A story in Norway has attracted international attention after Karsten Nordal Hauken, a male leftist politician, stated how he was racked with “guilt and responsibility” that his rapist, a Somali man, was deported after serving time for his rape. In a documentary series entitled “I Against Me,” Hauken describes how he felt relief at the news that the Somali man was to be deported but then also felt guilt that he was the cause of the deportation.

Hauken was brutally raped by the Somali and describes the horrible crime and its aftermath. The Somali claimed that the sex was consensual but the court convicted him to four-and-a-half years in prison for the rape.

When told years later that the man would be deported, he said “The tears, they came…I felt a relief and joy that he was going away forever” but then came a feeling of “guilt and responsibility” upon hearing the news: “It was I who was the reason why he should not be left in Norway, but rather be late for a very uncertain future in Somalia. He had already served his sentence in prison. Should he now be punished again? And this time much harder?”

It is a view that, while showing a deep and admirable sense of empathy and forgiveness, is still mystifying for many of us. This is a man who came to Norway and committed a horrible crime. Why would he not be deported? Should be stay after such an offense?

It is important to note that Hauken’s interview shows a person who succeeded in transcending pain and understanding the underlying influences behind such crimes. He is remarkable in putting aside hate and working with those who live in these impoverished areas:

I lost years between depression and use of cannabis […] I learned that the original culture of the rapist was totally different from ours. In its culture sexual abuse is especially a takeover of power and not the result of desire. And it is not considered to be a homosexual act. To understand how this can happen, it must exceed its prejudices. […]

I don’t feel anger towards my abuser, because I see it more as the product of an unjust world. The product of an education marked by war and deprivation. […] I want that we continue to assist refugees in spite of such a context. […] I’m first a human being, and not one Norwegian. No, I’m part of the world, and the world is unfortunately unfair.

Hauken’s recognition of the cultural context of his rapist and the terrible conditions of Somalia is incredible for a victim of such a terrible crime. However, I find it difficult to accept his conclusion that this rapist is simply “a product of an unjust world. A product of an upbringing marked by war and deprivation.”

There are many people who have fled war and unjust conditions but do not rape people. It is the ultimate form of moral relativism and excuse in my view. I think that it is truly courageous for Hauken to come forward, particularly in showing that rape victims are not always (but overwhelmingly) female. This appears the main purpose of his interview: “I am a heterosexual man, and I was raped by another, presumably heterosexual man.”

Harken insists that he has come to understand that this is not about sex or desire but power — reflecting sexual abuse in the perpetrator’s culture: “It is not regarded as a homosexual act being the one who exerts power and raping.”

I may be a dinosaur when it comes to the psychology of such horrific experiences, but it seems to be that there are legitimate times to feel anger and that not all crimes are merely the product of upbringing or conditions. The very notion that this rapist should not have been deported is baffling and frankly disturbing. There are thousands of Somalis who want to go to countries like Norway who would never rape another person regardless of their prior suffering or desperation. While Hauken does appear to have made great strides in overcoming alcohol and drug dependence following his rape, I am not sure that he has found the “truth” and clarity that he is seeking in excusing the conduct of this man as the product of poverty or cultural abuses.

What do you think?