The committee has played a somewhat controversial role in Norwegian politics . Following the Moscow theater hostage crisis in October 2002 , Ingvald Godal said of the terrorists that " I understand their action , even though I do not defend it " . He later claimed that he failedly attempted to enlist Norway as a negotiator during the crisis . In November the same year , ahead of a state visit by Vladimir Putin in Norway , Ingvald Godal filed a prosecution request to the Police of Norway . He also suggested that the Prime Minister of Norway take initiative to an international criminal tribunal for Chechnya . The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs replied that a police prosecution of a foreign head of state is not possible , and rebuffed the latter proposal . During Putin 's visit , the committee held a demonstration together with Amnesty International , the Norwegian Helsinki Committee for Human Rights and Norwegian Church Aid . The committee has engaged in other peaceful protests , such as a 2007 memorial of Anna Politkovskaya in cooperation with the Helsinki Committee , the Norwegian PEN , the Human Rights House , the Norwegian Union of Journalists and Nobel Peace Center
Moscow theater hostage crisis
Moscow theater hostage crisis
Norwegian Support Committee for Chechnya