Peace, love and politics

Transcription

Avast! Pirate Bay hacker
hacks cops
Children’s Fair wrap-up:
Fun, sun and painted faces
3
10-11
14 - 20 June 2013 | Vol 16 Issue 24
Yoko Ono: still weighty
after turning 80
G2
Denmark’s only English-language newspaper | cphpost.dk
SCANPIX / MARIE HALD
NEWS
School reform in place. It’s not your
imagination kids, the school day
really is getting longer
5
SPORT
Nightmare in Parken
Remember the miracle on ice?
Denmark needs at least three to
qualify for the World Cup
14
BUSINESS
Peace, love and
politics
As politicians head to the annual
‘people’s meeting’, critics say the
lobbyists have taken over
Novo Nordisk corporate image
battered by tax case and fears one of
its products hurts instead of heals
15
CULTURE
Expats invited to be part of
Museum of Copenhagen
Kierkegaard exhibition
18
Price: 25 DKK
Europol exit threatens Danish policing
PETER STANNERS
Love knows no borders
9 771398 100009
4
Denmark’s opt-outs on EU co-operation
could force Denmark to leave the EU’s
law enforcement agency that its police
force replies upon to fight serious and
organised crime
M
oney laundering, drug trafficking and cyber crime do not
respect national borders, a fact
that presents challenges to European police forces that have to try and
solve crimes that can span the continent.
Their job is made easier thanks to
the EU law enforcement agency Europol where liaison officers from each of
the national police forces share and analyse information related to cross-border
crime at its headquarters in the Hague,
Netherlands.
Love knows
no borders
Saturday
June 22
2-4pm
www.copenhagen.dk/en
Free admission
But in a major blow to Denmark,
the Danish national police, Rigspolitiet,
may have to withdraw its liaison officers because of a European Commission
(EC) proposal designed to strengthen
Europol’s role as a hub for fighting serious and organised crime in Europe.
The reason can be traced back to
1993 when Denmark signed the Treaty
of Edinburgh that kept it within the EU
but on the condition that it would not
participate in four areas of co-operation:
defence, the euro, EU citizenship, and
justice and home affairs (JHA).
The EC’s proposal will transform
Europol from an intergovernmental organisation to a supranational co-operation within the EU’s joint judicial and
policing policies. This area of co-operation falls under the JHA opt-out, meaning that Denmark will no longer have a
mandate to remain in Europol.
This may mean that Rigspolitiet
will have to clear its desks in the Hague
as soon as the changes are agreed – a
scenario that could have severe consequences for Danish policing.
According to Europol, its 800
staff, who co-operate with all 27 EU
national police forces, are involved in
around 13,500 cross-border investigations every year.
EU national police forces use Europol’s secure communication network
to exchange over 220,000 messages between each other every year. They use
Europol to consult another national
police force in around a quarter of all
domestic cases.
Jan Jarlbæk, a Rigspolitiet liaison officer between 2006 and 2010, explained
that Europol’s 145 liaison officers per-
form a vital role in helping their national police forces build cases.
“I had the entire EU in the same
building and I only had to walk a few
steps to be in another country,” Jarlbæk told The Copenhagen Post. “It was
a major benefit because I could build a
network and liaise on issues that, at first
glance, didn’t necessarily seem to be that
interesting. We could share and give information on the go to a network of 27
countries plus the non-party states. We
had very quick access to information.”
Liaison officers also carry out their
own analysis and investigative work to
try and find connections between cases
in different member countries.
“If I read about a case in a Danish
newspaper or in the daily reports that I
SpeciaL reader event
For LoverS onLy!
Let your love go down in history
Contribute an item symbolising your relationship
to the Museum of Copenhagen
Europol continues on page 6
2
WEEK IN REVIEW
THE COPENHAGEN POST CPHPOST.DK
CPH POST WORD OF THE WEEK:
14 - 20 June 2013
THE WEEK’S MOST READ STORIES
AT CPHPOST.DK
Bortførelse (noun) – kidnapping. Where you heard it: In the decision against Thomas Sørensen, who was given a
suspended sentence by an Austrian court for kidnapping his son and bringing him back to Denmark (see page 3)
Aussie boyband’s wanking stunt
in Copenhagen draws widespread
condemnation
SCANPIX / TORKIL ADSERSEN
Eyes on the prize
Danish father shocked by Austrian
kidnapping ruling
End of paper tickets an expensive
transition for tourists
Copenhagen: Danish for welcome
Select Shopping | Twas some
greatness in a cocktail bar
FROM OUR ARCHIVES
TEN YEARS AGO. AP Møller takes first
steps to consolidate its steamship
subsidaries, DS 1912 and DS
Svendborg
FIVE YEARS AGO. After two months of
picketing, health-care workers and
daycare teachers sign a new contract
and end their strike
A participant in the 2013 School Olympics takes her turn in the vaulting competition at Østerbro Stadium on Monday. Over 5,000 children aged
10-12 from 244 schools qualified for the finals of the annual event.
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Exams too exacting
A STUDY by the association
for local governments, KL, has
shown that the grades many
upper-secondary level students
receive on their written exams
often cause a dip in their overall grade point average (GPA).
Nationwide, GPAs over the
past three years have averaged
6.7, while the average exam
President and Publisher
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Since 1998, The Copenhagen Post has been Denmark’s
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under the Media Liability Act)
Kevin McGwin
News Editor
Justin Cremer
Journalists
Peter Stanners, Ray Weaver &
Christian Wenande
grade has been 6.0. A lack of
parental help in preparing and
greater safeguards against cheating were among the explanations
given for the discrepancy. Some
schools have reported students
dropping on average two grades.
A student association DGS, has
called for an end to written exams in response.
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COLOURBOX / JENS NØRGAARD LARSEN
Extra! Extra!
ONE YEAR AGO. The future of
Christiania seems safe after
Fonden Fristaden Christiania, the
organisation charged with managing
the settlement, secures a 55 million
kroner loan
Youth crime decline
A JUSTICE Ministry report has
shown that juvenile crime figures in Copenhagen have fallen.
The survey of 1,674 school students, revealed the number of
youths comitting criminal acts
has fallen by 25 percent from
2006. The report also included
a similar survey from Odense,
which showed that while juve-
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Aviaja Bebe Nielsen
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nile crime has been falling in
Copenhagen, young people in
the capital still wind up outside
the law more often than their
counterparts in Odense. For
instance, 16 percent of young
people surveyed in Copenhagen
admitted to shoplifting, compared with only nine percent in
Odense.
The CPH Post welcomes outside
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News
The Copenhagen Post cphpost.dk
14 - 20 June 2013
Hacker charged with theft
from police databases
Pirate Bay co-founder Gottfrid
Svartholm Warg is suspected
of being an accomplice of the
20-year-old arrested last week
following a tip-off from the
Swedish authorities
A
suspected hacker
has been charged with
breaking into the police’s
IT system and stealing
vast amounts of private information including social security
(CPR) numbers.
The 20-year-old Dane was
arrested last week following a
police investigation that was
It’s a major attack on
the IT system used for
the police databases
and which we expect
CSC to protect for us
started in January when Swedish authorities alerted the Danish national police, Rigspolitiet,
that its IT system may have
been broken into.
Gottfrid Svartholm Warg,
the notorious Swedish hacker
and co-founder of filesharing
website the Pirate Bay, has also
been charged by the Danish
police, who are demanding his
extradition.
Warg is currently in custody
in Sweden after being arrested
on suspicion of hacking into the
bank Nordea and the Swedish
equivalent of the CPR register,
the Folkbokföringsregistret.
The Danish suspect is accused of hacking into Rigspolitiet’s IT system, which is run
by CSC, a computer firm that
protects a number of sensitive
databases belonging to the police
and other public authorities.
The IT professional, whose
name was not released, is
charged with stealing around
4,000,000 pieces of information from CSC’s database last
year and passing them onto
Warg.
The data included the
email addresses and passwords
of 10,000 policeman as well as
CPR numbers from the driving
licence database and information about wanted persons in the
Schengen region.
Rigspolitiet chief Jens
Højberg stated in a press release that much of the stolen
Father shocked by Austrian kidnapping ruling
Ray Weaver
data was not legibile, and that
the CPR numbers stolen from
the driving licence database
were not connected to people’s
names.
Despite there being no evidence the hackers had abused the
information, Højberg said that
the incident was very serious.
“It’s a major attack on the
IT system used for the police
databases and which we expect CSC to protect for us,”
Højberg stated. “That is why
the police are treating the case
very seriously. It is of course
completely unacceptable that
it was possible to access the police’s database despite the very
high security standards that we
demand and expect from our
contractors.”
Rigspolitiet has called upon
the domestic intelligence agency,
PET, and the counter-cybercrime division of defence intelligence agency FE to help with
the investigation.
“We will assess the extent of
the security breach and whether
other public IT systems have
been affected, and also to ensure
that the necessary security measures are taken to remedy the situation,” Jacob Scharf, the head
of PET, wrote in a press release.
“The police’s IT systems will be
thoroughly examined.”
Family photo
Peter Stanners
3
Dane claims he “followed law to
letter”, but court decided taking
his son from mother’s car outside
kindergarten was illegal
A
n Austrian judge last
week on Thursday reinstated the one-year suspended prison sentence handed
to Thomas Sørensen, the Danish
father accused of kidnapping his
own son in Austria last year.
Sørensen’s original conviction for the same crime was
overturned due to a procedural
error. He was due to appear in
court on the charges in April,
but did not show up. At the
time, he said that he was afraid
that he would be imprisoned by
the Austrian authorities.
Sørensen attended last week’s
proceedings and heard the court
reinstate his original conviction.
During the trial, Sørensen
questioned the branding of his
travelling to Austria in April
2012 to retrieve his son as “kidnapping”.
He told the court that the
entire operation took about ten
seconds and that Oliver was not
at any time frightened or upset.
“Oliver arrived with his
mother at the kindergarten, and
I went to the car and opened the
door,” Sørensen told the court.
“Oliver smiled a huge smile
when he saw me and he was
never afraid – he just asked me
where we were going.”
Another witness told the
judge that she did not see Sørensen put Oliver in the car, but
heard his mother’s reaction.
“I saw a car driving away and
heard a panicked woman screaming,” she said. “I thought at first
there had been an accident.”
Oliver’s mother, Marion
Weilharter, told that witness
that she had been restrained by
another man while Sørensen
took Oliver. Sørensen has always
denied that Weilharter was held
down. He told the court that he
was focused on Oliver during
the incident, so he wasn’t really
aware of Weilharter’s state.
