Scientific and Political Issues of Anders Breiviks Mental Illness - Essay Example

? Critically examine the scientific and political issues in assessing whether the Norwegian killer Anders Behring Breivik is mentally ill University Critically examine the scientific and political issues in assessing whether the Norwegian killer Anders Behring Breivik is mentally ill 33 years old Anders Behring Breivik murdered 77 people with bomb and gun attacks in Oslo and the island of Utoya in the summer of 2011. Later on, he admitted to have carried out this heinous act and agreed that he had killed all the 77 young political analysts. According to Breivik, the killings were an act of "self-preservation" against what he called Islamic colonization (Pidd, 2012). He was declared mentally ill by the prosecutors who asked the jury to send him to a mental institution, not prison. However, Breivik, on the other hand openly stated that this psychiatric aspect of his case is just another way to distract the attention of the world from his ideology and principles (Oliver, 2012). In order to assess whether he is mentally ill, it is important to delve deep into the political as well as scientific issues related to this massacre carried out by Anders Behring Breivik. As far as the scientific and mental aspects of the mass killer Breivik’s health are concerned, it is important to explore the relationship between mental illness and its probable consequences. For the past few years, media has been put on a loose leash and the fact that it so often associated madness or mental illness to violent crimes that such aggressive and brutal massacres become justified in the eyes of the audience. As far as this case was concerned, everybody wanted to see and hear more for; after all, it was touched with a hint of fascination. For instance, Breivicks’s case relived that of a German schoolmaster, Ernst Wagner, who opened fire on the people residing in the village of Mulhausen in the year 2013. Once again, media used that case to deepen the hatred against the mentally ill. However, his psychiatrist, Rober Gaupp, clearly explained that these killings in no way mean that the other mentally unstable individuals would act similarly (Leader, 2011). Hence, always associating violent acts with madness or vice versa sounds irrational. Breivik’s case is a combination of madness and a normal life. Old psychiatry aids us in understanding Breivik’s case way better than other diagnostic theories presented by specialists and experts. According to the explanations of old psychiatry, he may be suffering from paranoia. However, there is a difference between paranoia and being paranoid. Anyone in the world can be paranoid but paranoia refers to a system of ideologies and beliefs and for Breivik it was the fight against Islam as paranoiacs mostly find a problem with some aspect of the world. The urge to remove the fault they see with that particular aspect is so strong that they often spend most pat of their lives campaigning against it. Their delusions can most certainly be altogether wrong but they can be true as well. Furthermore, the madness is not related to the beliefs but with the relation that person has with the beliefs. The certainty about their beliefs often leads them to form movements or groups. In the same way, it is expected that Breivik, too, will attract some followers (Leader, 2011). According to the old ideas, a subject is responsible of his actions only if he is aware of the difference between right and wrong. This is exactly the central characteristic of paranoia. They are always convinced that what they are doing is absolutely right. This is the logic behind his madness as explained by Darian Leader (2011) in the guardian. However, at the same time, the question arises: what is the basis for believing that Breivik is indeed insane? This question leaves many doubts about the old psychiatry analysis. It has been observed that whenever someone attempts something incomprehensible, for instance mass murder in this case, they are deemed insane, most of the times. This happens because human beings in general are uncomfortable with the fact that sheer evil exists in the society. Moreover, his murders were carefully planned. The most interesting thing to note here is that believing in something strong enough to carry out actions on the basis of it is not always a sign of paranoia. With that logic, religious people all around the world would come under the category of mentally ill. Further medical research on Breivik’s case brings into light the testimonies of a professor of psychiatry, Ulrik Fredrik Malt, at Oslo University. According to him, Breivik is suffering from a very rare form of Asperger’s disease. The disease has made him incapable of feeling empathetic towards others. He explained his lack of emotion and real friendship by describing the way he remembered shocking amount of details about his killings. Professor Ulrik cited his monotonous tone and obsessive writing as an evidence of his disease (Daily Mail Reporter, 2012). He declared them the consequences of his dysfunctional brain lobe. However, the most interesting thing to note here is that Breivik instantly claimed that the remarks were insulting. Moreover, he told the jury that giving psychiatric dimension to his case is only meant to divert the attention of people from his beliefs. In fact, he declared Professor Ulrik’s remarks as character assassination. The moment Breivik confessed killing 77 innocent people; his sanity became the key element in solving the case. On the other hand, Professor Ulrick argued that Breivik is not a victim of normal schizophrenia and hence, discarded the first psychiatric reports presented in the court that declared Breivik mentally unstable (Daily Mail Reporter, 2012). Professor Ulrick went as far as asking the relevant authorities to treat this case as something more than right-wing extremism. He is of the view that only Asperger’s can explain the issues his mother had with him when he was four years old. These issues led both of them to spend several months at Norway’s National Centre for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. However, the Asperger’s support groups are against all the attempts of relating this massacre to this particular disease. According to the experts at support groups, there is no evidence whatsoever of Asperger’s association with increased violence (Daily Mail Reporter, 2012). The fact that prominent psychiatrists of the country keep insisting that Breivik is