– I don’t really get any information myself. The last I heard was in April, said Silje Falmår to news on Wednesday morning. Silje Falmår experienced both bullying, harassment, unwanted sexual attention and abuse in the Armed Forces. She reported the conditions, but they did not improve. Now she receives an award for openness about difficult topics. Photo: Øyvind Bye Skille / news In February this year, Silje Falmår appeared in cases at news and told about bullying and harassment in the first service in the Armed Forces. Today, Falmår receives the Tabu prize from the Council for Mental Health. On that occasion, she was a guest on news’s Nyhetsmorgen. Then Falmår said that she is still waiting for a final answer from the Norwegian Armed Forces – more than two years after she gave notice for the first time. – I actually go and wait for answers that apparently don’t come, said Falmår. The notification case for Falmår has received a lot of attention. Read the case: In April this year, the Norwegian Armed Forces concluded the case and admitted mistakes in the follow-up of Silje. But Falmår has not been given access to the report from the Norwegian Armed Forces. When she learned about the Defense Force’s conclusion in a meeting in April, she also pointed out what she believed to be errors in the report. – I expected some form of follow-up. Major General Elisabeth Michelsen met Silje Falmår outside news’s studio this morning. Michelsen is responsible for following up the Norwegian Armed Forces’ work against bullying and sexual harassment. – Silje Falmår says she is looking forward to putting this case behind her. When will this report be released and the case closed so everyone can move on? – Now I heard that Silje said it on the broadcast and I met her on the way into the studio. The defense’s understanding was that it had ended, but Silje’s understanding is obviously not the same. Then we have to deal with it. I have asked for a meeting during the day so that we can clarify and deal with such a situation which is not tenable. We have to solve it, said the major general. – She is tough and brave. The meeting will take place later today. Falmår was also awarded the Tabu prize today. The Council for Mental Health annually awards the Taboo Prize. The award is an honorary award to individuals, groups of people, organizations or businesses who have made an effort to break down prejudices and taboos, and who promote inclusion, consideration and openness about mental health. Silje Falmår received the Tabu prize 2023 from Tove Gundersen, secretary general of the Council for Mental Health. Photo: Marit Higraff / news – For us, it is of great importance that someone dares to report, says secretary general Tove Gundersen of the Council for Mental Health. She praises that Silje Falmår chose to speak out about bullying, abuse and harassment on behalf of herself and ten others who were in their initial service in the Armed Forces. – She is tough and brave who stands in this. The aim is to contribute to knowledge and openness. So that no one else experiences being unsure that it is safe to be in the Armed Forces, says Tove Gundersen. Silje Falmår: – Confirmation that what I did was right Silje Falmår tells news that she feels she is being recognized for what she did through this award. – Receiving the Taboo Prize is experienced as a form of confirmation that what I did was right, and that it is perceived by many as both important and courageous to report and come forward with what I have experienced, she says to news. Falmår was the main person in news’s cases about harassment in the initial service at the Stridstrenbataljonen in the Army. She told about what she had experienced in reports. Afterwards, she met defense chief Eirik Kristoffersen face to face in the TV program Debatten. Defense chief Eirik Kristoffersen asked Silje Falmår for an apology in the program Debatten. There she could say that she had not yet received an answer to her case. Kristoffersen apologized for the experiences she had had, but said she still had to wait for an answer about her whistleblowing case. Silje can tell news about a lot of hardship. – I wish I was met as a whistleblower right away. Instead, I experienced that I was perceived as a problem. Silje Falmår thanks for support after much hardship. – Being awarded the Taboo Prize means a lot to me, and I think it also means a lot to many others who have been in a similar situation. I have been in a situation where I have almost exclusively faced adversity, and this is experienced as a statement of support from those who really understand the strain I have been under, says Falmår to news. Harassment and abuse in the Armed Forces Silje Falmår is one of several who in recent years have come forward and told about problems in the Armed Forces with bullying, harassment, abuse and abuse of power. news has had a number of cases about whistleblowers and errors in the Armed Forces. The Norwegian Defense Forces had to engage external investigators who looked into notification cases and notification systems. In a report from the consulting company PWC, it was concluded, among other things, that there were a number of deficiencies in the notification systems in the Armed Forces. Following this, the Armed Forces have promised to make changes and reorganize the notification systems in the Armed Forces. A review of Silje Falmår’s case internally in the Norwegian Armed Forces also found errors and omissions. When the Army’s notification channel had processed the notifications she sent in about incorrect handling, they concluded with two cases of errors in how they took care of Silje as a soldier and whistleblower. The Norwegian Defense Force also believes that Silje Falmår’s coming forward has meant a lot in bringing the problems in the agency into focus. – Silje’s case is perhaps the case that has had the greatest significance for the Norwegian Armed Forces taking this seriously. The fact that I am sitting here today is an example of that, says Major General Elisabeth Michelsen to news. Major General Elisabeth Michelsen has been appointed as responsible for following up on the challenges of whistle-blowing, bullying and sexual harassment in the Armed Forces. Photo: Øyvind Bye Skille / news After a number of cases about problems in the Armed Forces, the agency chose to appoint its own general against bullying and harassment. Elisabeth Michelsen has been given responsibility and now heads the department for culture and professions in the Norwegian Armed Forces. – What do you think about the fact that she will not recommend others to notify the Armed Forces? – I think it is quite serious. We take that very seriously, replies Michelsen. She admits that the PWC report went a long way towards killing the notification system in the Armed Forces. – After that year with the media’s focus and brave women who have come forward, we have really understood the seriousness. So we are working on management and changing our culture. Then we will get down to business, says the major-general. She says that what Silje Falmår says about the lack of follow-up as a warning is something they are working on improving. Among other things, by creating new digital tools that will help both whistleblowers and employer managers in the Armed Forces. Michelsen says that they still have zero tolerance for bullying and sexual harassment, but that they cannot guarantee that things will not happen again. Nevertheless, they must do more to ensure that it is safe to enter the primary service. – We call on these with the law in hand. Then it should be safe to be there, says Major General Elisabeth Michelsen. Hello! Do you have any input for us? Do you know of other matters in the Armed Forces that news should look at? Or do you know more about this case? Feel free to contact us by e-mail if you have input. You can also send us input, tips and information encrypted and secure via news’s extra secure notification reception – see how to submit via news’s SecureDrop here. news’s journalists have previously made several cases about conditions in the Armed Forces – among other things about whistle-blowing, about the senior sergeant who was tried to be pressured to lie to the police, the helicopter squadron commander who was tried to be pressured out of his job, the women who told about sexual harassment from a colonel, the lieutenant colonel who said that she was asked to write about reports, about trampling by Norwegian officers on UN missions in South Sudan and about Silje Falmår who told about bullying, harassment and abuse during his initial service. We are always interested in new information that enables us to shine a spotlight on the defense sector. So just get in touch with us. Marit Higraff, Tormod Strand, Christine Svendsen, Øyvind Bye SkilleJournalists at NRKSend me an e-mail
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Urgent meeting on the Silje case after news appearance – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