Sørensen was accompanied
to Austria this time by witnesses,
including a representative from
the Justice Ministry, who were
there to explain to the court why
Sørensen believed he had not
violated any laws by taking his
son back to Denmark.
“I have followed Danish law
to the letter,” he told the press.
“Austrian courts do not recog-
indicators, so the poverty threshold can be completely defined,”
she told Belingske.
John Andersen, a professor
at Roskilde University, called the
poverty line “disappointing” but
“a step in the right direction”.
“It is better than nothing,
but it is a pretty narrow definition,” Andersen said. “Measuring gross income before taxes
and expenses is pretty broad.
Disposable income is much
more relevant.”
Andersen said it was easy
for someone to have almost no
disposable income despite earning much more than 103,000
kroner per year.
Karen Hækkerrup, the social affairs minister, said she was “glad” a
threshold had been indentified
Oliver’s mother said she was restrained when her former partner took
their son from her car in front of an Austrian kindergarten
nise Danish law.”
Sørensen said he was shocked
and saddened by the decision.
“It is unfair. I never wanted
all of this drama, I just want Oliver to have both of his parents,”
he said.
Sørensen is still deciding
whether he will appeal against
the verdict.
“Although it is an unfair
judgement, it is not in Oliver’s
best interest to continue this
case.”
Sørensen has returned to
Denmark, where the boy remained during the trial.
Weilharter told the court
that when Oliver was taken, “I
was afraid I would never see my
son again.”
Sørensen said that he has
tried, via various agencies, to
allow Weilharter contact and to
have joint custody of Oliver.
“She has refused to come to
Denmark to see him for over a
year. I do not know what else I
can do,” he said.
42,000 Danes are poor, according
to a new definition that
considers both income and assets
D
enmark now has an
official poverty threshold.
From now on, those earning less than the median income
of just over 103,000 kroner (before tax) per year for three consecutive years and having less
than 100,000 kroner in assets
will be considered poor.
It is the first time such a definition has been established in
Denmark, and it will be adopted
by the Social Affairs Ministry as
the official standard for defining
who is poor. Based on statistics
from 2010, this means just over
42,000 people currently live in
poverty.
“We now have a poverty line
in Denmark, and I am glad a
number has been established,”
the social affairs minister, Karen Hækkerrup, told Berlingske
newspaper. “We have accepted
the committee’s recommendations, but other factors will obviously be considered.”
The threshold was established
by an expert committee set up by
the government last year. Its calculation reflected figures released
in September by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation
and Development (OECD).
The Committee’s chair,
Torben M Andersen, a leading economist, stressed income
alone was not enough to completely define poverty. But he
said that the definition provided “a more comprehensive
picture of the poverty situation
in Denmark”.
“We hope that it will help
increase the focus on other factors like risk and deprivation,”
Andersen told Berlingske newspaper.
Hækkerup said establishing
the threshold would help further
efforts to reduce poverty.
“We are in the process of
identifying risk and deprivation
Scanpix / Katrine Emilie Andersen
First official poverty line established
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14 - 20 June 2013
Scanpix / Jens Nørgaard Larsen
4
Cover Story
Welcome to the Roskilde
Festival of Danish politics
Founder Bertel Haarder said Folkemødet is part politics, part summer camp and part music festival
Ray Weaver
Denmark’s biggest political
event has turned into
something of a love fest where
lobbyists woo lawmakers. But
some worry that all the cosying
up is killing the charm
I
t began – or was at least
conceived of – as an open
event where politicians
could meet their constituents, face to face.
And no doubt, Folkemødet
has been popular. In the three
years since its inception in 2011,
the four-day political gathering,
whose name in English means
‘the people’s meeting’, has seen
its number of participants swell
to 60,000, treble the number
that attended in the first year.
All of parliament’s political parties will have a presence
in the tiny harbour town of
Allinge on the island of Bornholm, where the meetings are
held. But, not everyone attending Folkemødet will be a rank
and file voter. Many of them will
be representatives from unions,
businesses, universities, NGOs,
culture organisations, local governments. In short: lobbyists.
And that’s where the idea
behind Folkemødet begins to
unravel.
Despite its folksy intentions,
Folkemødet has been criticised
from the start for being nothing more than an excuse for politicos and their pals to slap each
other on the back and drink
copious amounts of beer in the
warm Bornholm sunshine.
Folkemødet was the brainchild of the then interior minister, Bertel Haarder, who was
inspired by a similar event in
Sweden and decided to bring
the idea to Denmark. Haarder,
though, is proud of his baby and
refutes claims that it has drifted
from its moorings.
“I had a budget for promoting rural areas and Bornholm received one million kroner to get
the ball rolling,” said Haarder.
“The success proves that there
was a need for such an event.”
Haarder said the Swedish event Almedalveckan that
Folkemødet is modelled on has
been overrun by unions and
companies. Denmark’s meeting,
he feels, has remained true to its
folksy roots.
“I wanted a mixture of a
summer camp for grown-ups, a
Roskilde Festival and a political
fair – and that’s exactly what I
Factfile | Folkemødet
Folkemødet People 2013
opens on Thursday 13 June
and ends on Sunday 16
June. The first Folkemødet
was held in 2011 with 256
events and just over 10,000
people taking part. Last
year, 32,000 people attended
748 events. Folkemødet is
modelled on the Swedish
Almedalveckan, a similar
political event that annually
draws up to 11,000 visitors
to the island of Gotland.
got,” he said.
Ulf Førsteliin, a spokesperson
for the organising group, admitted
that lobbying is part of Folkemødet, but argued that much is accomplished over the schnapps and
smoked herring lunches.
“New contacts are made, existing relationships are strengthened and perhaps some are
moved out of their entrenched
positions,” he said. “If it wasn’t
entertain lawmakers.
Engelbrecht wants to see
expenses documented in the interest of transparency and wants
the focus of the meeting to swing
back to where it was intended –
the people.
“It is important that this is
not just an exclusive celebration
for the privileged, but also a feast
for the community, the people
and our democracy.”
Roskilde for old people...let’s hope there are plenty of toilets close by
of value, parties and other organisations that come would not
invest so much of their time and
resources in participating.”
But the business spokesperson for Socialdemokraterne (S),
Benny Engelbrecht, went as far
as to say that the conference has
deteriorated into nothing more
than a love fest for lobbyists.
“It has become a party for the
elite,” he said. “Lobbyists partying with politicians and buying
them free food and drinks.”
Engelbrecht told the story
of one local Allinge hamburger
joint where the owner ran out of
blank receipts before he ran out
of food, because the lobbyists
could write off food they buy to
But while special interests
often have access to the nation’s
leaders, it is increasingly rare
that the public – the people – get
an opportunity like Folkemødet
was intended to be.
Some also point to the immense success of Folkemødet as a
problem. Instead of engaging in a
freewheeling give and take, they
say that leaders like Helle Thorning-Schmidt and Lars Løkke Rasmussen (Venstre) merely use their
allotted time on stage to deliver
their usual stump speeches, play
to the more than 400 assembled
media representatives, and move
on, with precious little contact
with ‘the people’.
This year, over 1,300 events
are scheduled to take place between the opening gavel on the
afternoon of Thursday June 13
and lights out on Sunday night.
All events are free and open to
the public.
Participants are in charge of
establishing the programme, and
as the event has grown, it has become ever more hectic. Even for
the most stalwart political junkie,
there is simply no way to attend
all, or even most of the events.
Spokesperson Førsteliin said
the somewhat chaotic nature of
the experience is what Folkemødet is all about.
“It is an opportunity for
politicians and other decisionmakers to meet people and try
out new ideas in a relaxed environment to network and debate
more informally than they usually can,” said Førsteliin.
That was a sentiment echoed by Johnny Nim, the head of
employment insurance providers’ association Det Faglige Hus.
The organisation has had representatives in Allinge at all three
Folkemøde meetings.
“Last year we came home
with a whole list of great ideas
and a lot of inspiration,” he said.
“The strength of the public forum is that we get input from
many different sources, including
those who do not agree with us.”
Whether you say Folkemødet is for the people or for the
patricians, there’s one group of
people who are just happy that
someone is throwing a party
in their back yard: Bornholm
businesses.
Allinge Røgeri, a harbourfront fish restaurant, is ground
zero for much of the long weekend’s activities. Speeches will
be given from the tiny stage in
the corner of the restaurant and
organisations will fill up the surrounding area with tents. Attendees are sure to check in for a
smoked herring lunch or at least
a beer. Owner Rina Hansen said
the event is a plus for businesses
on the island.
“It if course great while the
event is going on, and the effect
carries over because it shines a
spotlight on Bornholm,” she said.
Another concern raised about
Denmark’s political Roskilde is
how much tax payer money is being used to send the nation’s politicians to the Sunshine Island.
Corporate,
philanthropic
and political sponsors kick in
a large share of the costs. And
the Bornholm local government
kicks in one million kroner.
Førsteliin said the island more
than gets its money back through
revenue from hotel rooms, meals
and everything else attendees will
be spending money on.
For an island heavily dependent on tourism, bringing
in enough guests to double the
island’s population a couple of
weeks before the main tourist
season even kicks in is a dream
come true.
While people in other parts
of the country have said that
calling an event that has been
overrun by politicians and lobbyists a “People’s Meeting” – is
a bit disingenous, the people of
Bornholm intend to be there in
force. Over half of those asked
said that they will attend one or
more of the Folkemødet events.
Ray Weaver will be posting stories
from Folkemødet all weekend.
Follow him at cphpost.dk and on
Twitter @wordmanray.
News
14 - 20 June 2013
Jyllands-Posten
Wrangling finally ends over
changes to public schools that will
also see an hour of exercise each
day and an offer of study help
W
eeks of bickering over a reform
of the nation’s
schools came to an
end last week on Friday as the
government agreed with Dansk
Folkeparti (DF) and Venstre
to an agreement the education
minister Christine Antorini
(Socialdemokraterne) described
as “a very ambitious agreement
that is good for children”.
The government’s plan to
to extend the school day from
the current 25 hours wound
up with a compromise that saw
the number of hours children
will spend in school each week
extended to 30 hours of class
time up to and including third
grade, 33 hours from grades 4
to 6, and 35 hours a week for
grades 7 to 9. The government
had initially sought a school
week that would see the oldest
students in class for 37 hours.
All grade levels will have one
school hour of physical education every day, and there will
be more hours of Danish and
mathematics starting in grade 4.
English will be introduced
from the first year of school,
and German or French will be
Scanpix / Keld navntoft
Deal struck to extend school day
Thrifty councils threaten
economy, Vestager warns
Peter Stanners
Economy minister pleads with
councils to stick to spending
plans in order to support
employment and economic
growth
E
Education Minister Christine Antorini was glad that the deal was done
an option starting in grade 5.
