Anders Breivik intended killing 3 politicians & beheading a former Prime Minister – My Comments

Very soon after the shooting erupted, Pedersen, along with his political aide, sought refuge on the ferry MS Thorbjørn, and along with seven other people decided to make their escape from the island.[27] Pedersen later stated that while being at the Hønefoss police headquarters he feared a coup d’etat had taken place, and that he could not trust any member of the police. In an interview with TV2 he stated: "I thought the entire country was under attack […] if we docked anywhere we would be killed."[28]

More recently Adrian Pracon, a survivor and employee of AUF who himself was wounded wrote of his reaction to seeing the ferry leave in a book describing his ordeal. One section describes his disbelief and disappointment of seeing M/S Thorbjørn head away from the island, depriving him of hope of escape.[30] The 22-year-old from Telemark Pracon later underscored that the passage in the book was not intended as criticism of Eskil Pedersen or the crew of M/S Thorbjørn.[31]

Another survivor of the massacre, 20-year-old Bjørn Ihler from Oslo said of Pedersen in an interview with the BBC: "This was the leader of the group, it was as if the Captain abandoned his ship".,[31] but later stated that his quotes were part of a broader context, and that he had described his feelings of being abandoned, more than criticising the actions.[32][33] Pedersen defended his actions in the same programme, stating: "I think I acted normally given the situation. I acted according to instinct. I did what I was told and boarded the boat" and countered "I have been criticized for my actions, and for my views on the multicultural society by people who support the gunman’s views".[34]

The movements of MS Thorbjørn were subject to investigation as a part of the broader inquiry into the attacks by the official July 22 Commission.[35] In the Gjørv Report, the police received harsh criticism for failing to utilize the ferry early in the rescue effort. The report states that when contacting the police immediately after leaving Utøya both the captain and other passengers received instructions flee to safety.[36]

The controversy flared up again in September 2012 due to comments by Brynjar Meling. Meling is a high-profile lawyer in the case and his office represents a few dozen of the affected, both AUF-members and relatives of the deceased. He claimed some of his clients questioned Pedersen’s leadership of the organization but felt unable to communicate this publicly.[37] Furthermore, Meling claimed that his clients felt that Pedersen’s actions during the massacre should have consequences for his future career, and that they were frustrated by the AUF leadership’s insistence that the organization as a whole was united behind Pedersen.[38]

The comments immediately caused a fiery reaction from the AUF as well as the Labour party.[39] Secretary-General of the Labour Party Raymond Johansen responded to Meling saying he felt "nauseated and furious" at him, other politicians used more profane expressions.[40] Meling responded by accusing the Johansen and the Labour party of attempting to stifle the debate as well as depriving the survivors of the opportunity to ask critical questions.[41] Leaders of rival parties subsequently defended Pedersen, calling the criticism "tasteless".[42] A former senior member of the Labour party and AUF who lost her younger sister in the massacre, described how she was prevented from raising questions within the party regarding the incident. She claimed that: "MS Thorbjørn and Eskil Pedersen were not to be discussed, it was completely taboo". She since left the party altogether in protest.[43]