mentally unstable while he, at the same time, considers it an attempt at character assassination leaves doubt regarding the claims of psychiatrists. It is equally probable that the government or the authorities behind the investigation are trying the hide the original motives behind the mass killing that happened on July 22, 2011 by giving a psychiatric dimension to this case. Therefore, it is equally important to analyze the political issues and aspects encompassing the whole incident in order to make a final decision about the mental health of Anders Behring Breivik who is responsible for the murder of 77 innocent young political analysts. As far as the political issues are concerned, Breivik himself confessed his political motives claiming that it was an act of self-protection against the rapid Islamic colonization in Norway and Europe in general. His mental state is the main topic of debate among masses and so is his probable influence on right-wing ideology. It is a known fact that Breivick was an active member of anti-immigrant and Progress party in his adulthood. However, later on, he quit the party in the year 2007 (Ladegaard, 2013). A teaching fellow at the University of Leeds, Metter Wiggin, argues that the Progress Party has played a crucial role in promoting an irrational fear of immigrants and their foreign cultures among the people of Norway and other politicians and their parties have done nothing to correct this concept and avoid such misconceptions. The integration of different cultures has apparently failed in most regions of the county mainly due to strong stance of prominent politicians against immigration. Even the policies reflect that immigrants or the people belonging to cultures other than the Norwegians are a problem to the society (Ladegaard, 2013). In addition to that, Wiggen argues that problems are often associated with cultures. She explains that Islam is portrayed has a very negative image and is portrayed as a violent religion when in reality it is not violent in the least. In fact, violence or extremist activities are confined to Islam; every culture has such right-wing extremists. As in this case, the act of violent mass murder by Anders Behring Brievick who was born and raised in Norway, aids one tarrying example of the presence of extremism in all the cultures (Ladegaard, 2013). Breivick is now considered as the modern day Christian crusader who vowed to fight against Islam and wipe it from Europe altogether. Moreover, he was inclined towards eliminating Marxists from the world. Apparently, he used the word Marxists to refer to democratic political parties around the world (Ames, 2011). If the claims made in the 1500 page long testament released by him are authentic, Breivik asserts that he, indeed, has founded a movement with others from across the continent of Europe. However, his attempt to employ mass murder and terrorism against the minorities residing in European countries sets him apart from other extremely nationalist individuals (Ames, 2011). Breivick left the Progress party after nine years of dedication on account of his wavering faith in democratic politics. He was of the view that only violent action could abolish the multiculturalism from Norway and other European countries. Evidence has been found in the favor of his contacts with anti-Islamic English Defense League. The events that happened in the summer of 201l changed the entire concept of political fiction of using terrorism to achieve political motives. Breivick violent acts turned this fiction into reality (Ames, 2011). In addition to that, his 1500 page manifesto enlists the names of far-right Americans who were the source of his inspiration. The names include Robert Spencer, founder of Jihad Watch, Frank Gaffney, Daniel Pipes and many others. His manifesto contains long excerpts from the writings of Daniel Pipes that clearly manifest Islamophobia (Blumenthal, 2013). Now, Oslo Freedom Forum founder has been reported to form ties with those very Islamophobes who were the source of Inspiration for Anders Behring Brievik. Oslo Freedom Forum is publicly known to receive a huge amount of financial aid from Donors Capital Fund and Donors Trust, Inc. This is the same American foundation that financed the expansion of the network of professional Islamophobes (Blumenthal, 2013). Hence, it is pertinent to say that there are indeed political forces in play acting as stimulator of acts like those carried out by Breivik. The relationship between medical and political issues is quite complex. Breivik faced many trials in court regarding his gun as well as bomb attacks leading to the murders of 77 people in the streets of central Oslo. The killings also took place on the Island of Utoya. Consequently, he admitted the whole planning and carrying out of mass murder by declaring it essential in order to thwart the expansion of immigrants in Norway. The prosecutors argued against Breivik’s conviction that he was sane the time of mass murder. The issue of him being criminally responsible is the most important debate. Therefore, he was examined by eighteen medical experts in order to find an authentic evidence of his mental illness (Loughnan, 2012). Some of them gave the verdict that he was indeed insanity. Breivik, on the other hand, disregarded all such reports claiming them a part of the scheme to silence him and his ideologies. At the same time, the remaining medical experts declared him sane at the time of killings. They claimed that his actions were influenced by his extremist ideologies and beliefs and not his unstable mental health. The most interesting thing to note here is that the jury handling the case reached a similar decision and declared him guilty (Loughnan, 2012). The clash of opinions between medical experts makes it more and more certain that Breivik’s actions were driven by ideologies rather than mental illness. However, it cannot be denied that the process comprising of diagnosis is somewhat convoluted. To determine whether a detrimental mental illness had an effect on a particular human being at a particular time is exceptionally complicated (Loughnan, 2011). After the arrest of Breivik, two forensic psychiatrists appointed by the court diagnosed him with paranoid schizophrenia. The report was approved by the Norwegian Board of Forensic Medicine. However, it raised much hue and cry among the public when the report leaked to the media. Media anchors and journalists all around the world began to question the authenticity and credibility of the