A course called ‘Craftsmanship and Design’ will replace
courses in woodwork and needlework. Homemaking will now
be known as ‘Food Knowledge’.
For its support of the deal,
DF insisted that a national centre for history and heritage be
established.
There will be more study
options for students, and public school exit exams will more
accurately reflect what students
will be required to know when
they start upper-secondary
school.
By 2020, teachers will be expected to have completed com-
pulsory classes in the subjects
they teach, and funding for continuing education for teachers,
headteachers and assistants was
included in the deal.
Negotiations over the controversial agreement started
at the beginning of May. It
looked like a settlement might
be reached last week on Thursday until representatives from
Konservative were thrown out
of the talks when they refused
to support the establishment of
mandatory homework help for
students, saying that it should
be up to the schools to define
how they would help students.
Under the new agreement,
the schools are required to offer
help, but according to Venstre
spokesperson Kristian Jensen,
no student would be forced to
use them.
“They will be there for all
students if they want them, but
they can decide not to use them
and seek out other methods
should they choose,” he said.
Forging the deal without
the support of Konservative
means the changes only become
mandatory after the next parliamentary election, which will
be held no later than 2015, but
Antorini said councils can start
implementing some aspects of
the deal as early as next year.
5
conomy minister Margrethe Vestager (Radikale)
is urging councils to spend
more money after a new study
showed that a quarter expected
to come in under budget by the
end of the year.
Vestager argues that council spending plays an important
role supporting and stimulating the economy, and that they
were letting down their residents
by spending less than they had
agreed with the government.
“The deal with the councils
for 2013 needs to be stuck to
because it forms the framework
for the entire economy and is
important for employment,” Vestager told Politiken newspaper.
“The money needs to be spent.”
In May, Vestager congratulated councils for saving 5.3 billion kroner in 2012 each to help
keep a lid on public spending.
But while the councils’
budgets were allowed to grow
by 3.5 billion kroner, many have
continued to find savings, particularly by streamlining home-
care for the elderly and merging
public administrations.
Dennis Kristensen, the
chairman of FOA, a trade union
made up primarily of public sector employees, said the development was troubling.
“It’s parliament’s job to control the economy and speed it
up and slow it down according
to the needs of the country, but
if councils choose to increase
their savings too, we end up
with a double austerity policy,”
Kristensen said, adding that the
The deal with the
councils for 2013 needs
to be stuck to because
it forms the framework
for the entire economy
and is important for
employment
councils making savings might
fear being sanctioned by the government if they overspend.
The government and the
association of councils, KL, are
currently negotiating the 2014
spending plan.
6
News
14 - 20 June 2013
Asylum seekers, both new and old, eating up development aid
Pamela Juhl
Christian Wenande
Housing asylum seekers who
have been permitted to live and
work outside asylum centres has
proved costly, as has a recent
influx in arrivals
D
espite Danish development aid rising
to a record 16 billion
kroner this year, an increasing amount is being spent
on helping asylum seekers here
in Denmark.
Foreign Ministry calculations showed that the costs of
operating the asylum system this
year will exceed one billion kroner, or 6.6 percent of the total
amount dedicated to development aid. In comparison, just
1.7 percent of development aid
was used to help asylum seekers
in 2008. The increasing costs
come at the same time as an influx of refugees from countries
like Syria, Somalia and Afghanistan.
Karsten Lauritzen (Venstre),
a member of parliament’s foreign affairs committee, criticised
the government for spending the
increased aid funding on hous-
Europol
Continued from front page
found interesting, I would then
contact the local police district
to find out more information
before contacting countries in
Europe who I thought might be
affected,” Jarlbæk said. “So I was
proactively trying to determine
how other countries were involved. For example, the Netherlands is almost always involved
in cases involving the cannabis
resin hash.”
Trine Thygesen Vendius, a
PhD fellow at the University
of Copenhagen, is working on
research projects together with
Rigspolitiet that look at the relationship between Denmark
and Europol.
“Europol has lived a quiet
life as far as the public is concerned, but the police have actively used it as a tool to fight
terror and keep track of immigration,” Vendius said
She added that while the
police are concerned about Denmark pulling out of Europol,
they expect that they will continue to be able to co-operate
with other national police forces.
“On a practical level, the police will continue to work within
Keeping asylum seekers housed, fed and active here in Denmark comes at the cost of foreign projects
ing asylum seekers.
“It’s fair that the government
wants to help the poor of the
world, but the increased aid will
most likely be devoured by the
rising numbers of asylum seekers,” Lauritzen told KristeligtDagblad newspaper.
Lauritzen referred to a For-
eign Ministry report that indicated that 6,000 asylum seekers
are expected to make their way
to Denmark over the course of
2013. But according to more
recent figures from the Justice
Ministry, that number is more
likely to be around 7,000 – the
highest number in 12 years.
“The increase is down to
Denmark becoming a more attractive destination for asylum
seekers. We in Venstre believe
that the government should curtail the changes to the asylum
system, and in the long term,
Denmark should concentrate
on providing more help to the
the Europol structures, but they
won’t be allowed to participate
in any development of the cooperation. It will be a blow for
Denmark’s involvement.”
Rigspolitiet’s chief of police,
Jens Henrik Højbjerg, agrees.
“We have been part of Europol since it was established in
the 1990s,” Højbjerg told The
Copenhagen Post, adding that
the Danish police actively use
Europol to obtain and share vital information with other police forces. “We are now facing a
challenge because of the Danish
opt-outs, but it’s very important
for us that a solution is found.”
The potential impact on
Danish policing has placed the
justice minister, Morten Bødskov (Socialdemokraterne), under
pressure to find a solution.
In a press release last week,
he acknowledged that the fight
against cross-border crime and
terrorism required a close cooperation between countries,
which was why he had signalled
to the EU that the Danish government wanted to remain a
member of Europol.
To make this happen, Denmark has two options. The first
is to change its JHA opt-out
to an opt-in protocol whereby
Denmark can choose which aspects of JHA co-operation, such
as Europol, to participate in.
The other is to send a request to the European Commission to join Europol under
a parallel agreement that would
first need to be approved by all
the EU members.
But this scenario, which
would require the EU to write
up a special agreement just to
involve Denmark, is unlikely to
find support in the EU according to Marlene Wind, the head of
the Centre for European Politics
at the University of Copenhagen.
“The commission has already
asked why the EU should spend
thousands of man hours drawing up a parallel agreement when
Denmark was given the option of
changing the opt-out to an opt-in
under the Lisbon Treaty,” Wind
explained, adding that Denmark
has already had two out of its six
requests for parallel agreements
rejected by the EU.
The government has yet to
follow through with an election
promise to hold referendums on
abolishing the JHA and defence
opt-outs. But despite widespread
political support for changing
them to opt-ins, the Danish
population does not share their
enthusiasm for increasing European co-operation.
According to Wind, this is
why the previous government
hesitated to put the question to
the people.
“There’s a complete disconnection between voters and politicians, but I’m not sure why it is
not possible to make the connection?” Wind asked, adding that
much of Danish euroscepticism
can be explained by a lack of understanding about the functioning of the EU.
“How can they expect attitudes to change if they stay
silent? Instead of taking up the
debate, they are hiding and waiting for the opinion polls to indicate rising EU support. But
the issues are so complicated
that people need to be explained
what an opt-in involves. I don’t
think most people understand
the basics.”
Vendius agrees that Denmark has ended up in this mess
because of a lack of political
courage.
“In 1992 we had concerns
that large databases of information could be a threat to democracy and human rights,” Vendius
said. “But the picture has since
changed. At the time we feared
the prospect of foreign police
forces crossing borders and arresting Danish citizens. But Rigspolitiet are still the only ones
entitled to carry out surveillance
in Denmark. And because of the
internet, crime has changed. The
effects of crime are no longer as
contained within borders.”
poorest refugees in the communities,” Lauritzen said.
The development minister,
Christian Friis Bach (Radikale),
admitted that the growing numbers of asylum seekers has influenced the development aid.
”It is worrying that the expenses for refugees in Denmark
is rising, and it is a development
we are monitoring closely,” Bach
told Kristeligt-Dagblad. “We
have a fundamental principal
that we should care for our refugees, wherever they live, and the
costs have jumped because of
the conflict in Syria and the continuing tumultuous situations in
Afghanistan and Somalia.”
Bach also pointed to the
additional expenses of housing certain asylum seekers who,
due to a law change earlier this
year, were permitted to live and
work outside asylum centres. He
also added that precautions have
been taken so that the rising
number of asylum seekers won’t
affect the development aid.
But funds for the asylum system are being diverted from foreign development programmes,
such as climate projects and
business development.
Vagn Bertelsen, the secretary
general of aid organisation Ibis,
felt it was unreasonable that aid
for developing countries was being siphoned off to aid asylum
seekers.
”Ibis and several other organisations have protested
against the asylum costs coming
from the development aid budget, since we don’t believe that the
two areas are connected,” Bertelsen told Kristeligt-Dagblad.
He said the practice was part
of a trend in Western countries,
but expected the OECD to issue
new guidelines that could discourage the practice.
Bach argued that his ministry was simply following international guidelines.
Just last week, immigration
officials decided that the situation in Somalia had improved
to the point where asylum seekers from that country would
not automatically be granted
refugee status. The justice minister, Morten Bødskov (Socialdemokraterne), said the decision
meant Somalis who were denied
refugee status could be forcibly
repatriated if they refused to return voluntarily.
Scientists make malaria discovery
Experts hope the research results
will lead to a marketable vaccine
for malaria within ten years
R
esearchers from the
University of Copenhagen
have uncovered one of the
secrets of the malaria parasite.
Scientists hope the groundbreaking discovery, which was
published in the journal Nature, could lead to the development of a vaccine for the lethal
illness.
One of the reasons why the
mosquito-borne disease is so
deadly is because the victim’s
body has a difficult time getting
rid of the parasite once it clasps
itself to blood vessels using protein ‘hooks’.
“Last year we identified the
strongest malaria parasite protein hooks, and now we have
found the receptor in the blood
vessel where the protein-hooks
clasp on,” university lecturer
Thomas Lavstsen told science
news site Videnskab.dk. “That
means we now have both sides
of the story and can start working towards a vaccine that will
prevent the parasite from attaching itself and inducing malaria.”
The receptors the parasites
use to hook onto blood vessels
vary in binding strength and it
is the parasites with the strongest binding ability that cause the
most serious cases of malaria, including cerebral malaria, one of
the leading causes of mortality
among children in Africa.
