belief that freedom is stronger than fear," he said at the time with tears.
"I hold fast to the belief in an open Norwegian democracy and society."