Norway's prime minister tells country to 'guard freedom' at memorial service
Candlelit ceremony in Oslo marks end of month of mourning for the 77 victims of the 22 July killings
Norway's prime minister urged his people to look after each other and be vigilant about intolerance as the country concluded a month-long mourning period with a candlelit memorial service to the 77 people killed by the rightwing extremist Anders Behring Breivik.
Speaking at an arena in Oslo, Jens Stoltenberg said: "We need you. No matter where you live, no matter which god you worship, each and every one of us can take responsibility and can guard freedom."
Breivik, a 32-year-old Norwegian, has admitted carrying out the 22 July killings – first detonating a car bomb that killed eight people outside government offices in Oslo, then shooting dead 69 others at a youth camp on the island of Utøya, about 25 miles away.
The prime minister, who received standing ovations from the 6,700 people in the audience during his speech, said: "Together we are an unbreakable chain of care, democracy and safety – that is our protection against violence.
"Today time stops in order to remember those who died. We do it as one nation. Every candle has warmed, every thought has comforted, every rose has given hope. We are a small country, but we are a large people."
Norwegian singer-songwriter Susanne Sundfør opened the memorial service with a heartfelt performance of a classic Norwegian song, My Little Country, which has taken on special significance since the terror attacks and left many in the audience quietly wiping away tears.
Addressing the gathering, Norway's King Harald said he felt for each person in the country, but that he was certain Norway would surmount its pain.
"I firmly believe that we will uphold our ability to live freely and securely in our country," he said.
Later, the Norwegian rap group Karpe Diem performed a song about tolerance.
"I am a Muslim, Chirag is a Hindu and our friends they are also different, but we have never felt as Norwegian and we have not felt as much togetherness before as we do now, after 22 July," rapper Magdi Ytreeide Abdelmaguid said before performing the song.
As the names of each one of the 77 victims were read out loud, some broke out in loud sobs while others sat in silence.
Elsewhere in the city, flags flew at half mast as people laid flowers and children blew soap bubbles outside the cathedral.
on The Guardian World News: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/aug/21/norway-memorial-oslo-victims