To find out which surface
proteins in the blood vessel walls
the malaria proteins bind to,
CMP contacted a British firm
specialising in making cells produce proteins on the surface of
cell membranes.
With their help, the scientists could test which of the
blood-vessel wall’s thousands of
proteins the pure version of the
malaria parasite’s strongest protein hook attached to. The results showed there was only one
protein they hooked on to.
Lavstsen believes the discovery can make it easier to understand how the malaria illness develops and why it can be lethal.
The team expects a malaria
vaccine could take up to ten
years to produce.
According to World Health
Organisation estimates, last year
there were 219 million documented cases of malaria worldwide. Between 660,000 and 1.2
million people died from the
disease each year. (CW)
Online this week
Thoroughfare to get makeover
City officials have presented a plan for reinvigorating
Amagerbrogade, the high street
that cuts a 2.5 kilometre path
north to south through Copenhagen’s southerly island Amager. The
street has fallen into decline in recent years as shops along the busy
road struggle to compete with online retailers and malls, especially
Take low wage work, unemployed urged
School PCB warning
following the financial crisis. The
plan intends to make the street
more attractive by reducing car
traffic by up to 30 percent and increasing the rate and speed of bus
traffic. Cycle paths and pavements
will be widened, trees planted
along the street, and there will be
a greater number of places where
residents can congregate.
High concentrations of the
group of carcinogenic PCBs
have been detected in about
60 primary schools across the
country. A study carried out
by national environment and
energy agencies has led to calls
for the schools to be renovated
or rebuilt. The lobbying group
for the construction industry,
Dansk Byggeri, said councils
will have to invest billions to
safely carry out the work. Tearing down the schools would cost
an estimated nine billion kroner
and create 13,500 jobs. Councils now have six months to start
renovation work in schools with
PCB levels above governmental
guidelines.
Dansk Erhverv has urged
unemployed Danes to lower
their expectations and accept
lower starting wages when looking for jobs. “When you are
new to an industry the wages
are usually lower because it
takes some time before you
learn about your job,” Ole
Steen Olsen, a spokesperson
for the Chamber of Commerce,
told Avisen.dk. Labour confederation LO, however, found the
announcement worrisome, contending the move would lead to
increased wage inequality.
Read these stories and more at cphpost.dk
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8
OPINION
Danish integration in English
When it comes to work-life balance, it’s the ‘life’ part of the
equation that most foreigners need a hand with
14 - 20 June 2013
How to learn to speak Danish
T
HIS PAST Sunday, about 2,500 people took part in The
Copenhagen Post’s third annual Children’s Fair. It could
only be described as a harmonious meeting of Danes and
foreigners, children and adults.
For most of the families; their attendance was planned. But
there were also many who just happened to be there. According to the Police, who were there to tell festival attendees about
their work, there were also a number of young local residents
who it would be fair to describe as trouble-makers. They too
had a good day – as did the clubs, local government officials,
fire brigade and other organisations that were there putting on
performances.
And that, if anything, is what the Children’s Fair is about.
More than just an opportunity to network, it is an opportunity to interact socially with other foreigners and with Danes
– to integrate.
We know that, on its own, an event like the Children’s Fair is
not going to solve the difficult task of integrating foreign families,
or that by taking part in the fair they will make the connections
that brings their network to life. But it is part of the answer.
We at The Copenhagen Post see The Children’s Fair as one
of the many initiatives that everyone – foreign families, public
authorities, businesses and the nation as a whole – benefit from,
and which are worth emulating.
If Denmark is famous for its ‘work-life’ balance, then The
Copenhagen Post sees it as its goal as part of our efforts to help
Denmark attract and retain foreign workers to make sure that
we can do something to add to the ‘life’ half of the equation.
The ‘work’ part comes naturally to those who came here to take a
job. But we can’t assume that they or their families will be able to
figure out how Danes socialise. Many of them never wind up realising that the path to a social life in this country goes through
foreninger – clubs, associations and other leisure time groups.
That’s why it’s so gratifying for us to be able to organise
events like the Children’s Fair – not least when the sun shines –
and watch as Danes and foreigners, children and adults mingle
with each other, meet representatives from foreninger, talk with
public officials or stand in the shadow of a real-life fire engine,
all in a Copenhagen park.
The Copenhagen Post would like to thank everyone who
helped to make this the most successful Children’s Fair ever –
including our sponsors, without whose support our small contribution to integration would have been impossible.
We’re already looking forward to next year.
WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU
JULIE HENRIQUES
I
N HIS most recent column in
The Copenhagen Post (“Two
more years of this? Nej, tak”,
issue 22, May 31-June 6),
news editor Justin Cremer made
comments about language schools
and the entire Danish as a second
language (DSL) system. Cremer
completed ‘DSL programme 3’
and later enrolled in the continuing education programme FVU,
yet he is dissatisfied with his Danish level. He still finds it difficult
to carry on a conversation in Danish and that Danes start speaking
English with him as soon as he
opens his mouth. In his opinion,
FVU hasn’t helped him. The class
focuses too much on passing an
exam. It’s boring. It’s useless. He
poses important questions about
language schools and gets at the
underlying issue: what’s the best
way to learn how to speak Danish?
It’s worth remembering that
Danish as a second language programmes and FVU are two different things. DSL are introductory
courses offered to recent immigrants. Students can sit the final
exam within three years of starting a course. FVU was originally
created as a writing and reading
class for Danes, but it is also an
excellent way for foreigners to
build on their DSL courses and
continue learning Danish.
Is FVU boring? Do you learn
to speak Danish in an FVU class?
One thing is for sure, class participants are in for a disappointment
if they think they’re going to learn
something that isn’t on the syllabus. No matter whether you are
a Dane or a foreigner, the FVU
course focuses on the same thing:
reading and writing. There is no
getting around topics like spelling,
suffixes and a dizzyingly complex
system of vowel sounds. Good
teachers use whatever tricks they
can to get their students to learn
it all, and many of them wind
up learning a lot. Many also find
that improved reading and writing skills carry additional benefits,
such as new responsibilities at
work and greater self-esteem.
Will an FVU student learn to
be better at speaking Danish? Not
necessarily – at least not directly.
Students will improve their Danish skills, which also have an effect on their speaking. But good
FVU courses are those that meet
the prescribed requirements and
attain the curricular objective: to
improve reading and writing skills.
“MANY people have difficulty
in gaining the required level of
Danish in the three-year limit
they have today,” Cremer quotes
Johanne Schmidt-Nielsen, an
MP for Enhedslisten, as saying. A
proposal has been put forward to
extend this period to five years. I
can imagine that there are some
who are daunted by the prospect
of having to go to school for an
additional two years and trying to learn a tongue-twister of
a language like Danish. No-one
expects that an educated person is
going to use three years (let alone
five) of their adult life in language
school. The three and five-year
periods are the maximum lengths
of time people have, and they
have been laid down as a way to
give people the chance to plan
out their courses so that they have
time for other things. For most,
the best option is to take all their
Danish courses without pause,
but it isn’t the only way. Some
might want to be more flexible.
Seen in that light, the proposal
to give people the right to take
Danish courses for five years gives
people even greater leeway when
planning their courses.
Employment Minister Mette
Frederiksen is cited for a frequently repeated misconception.
She claimed the high truancy rates
among language school students
amount to a waste of resources.
This must mean that she’s misinformed about how DSL programmes are funded. Schools are
compensated based on the number of students that pass a ‘module’. Half the funding is disbursed
when the module begins, and the
rest when the student passes. If
they don’t pass, schools don’t get
paid. And just because someone
doesn’t complete the DSL programme (five or six modules) does
not mean they are absent or have
dropped out. Students, you can
only assume, make an informed
decision and enrol in as many
modules as is either possible or
necessary for them.
One of the benefits of the current system is that each module
builds on the previous one, which
You can’t learn a
language just by going
to a language school.
prevents people from having to
spend more time than necessary
on Danish courses. Because, let’s
face it, even though language
schools bend over backwards to
make their courses interesting
and fun, there’s more to life than
learning Danish. The best thing
we can do for our students is get
them to learn Danish as quickly
as possible and as efficiently as
possible, so they can continue
their education or career or spend
more time with their families.
That leaves us with the
$64,000 question: how do you
learn to speak Danish? Language
schools do a lot with incorporated special learning materials, computer technology and
goal-orientated second-language
teaching. We focus heavily on
pronunciation and spoken Danish at all levels, but on the Danish
3 programme the emphasis is on
precision, and that means a lot of
time will unavoidably be spent on
writing and grammar.
You can’t learn a language just
by going to a language school.
That may not be what you’d expect to hear coming from a language school, but what students
learn in the classroom is mainly
theory and tools for how to learn
the language on their own. You
can’t learn how to speak a language fluently and confidently by
attending class six, 12 or 15 times
a week. Language schools can
teach vocabulary and structure.
Teachers can correct mistakes and
clear up misunderstandings. But
everything you learn needs to be
trained over and over again out in
the real world.
Language schools are well
aware of how difficult it is to
learn a language – especially in
a country like Denmark, where
most people gladly speak English
whenever they get the chance.
Whether that’s out of friendliness
or laziness makes no difference: in
the end the result is equally bad.
Danes need to be better at inviting foreigners into the language.
We need to speak a little slower,
enunciate and not get impatient
if repetition is needed. We encourage foreigners to sign up for
Danish courses to learn the rudiments of the language, but family
members, friends and co-workers
also need to be aware of their role
in giving people the chance to
practise what they have learned.
Because unless you speak Danish,
you’re never going to learn how to
speak Danish.
The author is a department head
with language school Københavns
Sprogcenter.
READER COMMENTS
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Cross-border custody drama
resumes in Austrian court
A balanced, informative and wellwritten article. As read, it gives
one the impression that the same
arguments and defences apply to
both sides, as it does as when two
countries use their similar legal
systems to favour their own citizens. As someone whom is neither
Danish nor Austrian and who has
no agenda nor bias towards either country, that is simply how
my objective eye reads it. I could
imagine thinking the same if it
were between Australia and New
Zealand or America and Canada,
just as examples. I think the telling factor would be how an international arbiter would see it;
however, the article doesn’t go into
the substance of what, whom and
how the international arrest warrant is orientated. If it is the European Arrest Warrant, I would not
regard that as a reliable arbiter, as
the EAW itself has its own issues,
with several instances of injustice
and human rights violations.
