The house inside is neat and cozy. Lise beckoned us into a small living room where on the table there were cakes and jam and fruits, and taking in the aroma of coffee to come, I collapsed into the depths of a sofa. This is where our women meet with their relatives and friends, as often as they can and want to come. Our only rule on visiting is no drug addicts, and to be sure of that we check each visitor's computer record through his or her ID card. The greatest fear is that someone will bring drugs to the girls.
Drugs are the main evil against which the Norwegian authorities are always battling.
Over half the country's prisoners are in for drug peddling, and here even relatively harmless soporifics such as valium are categorized as addictive. Women prisoners are allowed to go home or to a boyfriend twice monthly for 24 hours. It's the only time when the women are on their own. They have to give the address where they will be and, of course, they have to return to the prison on time. The girls, silent but smiling, were preparing the midday meal.