two forensic psychiatrists appointed to inquire into the matter by the court. As a result, a huge pressure was put on the court and even despite the agreement of prosecutors and Breivik’s defense attorney’s agreement to the report, the court had to reorder the mental evaluation of his mental state by a second expert panel (Myklebust, 2012). Surprisingly, the new reports contradicted the old reports declaring Breivik mentally ill. The newly appointed health experts argued that it was indeed surprising to find out through first reports that he was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia without any reported proof of either uncontrollable impulses or hallucinations (Myklebust, 2012). Furthermore, the lack of investigative and diagnostic accuracy made it more of a political crime involving specific ideologies and beliefs. Moreover, the weakest point in the first report was the lack of proper association of Brievik’s delusions with their clinical definition. Most of the thoughts termed as delusions in the first report compiled by the forensic psychiatrists did not come under the category of the appropriate clinical definition as defined by the prominent psychiatrics. This weak point was also the start of speculations regarding the political dimension of the case. It can be concluded from this entire scenario that the contradiction between the two reports led to the development and appointment of better and more knowledgeable experts in the court system of Norway (Myklebust, 2012). Apart from that, police confirmed that Breivik accepted full responsibility but, at the same time, he denied to accept the criminal responsibility altogether. In other words, he refused to accept that he deserves punishment for his crimes. The main reason behind this denial was his evident certainty regarding the carrying out of his ideas practically. His lawyer informed the media that these acts were essential to carry out in his head in order to stop the rapid immigration of Muslims and people belonging to different cultures to Norway and other European countries (Westcott, 2011). The careful analysis of his previous life suggests that he was linked to far-right extremist groups and spent several years planning the course of his actions. All these actions put the case in political light way more than medical dimension mainly because such planned acts are not attempted mainly on account of paranoia or schizophrenia (Westcott, 2011). At this point, it is important to realize that sheer evil does exist in this world driven by its motives and violent ideologies. Every violent act cannot possible be attributed to the poor mental health or mental instability of the criminal. A forensic clinical psychologist, Ian Stephen, studied Brevik’s 1500 page manifesto in detail. Following the careful study and analysis, he told the BBC News that it was one of the scariest documents he had ever read during the course of his life time. He further stated that it seems to be written by a man who possesses remarkably careful and thorough as far as the development his philosophy and ideologies is concerned. He has clearly researched everything in an elaborate manner by shutting himself away from the outside world. Moreover, he does not seem to be deluded or mentally ill as he is well groomed and does not show any probable signs of chaotic behavior and lack of control on himself. He appeared completely organized and alert during the court sessions (Westcott, 2011). Brievik takes pride in calling himself a loyal ultranationalist concerned about the decaying culture of his country due to the arrival of immigrants. This was one of the main reasons on account of which he wanted to be ruled sane just to ensure that his actions would not get discharged on the basis of his unstable mental state. However, after the detailed analysis of his mental health, Breivik was declared guilty. He was given 21 year imprisonment in the year 2012. The prosecutors informed the media they were not planning to lodge any appeal against the final verdict issued by the court. The ten week trial that ended in June 2012 finally gave its verdict against Anders Behring Brievik after careful and detailed examination of the evidence (Spark, 2012). The court verdict is another strong point that strengthens the political dimension of the case by significantly ruling out the possibility of unstable mental health behind all the killings. In addition to that, referring to Breivik as madman is equivalent to a crime towards the people suffering from mental problems. The process of equating violent acts with mental health problems is just another way for the human beings to find answers to the questions that are incomprehensible to them (Mental health Europe, 2011). Moreover, he was properly equipped with automatic rifle and a handgun at the time of attack that clearly manifests his aims (Anders Behring Brievik, 2012). In short, it can be concluded from the above mentioned facts and statistics related to Brievik’s life, mental health and political associations that he was mentally stable when decided to carry out mass murder on the basis of strong ideologies against Islam, Muslims and other immigrants. It has been observed that the political parties, their leaders and some influential Americans who believe in anti-immigrant sentiments were the source of inspiration for the mass killer Brievik who is responsible for the murder of 77 innocent young political analysts present in Oslo and the Island of Utoya at the time of attack. Besides, his declaration of all the remarks directed towards his ill mental state as character assassination complements the court verdict that he was perfectly sane when he carried out the mass murder in the summer of 2011. References Ames, Paul. (2011, July 25). Is Andres Behring Breivil part of a movement. Global Post. Retrieved from http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/europe/110724/europe-right-wing-political-parties-Breivik-manifesto Anders Behring Breivik. (2012, August 24). The New York Times. Retrieved from http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/b/anders_behring_breivik/index.html Blumenthal, Max. (2013, May 14). Oslo Freedom Forum founder’s ties to Islamophobes who inspired mass killer Anders Breivi. The Electronic Intifada. Retrieved from http://electronicintifada.net/content/oslo-freedom-forum-founders-ties-islamophobes-who-inspired-mass-killer-anders-breivik/12451 Daily Mail Reporter. (2012, June 8). 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