Jeg were
By website
End of paper tickets an
expensive transition for tourists
This is also a problem for pensioners who travel on a senior
card, which of course has complicated restrictions – no travel
at all between 7:00 and 9:00, but
after 9:00 you can travel all day
on the buses and Metro, no travel
on s-trains or other railways between 15:00 and 17:00 except for
some outlying zones (it’s beginning to sound very Danish, isn’t
it?). Mostly, one can use one’s
ingenuity, but sometimes one just
has to travel before the ‘curfew’,
and then a klippekort is perfect,
as long as the clip machines are
working. Now what? Buy a rejsekort to use it perhaps five times
a year?
Currypowder
By website
Restaurants can just say no to
breasts, equality board rules
No problems whatsoever with
breastfeeding in public. I do, however, have problems with tables
of mommies who use the restaurant table to change baby’s diaper.
Witnessed that once, and would
rather never have to see it again.
The decision of a business owner
to ban breastfeeding may also have
something to do with the so-called
‘mommy mafia’. Perhaps certain
business owners are taking a risk
in the hopes of discouraging this
clientele, which sometimes can
be demanding and relatively low
spenders. That came up during the
original controversy, if memory
serves. Still, it’s heavy-handed.
HeidiakaMissJibba
By website
Each restaurant or cafe should
clearly post outside their premises
whether they welcome breastfeeding or not. Even though I am no
longer breastfeeding, I would base
my choice on whether to spend
my money in their establishment
on their policies. That is my right.
CDNinCPH
By website
There is so much research on the
long-term benefits of breastfeeding a baby, most especially the
future health benefits. Discouraging women from breastfeeding in
public will risk that those mothers who want and feel a need to
get out of the house may resort,
to artificial, manufactured infants
milk, thus costing the state health
system in the future and for the
long term. It would be far more
beneficial to the nation if the
state allowed breastfeeding in
public in designated areas – we
already accept that solution for
smokers! For those worried about
being exposed to the natures of
the human body, I suggest that
investment could be made into
‘training’ breastfeeding mothers
on how to be discreet in public.
LucyGabrielsen
By website
OPINION
14 - 20 June 2013
Tis the season to bash minorities
S
You’re Still Here?
BY KELLY DRAPER
Kelly Draper is a British teacher who came
to Denmark four years ago for work. She
has been acting informally as a critical
friend to Denmark. This has not gone
down particularly well with Danes, who
often tell her she should like it or leave
it. Her blog is at adventuresandjapes.
wordpress.com.
TORIES about people in charge
changing things for minorities are like buses: they come in
clumps. In Denmark, there have
been a few good news/bad news situations in a very short space of time.
First up, the left-wing minister for
social affairs and integration, Karen
Hækkerup, has suggested that when
young boys play truant from schools
or break the law, it is because they are
against community values and that their
parents must have any state financial
support withheld. The one exception
would be if the parents were Danish.
Those parents would neither have their
benefits withdrawn, nor be offered parenting classes as a prophylactic.
She called the group she wanted
to target the ‘ethnic proletariat’. As if
white European is not an ethnic group.
Worryingly, I think she meant proletariat in the Roman ‘underclass’, ‘untermenschen’, ‘no property or wealth,
only use in providing offspring’ sense,
rather than the slightly more modern Russian ‘working class’, ‘worker’,
‘wage-slave’ sense.
This was buried by what Dansk
Folkeparti (DF) did later in the week.
Getting citizenship in Denmark is real-
The decision to allow
women whose hair is
covered by a piece of
cloth to run the till at
Netto was greeted by
howls of outrage
ly hard. Purposefully hard. You do not
just fall into Danish citizenship; this is
like an episode of ‘It’s a Knockout’, but
with more paperwork.
DF printed the names and home
towns of around 700 people shortly
due to be granted citizenship under
the headline claiming that one of them
could be a danger to Denmark. The
man in question has not done anything wrong, which is why the justice
minister did not name him after the security services flagged his ‘behaviour’.
His name, and those unlucky enough
to be qualifying at the same time as
him, have had their good names pulled
through the mud. All because they
were not born Danish citizens.
Dansk Supermarked group decided
that women wearing a hijab could have
customer service roles. The boycott
to which the chain was responding to
unleashed a fresh hell of hate speech on
Facebook. Anyone would think that residence in Denmark was contingent on a
500kr weekly spend at Bilka. The decision to allow women whose hair is covered by a piece of cloth to run the till at
Netto was greeted by howls of outrage.
Earlier in the week, the consensus was that Føtex could do what they
wanted and those suppressed women
should just do as they were told and remove their headgear. Later in the week,
it was felt that Føtex was well out of
order so they were never going to shop
there again because those suppressed
women were ruining everything by being so bossy.
Denmark would never be the
same again. (Even though some shops
have been ignoring the official policy
and many other supermarket chains
dropped the same policy ages ago.)
There were some signs that all this
hate and suspicion is controversial in
Denmark. Good job too; I was start-
9
ing to feel like I was stuck in the scene
from that movie ‘Cabaret’ when they
are in the beer garden and that blond
boy starts to sing.
A group called www.684og1.dk
have set up a webpage to raise money
for their own newspaper advert, this
time putting Danish names on a banner welcoming the new citizens. All you
have to do is contribute 50kr to be part
of it. They had to adjust the original
sign-up target of 685 upwards at least
three times. This makes me very happy.
When politicians get to say that certain groups of people are an underclass
because of their ethnic group; when
groups of people who have made a
positive decision to become Danish are
publicly shamed and treated with suspicion; and when people attack shops
for starting to treat people fairly – that’s
when you start to wonder where this is
all going.
I am encouraged by Dansk Supermarked’s decision, and I am pleased
that Danish people are willing to pay
50kr to stand up and be counted. We
are stronger together, and I hope this
marks a new chapter in Denmark where
discrimination and prejudice is challenged.
All good things ...
T
To Be Perfectly Frank
BY FRANK THEAKSTON
Born in 1942 on the Isle of Wight,
Englishman Frank Theakston has been
in Copenhagen 32 years and is on his
second marriage, this time to a Dane.
Frank comes from a different time and a
different culture – which values are the
right ones today?
with family and friends, has in retrospect
not always been worth the effort. Don’t
get me wrong, I still like to do things
properly, but that’s a little different from
being obsessed and not seeing the wood
for the trees. ‘Get a life’ has often been
a sentiment I’ve assigned to others, not
realising that perhaps I’ve also been missing out on some of the opportunities –
the good things – of life.
What has brought all this about?
Largely, I suppose, the fact that I’m
in the throes of moving house. When
Ulla and I bought our present house
and moved in together over 13 years
ago, I subconsciously assumed that it
would be my final, happy abode. No
more moving for me; the house was
not only a home but a challenge to the
perfectionist DIYer that I am. All those
projects! A new garden, a new cellar, a
new porch. Then all the smaller ones
too that would keep me occupied in my
retirement. The house became, if I’m to
be honest, not so much a home as another place of work – a substitute for
the job that I used to have where all my
HIS IS my last column – for the
time being at least. I’ve done it
now for two years and am beginning to miss the thrill. It’s getting
more difficult to find something to write
about that I reckon my readers will find
vaguely interesting. That’s different from
saying I can’t find anything interesting to
write about, so the problem – if problem
there be – is that this phase of my life has
run its course and it’s time to move on.
If I can indulge in a pun, the writing has
been on the wall for a while now and the
dread of the approaching deadline every
month is the clearest indication of my
need for a break.
As I’ve grown older, giving up on
something and moving on has actually
become a little easier. For most of my
life, I’ve tended to associate giving up
on anything as akin to failure. If at once
you don’t succeed, try harder. And if you
still don’t succeed, blame someone else
for your failure. Well not really, but the
drive to get things done (and done to
the standards of the perfectionist I am),
often at the expense of my relationships
For most of my life, I’ve
tended to associate giving
up on anything as akin to
failure
obsessions were honed to ... well, near
perfection.
I convinced myself that I’d had no
problem adjusting to retirement. After
all, I had all these interests to serve. Not
just the DIYing, but the CTC and a bit
of freelance work as well. Keeping occupied, physically and mentally, was the
object of the exercise, as indeed it had
been most of my life. Spending time
with other people took second place
when there was something important to
do! Oh oh!
Yes, as the saying goes: ‘All good
things must come to an end’ (though
why it only mentions the good things
has always puzzled me; thank goodness
most bad things also have an end). But
that begs the question of the nature of
‘good’. Looking back, the perceived
good times can really be divided into
two broad categories: those that satisfy
the loner in me, such as projects in the
house and writing these articles, and
those that satisfy the social animal, particularly my theatrical activities. Leaving the former behind and moving on is
no great wrench for me, whereas the latter I would really miss if I were forced to
give them up. So the writing on the wall
has become somewhat clearer: spend
more time being social and creative
with other people and less time and effort trying to impress people (including
myself ) with what I create in isolation.
So I’m moving on. Thanks for the
opportunity to air a few grievances, and
I hope from time to time I’ve provoked
a few thoughts too. But just as with
moving house, I’m not going too far –
just far enough to take stock and try to
sort out the best from among all those
good things.
CPH POST VOICES
BRICK BY BRICK
GRAIN OF SAND
THE BALANCING ACT
CHRISTIAN VALUES
STILL ADJUSTING
CRAZIER THAN CHRISTMAS
THE WORDS OF ÖZ
THE LYNCH REPORT
Stephanie Brickman
Tendai Tagarira
Sarita Rajiv
Christian Wenande
Justin Cremer
Vivienne McKee
Özcan Arjulovski
Stuart Lynch
NEXT WEEK
IN 2 WEEKS
IN 3 WEEKS
IN 4 WEEKS
10
CHILDREN’S FAIR 2013
14 - 20 June 2013
PHOTOS BY HASSE FERROLD
WORDS BY BEN HAMILTON
The Copenhagen Post’s Children’s Fair on Sunday in Valbyparken was
a scorcher, so it was just as well it had some of the city’s finest firefighters at hand to ensure it didn’t literally catch fire
The crowds were so heavy – an estimated two and a half thousand people attended – it was hard to navigate the fair at times. Fortunately, Expat in Denmark balloons had been placed at
strategic points to guide anyone who got lost in the melee for free balloon creations, face painting, pony rides and soda and cookies
It was occasion for families to enjoy great weather, activities and company
For the third year running, balloon artist Kai Ahlberg was in popular demand, contorting all manner of creations until well past the fair’s 5pm
closing time. After rainy festivals in 2011 and 2012, nobody appreciated
the good weather not fizzling out before it had begun more than him
Among the organisations present were the Stepping Stones international preschool ...
