Marius Borg Høiby rape conviction renews focus in Norway on consent in digital age

Marius Borg Høiby was sentenced to four years in prison after being found guilty of offences including domestic violence and rape. Photograph: Hakon Mosvold Larsen/NTB/AFP/Getty Images View image in fullscreen Marius Borg Høiby was sentenced to four years in prison after being found guilty of offences including domestic violence and rape. Photograph: Hakon Mosvold Larsen/NTB/AFP/Getty Images Marius Borg Høiby rape conviction renews focus in Norway on consent in digital age Norway is supposedly one of world’s most gender-equal countries, yet sexual violence remains prevalent across society I n many ways, the case of Marius Borg Høiby, who was sentenced to four years in prison last week after being found guilty of offences including domestic violence and two counts of rape, was exceptional. The king’s 29-year-old step-grandson grew up in the public eye alongside the royal family, mixing in Oslo’s wealthiest circles, partying at exclusive nightclubs and having afterparties at his family’s official royal residence. But at its core the case also highlights a dark universal truth, one that has resonated with Norwegians and people around the world: the prevalence of violence, particularly sexual violence, in daily life, even in one of the world’s supposedly most gender equal countries, and how it has been exacerbated by the digital age. It has also exposed, despite important changes to Norway’s consent law last year, a severe lack of understanding of the issue across Norwegian society, experts say, from children to teenagers to prosecutors. “The verdict has been on everyone’s lips, both in my personal world with my friends, but also here at the office we have discussed this quite a bit,” said Åsne Solberg, a legal adviser at JURK, which provides free advice to women at their offices in Oslo. Like many other Norwegian women, Solberg has been personally shaken by the combination of the trial, and the publication of the Epstein files, which revealed details of the years-long friendship between Høiby’s mother, the crown princess Mette-Marit and the late US sex offender. “You really get a glimpse of how some of these men resonate, or don’t resonate, with their own actions,” she said. “And how, deep down on the inside, they perceive women and the worth of women and what they can do to women. I think it’s just very dark, honestly.” She also knows from professional experience that the Høiby case is not unique. View image in fullscreen Crown Princess Mette-Marit, who was revealed to have had a years-long friendship with Jeffrey Epstein. Photograph: Andreas Fadum/dana press/Shutterstock Despite Norway’s reputation as a global leader on gender equality, one in five women have been raped at least once, and one in 10 have experienced serious partner violence. “We call it the Nordic paradox,” said Solberg. “That on paper we are very equal but when it comes to our violence statistics it is quite dire still.” Norway’s new consent laws, which came into effect last year,