Dansk-Indisk Børnehjælp …
Copenhagen Talent Summit …
Kulturklik …


N POS
AGE
NH
IL
E CH DRENN’
TH
FAIR 2013
’S
T
The visitors to the fair walked a causeway lined with clubs and associations eager to tell them about their activities and benefits. It was an
afternoon of education, elucidation and, at the face-painting tables,
escapism
THE COPE
Capoeira skolen Senzala …
 
and the Boy Scouts of America – pictured on the left are Justin and Ray Weaver
A good time was had by all 2,500 foreign and Danish
visitors who attended this year’s Children’s Fair.
CHILDREN’S FAIR 2013
14 - 20 June 2013
11
Davy McCurdie’s goalkeeper instincts (second left) come to the fore playing deep gulley to Kurt vom Scheidt’s catcher (second right), but maybe he should have trusted his
Saxo Bank colleague, as the Movember Denmark 2011 champion is after all one of the
coaches at the participating Gladsaxe Softball & Baseball club
This Indian family revealed themselves rather formally to be (clockwise from top left) J
Rathkrishnan, R Karthiga, R Rakshikaa and R Kaushikaa
Why stop at the face when you can have the whole dinosaur, reasoned Storm, who
was among the many children who queued for over an hour to be painted
The girls from Scene Kunst Skoler strutted their stuff with purpose …
Anna Klara, Markus and Alexander represented both Denmark and Italy – crikey, who
are they going to support in the autumn World Cup qualifier?
Yang Li and Wei Hua from China introduced their son Larry to the vast world of opportunity awaiting him in this city
but a dance-off with Stepz Dance School never materialised
The Copenhagen Post staff giving away free sodas, cookies and toys could concur
that there have been tougher products to sell working at the newspaper
It was a proud day for The Copenhagen Post’s chief executive, Jesper Nymark, who
could finally see the festival that he started in 2011 fulfil its full potential thanks
to the brilliant weather
The city’s fire services proved a big hit with the kids − every single one it seemed


  
You’re nicked for … impersonating a policewoman. Thank you Fireman Sam for helping us apprehend this fugitive …
Now, can you help us put out this fire and save the Englishmen who took refuge in there after suffering really bad sunburn?
The Copenhagen Post would like to
say thanks to all the businesses,
public authorities, non-government
organisations and the participating
clubs for making it all possible.
12
COMMUNITY
14- 20 June 2013
ABOUT TOWN
PHOTOS BY HASSE FERROLD
UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED
As part of the CPH:Stage festival taking place in the city this
month, the Why Not Theatre company presented an original
play, ‘Digging Up Shakespeare’, penned by Barry McKenna. Pictured here enjoying the opening night plaudits are (left-right)
Monday saw the hugely anticipated reopening of the Dansk Industri building by Rådhuspladsen following its renovation. Among those The annual Thai Festival once again brightened up Islands Brygge on two guests, actor Ian Burns and British ambassador Vivien Life,
in attendance were (left-right) the French ambassador Veronique Bujon-Barre and South African ambassador Samkelisiwe Mhlanga and Saturday with its colourful costumes and tantalising tastings. Pictured and the cast: Andrew Jeffers, Sue Hansen-Styles and, making a
Swedish ambassador Inga Eriksson Fogh
here with some of the performers is Thai ambassador Vimon Kidchob rare stage appearance, McKenna
Japanese artist Yoko Ono, the widow of John Lennon, was at Louisiana last week on Thursday for the opening of her new exhibition,
‘Yoko Ono Half-A-Wind Show- A Retrospective’. For more details, see
G2 in InOut. (Photo: Bjarke Ørsted, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art)
A farewell reception was organised last week on Thursday for
Stephen A Christina, the outgoing chargé d’affaires of the US
Embassy. Pictured here are (left-right) Erik Nørgaard from the
American Club, American Club president Spencer Oliver, Cristina and American Club secretary Vibeke Henrichsen
COMING UP SOON
DTU Exiles Rugby Game Day
Danish Technical University,
Henrik Dams Allé, Lyngby; Sat
11:00-21:00; free adm; www.
exiles.dk, www.facebook.com/exilesRUFC
Spend a day outside the city
watching the Exiles, a group
of international amateur rugby
players based at the Danish
Technical University, as they
play on home turf this weekend.
Both the Exiles’ ladies’ and men’s
teams will play matches, and the
team’s annual summer barbeque
will follow at 16:30. All events
are open to the public.
Volunteering Info Session
International House, Gyldenløvesgade 11, Cph V; Mon 17:0020:00; free adm, register at www.
kk.dk/english by Friday
Over 40 percent of Danes volunteer on a regular basis – so join
them and experience the many
benefits of the nation’s volunteer
sector. This event will introduce
you to organisations and help
you get involved and offer information from other expats about
their experiences. Sandwiches
and soft drinks will be provided,
but space is limited – so register
now!
‘Riders on the Earth’ seminar
Nationalmuseeet, Biografteatret,
Prinsens Palæ, Frederiksholms
Kanal 12, Cph K; Wed 09:3012:00; free adm, registration required by noon Tue at www.diis.
dk/sw129186.asp
This seminar will examine the
complex ways in which space,
environment and nuclear weapons are tied together. Leading
researchers from universities
around the globe will discuss
how space exploration, military
technology and environmentalist thinking have produced
a new vision of the globe as an
integrated space.
English Book Club Meeting
Østerbro Library, Dag Hammarskjölds Allé 19, Cph Ø; Wed
June 26 17:30-19:00; free adm,
contact [email protected]
to register; www.expatindenmark.
com/events
BREEZING THROUGH
THE BREAKING NEWS
OVER BREAKFAST ...
Join Østerbro Library’s English
book club for their upcoming meeting to discuss Bernard
Schlink’s ‘The Reader’. Feel free
to read the book in any language, but the discussion will be
in English. Coffee, tea and cakes
will be provided, but be sure to
email in advance to ensure there
is enough for all.
Copenhagen Polo Open
Fælledparken, Cph Ø; June 2223, 11:00-20:00; tickets: 20kr
per day; 200kr grandstand per
day; www.copenhagenpoloopen.dk
Copenhagen’s first ever polo
open will feature matches between four international teams,
featuring some of the world’s
best players, and offer spectators
the chance to enjoy a VIP lunch
as well as on the pitch entertainment. Professional British polo
player Ryan Pemble will also
provide a demonstration before the tournament kicks off.
Entrance includes access to the
grounds, food and drink area,
and access to bars in the arena.
JESSICA HANLEY
For six months now, the news team at
The Copenhagen Post have been getting up with
the larks to bring you the news that matters.
All you need to do is visit www.cphpost.dk every
morning at 9am and click on ‘The Morning Briefing’
for an overview of the day's main stories.
N E W S • T R A N S L AT I O N S • A DV E R T I S I N G • S U B S C R I P T I O N S • E V E N T S
The Slovenian ambassador Bogdan Benko is leaving these shores.
Last week on Tuesday, he held a farewell reception at his residence
by Langelinie. Pictured here (left-right) are Croatian ambassador
Ladislav Pivcevic, Benko, Russian ambassador Mikhail Vanin, Ger- Italian ambassador Carlo Tripepi cuts the ribbon at the Barolo &
man ambassador Michael Zenner and Lithuanian ambassador Friends event at Børsen last week on Friday, a wine event that foVytautas Pinkus
cused on the region of Piedmont
DATING THE DANES
And then there was one ... Swapping New Zealand for Zealand for her second
tour of duty, Emily McLean isn’t, as far as we know, getting hitched anytime
soon. She’s out there kissing frogs to find her prince - nobody ever said Dating
the Danes was going to be easy.
No laughing matter
D
ON’T GET me wrong.
I’ve met some hilarious
Danish men – I work
with two of the funniest in
the country. But there will
always be a small rift where
we just don’t ‘get’ each other.
Now I’m no comedian,
but I do feel like my humour
is often lost on Danish men,
particularly when I ‘take the
micky’ or gently ‘poke fun’.
Where I’m from, a bit of
a jibe here or there is considered quite flirty. In fact,
it’s all part of the courtship
rituals. In Denmark though,
where many Danish men
take themselves pretty damn
seriously, this can cause
problems.
Last weekend a guy told
me the following: “I’m actually off surfing in Hawaii
for the next few months, and
then I’ll head to Austria to be
a ski instructor − a combination of riding the waves and
the mountains.”
With a smile in my eye,
I responded with: “Man, it
must be so hard to be awe-
some at everything.”
He didn’t get it. In fact
he didn’t even know how to
respond.
What he, like most
men here don’t
understand, is that
by taking themselves
too seriously, they’re
actually turning
women off
In New Zealand if someone throws you a jibe like
that, you play along. And
with the ferocity that Danes
approach the Jante Law, I
thought they’d be all about
taking themselves down a
peg or two. But alas.
What he, like most men
here don’t understand, is that
by taking themselves too seriously, they’re actually turning women off.
It reminded me of the
time I hosted a julefrokost
where the main event of
the night was a ‘roast’. One
hasty exit from two guests
and three apologies later, I
concluded that for future
Christmas parties, we’ll steer
away from the ‘let’s make fun
of each other’ theme.
Now Danish men would
also say they’re good at sarcasm and I agree … to an extent. Being the Antipodean
that I am, I am a harsh critic
of this, but rightfully so.
Some say sarcasm is the lowest form of humour. I disagree. A drop of sarcasm at the
right moment is like a drop
of rain in the desert. Both
needed and appreciated.
I’ll never forget the night
when a guy told me he’d just
moved from Herlev to Hvidovre.
“Woa,” I said. “Don’t
move too close to the inner city,” to which a rather
glazed look came over his
face and he commented:
“Well I haven’t really.”
It was a face-palm moment.
COMMUNITY
14 - 20 June 2013
13
Offering a one-stop shop for new residents, this house is in order
ELIAS THORSSON
In the future, foreigners moving
to Copenhagen will be able to
find the answers to all their
relocation queries under the
same roof
I
NTERNATIONAL House
Copenhagen, a new institution that gathers all the various city agencies dealing with
issues concerning new foreign
residents, opened its doors to
the public last week on Tuesday.
Located at Gyldenløvesgade 11
in the city centre, it will provide
new arrivals with a one-stop shop
when relocating to Copenhagen.
The new initiative will be a
way for immigrants to get help
with practical matters such as
careers and education paperwork
for residence permits and CPR
numbers, as well as assistance
with tax cards.
The city also hopes International House Copenhagen will
act as a community centre where
internationals can come and network.
Guest lecturers at the University of Copenhagen and Rigshospitalet will also be able to rent
short-term accommodation in
the building.
A collaboration of many
THE IDEA for International
House comes from the city, but
it is a collaboration between
many different partners such as
the University of Copenhagen,
Rigshospitalet and the city’s Employment and Integration Administration, as well as private
companies.
“We are very happy with the
many collaborating partners we
have had on the project,” said
the city’s mayor, Frank Jensen.
“Copenhagen has been missing a
place like this.”
Jensen pointed out that expats are important to the economy and, as The Copenhagen Post
reported last April, recent figures
suggest the city’s economy could
not do without its international
workforce.
He said that if Copenhagen
hopes to keep up in an increasingly globalised world, it needs
to be better at integrating its foreigners.
“We have not been good
enough. Too many students and
expats leave the country, and International House is a part of the
solution.”
The number of international
students in Denmark has tripled
over the last ten years. Overall,
half of the Danish expat community lives in Copenhagen.
Although Jensen said that
creating the centre was a big step
in the right direction, he stressed
that change will not come overnight.
Anna Mee Allerslev, the deputy mayor for employment and
integration, struck a similar note.
“We want Copenhagen to be
the most inclusive city in Europe
by 2015,” said Allerslev, referring
to the goals set in the integration
campaign Bland dig i byen.
One of her goals for foreigners is that it should be “easier to
become a Copenhagener than a
Dane”.
An extensive collaboration
ASIDE FROM the two mayors,
The centre will help foreigners navigate the challenges that arise from moving abroad and provide them with a place to network and socialise
there were three additional speakers at the opening: Ulla Wewer,
dean of the Faculty of Health
and Medical Sciences at the
University of Copenhagen; Kim
Høgh, the senior manager for the
Greater Copenhagen Regional
Council; and as a representative
of the private market, Karin van
Goinga Middelburg, the senior
vice-president of human capital
for SimCorp.
Thomas Jakobsen, the head
of Copenhagen’s citizen service
and master of ceremonies at the
event, highlighted the centre’s
diverse functions. “This house
is unique because it centralises
all the many functions that have
to do with foreigners,” he said.
“Denmark has everything a
country needs to attract foreigners, and we hope we can assist immigrants in establishing a greater
connection with the country.”
Getting into the culture
ONE OF the companies that operates in close collaboration with
International House is NemCV.
The company was founded by
The goal of International House Copenhagen is to help foreigners integrate and feel welcome in Copenhagen
Thomas Jakobsen, Frank Jensen, Karin van Goinga Middelburg the
senior vice president of SimCorp, and Anna Mee Allerslev, the deputy
mayor for employment and integration
International House Copenhagen houses many different institutions
and organisations. Pictured here (left – right) are Irena Mejnø with
Work In Denmark, and Ararvni Jakobsen and Dragan Sajkic from the
city’s international office
Zubair Quaraishi and Franco
Soldera with the goal of helping
people get their foot through the
door in the job market.
The company helps individuals set up a CV that fits the
requirements of the Danish job
market through their website
and free-of-charge workshops at
the International House.
“You don’t know what to expect when you come into a new
job market,” explains Soldera.
“The culture is different and you
don’t know how to represent
yourself. Our programme helps
solve that problem.”
“Our goal is to get everyone
a job”, said Quraishi of the company’s lofty ambitions.
The company was founded
with help from INCUBA, an
Aarhus-based centre for innovation and research.
Arne Vesterdal, the head
of INCUBA, believes that the
founding of such a centre is very
important for attracting skilled
foreigners to the country.
“It is incredibly important
that foreigners feel welcome from
the start”, he said.
Among those attendance were (left–right, front row) Ulla Wewer, the
dean at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences at the University
of Copenhagen, Kim Høgh, the senior manager for the Greater
Copenhagen Regional Council, an unknown attendee, Lord Mayor
Frank Jensen and Thomas Jakobsen, the head of Copenhagen’s citizen
service and master of ceremonies at the event
Arne Vesterdal, the head of INCUBA, alongside Franco Soldera, one
of the founders of NemCV
14
Sport
14 - 20 June 2013
Christian Wenande
Morten Olsen’s boys need a
series of miracles to occur in the
remaining four games to stand
any chance of qualifying for their
second straight world finals
D
enmark’s chances
of taking part in the
2014 World Cup in
Brazil were dealt a devastating blow on Tuesday night
when they lost 0-4 to Armenia
at Parken stadium. It was arguably the darkest day for Danish
football since their capitulation
at the 1986 World Cup when
they lost 1-5 to Spain.
Aside from severely curtailing Denmark’s World Cup aspirations, a year and two days
on from that historic triumph
against the Dutch in Euro 2012,
the defeat was one for the record
books. On so many levels.
Just last week Armenia
couldn’t score for 90 minutes at
home against minnows Malta.
On Tuesday night, it took them
all of 27 seconds. It was the
quickest goal Denmark has ever
conceded in Parken – nine seconds quicker than when Filippo
Inzaghi was gifted a goal by Jesper Grønkjær back in 1999.
Two goals conceded in each
half by an abysmal defence were
enough to see the Danes suffer
their worst defeat at Parken (or
Idrætsparken as it was called pre1992) for 54 years (when they
lost 0-6 to Sweden in 1959). Ireland beat them 4-0 in 2007, but
that was a friendly in Aarhus.
The result matched Armenia’s biggest ever victory – a four
goal defeat of Andorra in 2010.
Yes … Andorra.
It was also the first time
Denmark had ever lost a World
Cup qualifier by four goals, and
the Armenians became just the
fourth team to ever score four
goals against the Danes in a WC
qualifier in Denmark. The other
three are England, Scotland and
Portugal.
The loss also means that
Denmark have failed to win
their last four WC qualifier
matches on home soil – another
record that they wished they had
not set.
And the just over 14,000
spectators at the game was the
lowest attendance for a WC
qualifier since 1980 when
10,500 people saw Luxembourg
defeated 4-0. But that record
probably won’t last long as the
Danes host Malta in their final
match in October, and by then
Claus Bech / scanpix
Armenian annihilation leaves Danish World Cup dreams in tatters Odd couple
off to the
US Open
Thørbjorn Olesen joined by
rookie 230 ranking places below
him who is two years his senior
J
Jansen told Ekstra Bladet newspaper.
Laudrup led Ajax to the
Dutch championship and cup
double during the 1997-1998
season, the only one he was with
the club. He then represented
Denmark at the World Cup and
retired from playing professional
football shortly afterwards. (CW)
ust 44 minutes after Denmark’s brightest ever golfing
prospect, 23-year-old Thørbjorn Olesen, tees off on Thursday
in the second major of the season,
the US Open at the Merion Golf
Club in Pennsylvania, the world
number 35 will be joined in the
competition by another Dane 230
places behind him in the rankings.
Morten Orum Madsen, two
years Olesen’s senior, is the world
number 265, his country’s fifth
highest ranked player behind Olesen, Thomas Bjørn (87), Anders
Hansen (93) and Søren Kjeldsen
(218). And in late May, he dug
deep to finish fourth in the European qualifying tournament at
Walton Heath in Surrey, England,
shooting -5 over two days to qualify with 12 other fellow Europeans
from a field of 95.
Madsen is a name to watch out
for, although not quite in Olesen’s
league yet, both metaphorically
and literally. He is currently second
in the Challenge Tour rankings,
the second tier of men’s pro golf
in Europe from which the top 20
every year win promotion to the
European tour. Madsen will be
hoping to emulate Bjørn, a fellow
member of Silkeborg GK, who
won the Challenge Tour in 1995.
A late starter in the game – initially
hooked on football, he didn’t seriously try the sport until he was 12
– he will fancy springing a surprise
in the US this week – a country
where he studied and represented
Oregon State University.
Olesen, meanwhile, hasn’t
played well since impressing at
April’s US Masters where he finished sixth equal despite shooting
an opening round 78. But despite
quick exits at the World Matchplay and the Players Championship, he remains eighth in the Race
to Dubai.
His coach Lars Nysøe is confident he can put his poor form behind him and thinks it might have
something to do with Augusta.
“Several players have before spoken
about how it drains you mentally –
how it can be difficult to leave the
place behind once you leave,” he
told Jyllands Posten. “Particularly
if you have not been before.” (BH)
Like the victims of a most unnatural disaster, the Danish team can’t quite believe what has happened
then hope the other results in
Group B go their way.
The Czechs and Bulgarians
must lose to Italy away and, assuming that they both win their
games against Malta and Armenia, they must draw when they
meet other in their final game in
Bulgaria.
they probably won’t have anything to play for.
But yet, somehow, Denmark
still holds onto a slender chance
of making the World Cup.
The Danes have to win their
last four games against Malta
(home and away), Armenia
(away) and Italy (home) and
That would put Denmark in
second place with 18 points to
Bulgaria’s 17 and Czech Republic’s 16. But even then the Danes
could crash out, because the
worst second-placed team also
misses out and that could very
well end up being the Danes if
they manage to pull it off.
Danish football legend
astounded that his former club
would call for his presence in a
tax case through a newspaper
announcement
D
enmark’s
most
prominent football name,
Michael Laudrup, the
manager of English Premier
League club Swansea City, contends that he is innocent in a
tax dispute involving his former
club, the current Dutch champions Ajax.
The case concerns a signingon fee that Michael Laudrup
received in connection with his
transfer from Japan’s Vissel Kobe
to Ajax back in 1997. No tax was
ever paid on that fee, and it led
to Dutch tax officials to ransacking Ajax’s offices and the homes
of a number of players and staff,
including Laudrup’s, in 2001.
The tax authorities spent a
couple of years finding out that
there were no grounds for opening up a criminal case against
those involved, but they did end
up slapping Ajax with a 22.4
million kroner fine.
But while the chapter has
been over for Laudrup since
2003, last week, Ajax decided to
reopen old wounds by placing
an announcement in the Dutch
newspaper De Telegraaf calling
for the Dane to show up at the
country’s tax authority offices on
August 29 in connection with
the case. Ajax claim Laudrup
owes them money from the tax
settlement.
“Now, eight years later a
new Ajax management is trying
to get money back. A professional club looking for a person
who is coach in the world’s most
watched football league via a
newspaper ad. What is going
on?” Laudrup wrote to the Ritzau news bureau. “Every stone
has been turned in this case, and
the details are known already
and have been so for eight or ten
years!”
Laudrup’s long-time agent,
Bayram Tutumlu, was furious
about how Ajax has proceeded,
labelling them a “small-time
club”. Swansea City, echoed the
sentiment.
I have spoken to Michael
at length about his tax issue.
Swansea’s Dutch boad director
John van Zweden said according to the English newspaper
Daily Mirror. “He is shocked.
Ajax have portrayed him as a
criminal – as a tramp without a
proper address or place to live,”
“We are talking about the manager of Swansea City. Ajax make
out that this is a criminal who
is hiding and sleeping under
bridges next to a river.”
But according to Dutch
journalist Dennis Jansen, who is
covering the case for Algemeen
Dagblad newspaper, Ajax insist
they are simply following standard procedure.
“Ajax has explained that this
is the correct and formal way to
go about it. It also said it doesn’t
have his address in Swansea,”
scanpix
Michael Laudrup claims innocence in awkward Ajax tax case
Michael Laudrup (left) and his agent Bayram Tutumlu are angry that
Ajax is demanding money in connection with a decade-old tax dispute
Sports news IN brief
Golden generation sees red
It had to be Frank
Outrolled in Odense
24-hour testing people
Hoping for better at Betis
Parken’s wild card
The under-19s national
football team have failed to
qualify for their European championship this summer following
a 1-0 loss to Portugal on Sunday.
The game started badly when
keeper Oliver Korch was sent off
in the seventh minute. The resulting penalty was saved, but in
the closing minutes - of a game
that the Danes needed to win to
qualify - the referee awarded a
second one, which was not.
The under-19s national football team’s coach Thomas Frank
has been named the new coach
of Brøndby IF. He replaces Auri
Skarbalius, who was fired along
with sporting director Ole Bjur by
the club’s new-look board of directors following a disappointing
season. Frank had previously spent
four years coaching the under-16
national team before overseeing
the under-19s for one year, but has
never trained a senior team before.
The national wheelchair
rugby team finished sixth in the
Denmark Wheelchair Rugby
Challenge, the sport’s biggest event
since the 2012 Paralympics, which
finished on Sunday in Odense. The
tournament is seen as a warm-up to
next year’s World Championships,
which will also be held in Odense.
The team managed just two wins
over Sweden (57-54) and Belgium
(57-47). The US beat Australia 6156 to take home the gold.
Tom Kristensen’s 2 Audi
Sport Team was the fastest during the Le Mans test day, which
took place last weekend. The test
day is the last on-course preparation drivers have before the 24hour race, and Kristensen’s teammate Loic Duval was the fastest
of all the drivers. Le Mans takes
place on the weekend of June 2223. Kristensen is the most successful driver in the competition’s
history with eight wins.
Stephan Andersen, who
played in goal for Denmark at
Euro 2012, has signed a twoyear contract with Real Betis.
The Dane joins the La Liga club
from French team Evian Thonon
Gaillard, where he had found
himself sidelined for most of last
season, costing him his place in
the national team in the process.
Betis finished seventh in the
league and have qualified for the
Europa League next season.
Talented young racer
Michael Jepsen Jensen has been
awarded a wild card spot in the
Danish FIM Speedway Grand
Prix at Parken in Copenhagen on June 29. Last year the
21-year-old Dane won the Nordic Speedway Grand Prix and
the individual Under-21 World
Championship. Jensen will
represent Denmark at Parken
alongside Nicki Pedersen and
Niels-Kristian Iversen.
BUSINESS
14 - 20 June 2013
15
SCANPIX / SØREN BIDSTRUP
Debate over how to stimulate economy
my sources in the [European]
Commission, there is space for
relaxation,” Rasmussen told Jyllands-Posten newspaper. “France
and other countries have more
or less been given the green light,
and I can see no logical reason
why Denmark would also receive a ‘no’.”
Rasmussen added that pension savings were also a resource
the government could turn to in
order to finance large infrastructure projects.
“I think that it is possible to
invest massively in a responsible
and sensible way that fits in with
our economic policy,” Rasmussen said. “The idea is to use the
pension savings, which in Denmark are very large and unique.
We could start electrifying the
railways for example.”
Pension funds have already
been identified as possible investors in Copenhagen’s planned
harbour tunnel and the Fehmarn
Fixed Link tunnel to Germany.
Rasummsen’s idea was supported by far-left party Enhedslisten, which saw pension
savings as an obvious source of
funding to fuel growth without
burdening public finances.
“The pressure on the government to tackle unemployment
is growing,” Frank Aaen (Enhedslisten) told Jyllands-Posten.
“We have discussed the idea
with the government and pension funds several times.”
PETER STANNERS
Government’s economic advisers
recommend increasing spending,
former PM calls for investment
from pensions, while liberal
think-tank calls for tax cuts to
stimulate consumption
P
Novo Nordisk maintains there is no connection between Victoza and cancer
Bad medicine for Novo Nordisk
RAY WEAVER
Squeaky-clean company hit
by a complicated tax case and
accusations that one of its most
promising drugs may be causing
cancer
O
NE OF Denmark’s most
trustworthy companies
has taken some hard
shots to its corporate image over the past few weeks.
Novo Nordisk, the country’s most valuable company,
has consistently been at the top
of consumer confidence studies since the 1990s, but according to new revelations the drug
maker is avoiding taxes in its
home country.
According to public broadcaster DR, tax authority Skat is
demanding that Novo Nordisk
pay 5.5 billion kroner in back
taxes, claiming that Novo Nordisk dodged taxes by funnelling
billions of kroner into tax havens
in Switzerland.
Although the case is complicated, the allegations boil down
to Novo Nordisk, between 2002
and 2007, registering patents
and other rights for several of its
products to subsidiaries in Switzerland, thus avoiding higher
Danish tax rates.
“It is a classic example of aggressive tax avoidance,” Swiss tax
expert Andreas Missbach from
the Berne Declaration, a thinktank, told DR News.
Skat has declined to comment, but according to DR
News, it believes Novo Nordisk
under-reported the value of the
products and rights it registered
in Switzerland to the tune of 22
billion kroner.
“I find it hard to see how its
image can escape unscathed,”
Anders Drejer, a management
professor from Aalborg University, told DR News.
Although Skat recently went
after US software giant Microsoft for 5.8 billion kroner, the
case against Novo Nordisk is
thought to be the largest ever
filed against a Danish company.
“It is a huge case,” Lars Kiertzner, a professor from the Copenhagen Business School, told
DR News.
Some business experts have
pointed out that Novo Nordisk is simply following standard
business procedure, and Drejer
added that Skat’s poor reputation could play in Novo Nordisk’s favour. Even so, he said the
company was still likely to slip a
notch in the public’s eye.
“It has always been such a
leader when it comes to ethics
that it looks extra bad when it appears it cannot live up to them.
Danes have a tendency to gloat
a little in cases like this,” he said.
The Tax Ministry has vowed
to track down corporate tax
cheats to collect what it said
were hundreds of billions of kroner in unpaid taxes.
Novo Nordisk contended
that it had done nothing wrong.
“I would like to make it
clear: Novo Nordisk does not
cheat on its taxes either in Denmark or in any other country.
We pay the taxes that we owe,”
finance director Jesper Brandgaard told DR News. “We pay
more coporate taxes than anyone
else in Denmark.”
Brandgaard said that Novo
Nordisk had registered part of
its busineses in Zurich because
of the strong pharma environ-
ment and because “it is a fantastic place to do business.”
Accusations of tax fraud
however, are just one of Novo
Nordisk’s worries at the moment.
Reports surfaced that its
successful diabetes drug Victoza
may increase the chance of users
developing pancreatic cancer.
Authorities in both Europe
and the US have found evidence
of the increased risk.
A report in the British Medical Journal said that incidences
of pancreatic cancer were “overrepresented” in patients that
used glucose-lowering medications like Victoza.
The European Medicines
Agency stressed that incidences
of cancer being over-represented
in the statistics of reported side
effects is not the same as saying
that there is a direct relationship
between the drug and the development of cancer.
“This is especially true for
signs of malignant cancers that
are extremely difficult to confirm solely on the basis of spontaneous reports,” an EMA representative wrote to Berlingske
newspaper.
Novo Nordisk’s head of
research, Mads Krogsgaard
Thomsen, told Berlingske that
the company’s own experiments
on animals and humans and
subsequent monitoring of data
have found no evidence that
Victoza increased the risk of
pancreatic cancer.
Novo Nordisk shares took a
hit earlier this year when two of
its drugs were rejected for sale
in the US. The company has
also been involved in overtime
disputes with some of its US
employees.
ARTIES on the left and
right both agree that the
government’s tight fiscal
policy could be stunting the
economy, but they can’t agree on
the remedy.
Last week the government’s
independent panel of economic
advisers recommended that
the government increase public investment by 12 billion
kroner next year to stimulate
the economy after warnings it
would only grow by about 0.25
percent this year.
PM Helle Thorning-Schmidt
(Socialdemokraterne) was at
once dismissive of borrowing
more money to pay for public
investments, arguing that the
government had already brought
forward billions of kroner of investment in infrastructure.
Denmark’s tight fiscal policy
is designed to keep spending
down and comply with EU debt
regulations, but Poul Nyrup
Rasmussen, a former Socialdemokraterne PM, thinks the
government is playing it too safe.
“As far as I understand from
The finance minister, Bjarne
Corydon, said he welcomed the
idea of using pension savings
to stimulate growth, but that it
wasn’t a complete solution.
“[Pension funds] are going
to invest based on the return on
investment, and in particular
areas, it makes sense,” Corydon
told Jyllands-Posten. “I don’t
think, however, it’s a magic
wand that can be used to increase investment without costs.
Investments need to be paid for
regardless of whether it is the
state or pension funds that finance them.”
“The government is trying to
balance two needs: firstly to support growth and employment
as much as possible, while also
making sure we comply with the
commitments to lead a responsible economic policy that won’t
massively increase the deficit.”
Liberal think-tank Cepos
welcomed calls for the government to loosen its economic
policy in the 2014 budget, but
said tax relief should come ahead
of increased spending.
“I would warn against the
recommendations to increase
public spending,” Cepos chief
economist Mads Lundby Hansen told the Ritzau news bureau.
“We have the largest public
sector in the OECD, and Denmark’s growth potential will not
increase if the public sector is
also made larger.”
BRITISH CHAMBER OF
COMMERCE IN DENMARK
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Date: 11 June 2013
• official media partner
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Employment
14 - 20 June 2013
17
Biotech Job Vacancies
Lundbeck
Fall in love.
Every night.
Compliance Advisor
Medical Advisor, Corporate Medical Affairs
Head of Pharmaceutical Engineering
Learning Management System (LMS) Consultant
Research Scientist Computational Chemistry
Leo-Pharma
Outsourcing Manager to Clinical Partnership Management
Global Scientific Advisor
Novozymes
Investment Portfolio Manager
Senior Application Specialist – SAP SCM
Recovery Scientist
Experienced Business Development Manager, Animal Health & Nutrition
Finance Business Partner – Supply Operations
Introductory offer
Hästens NEW Excel
38.600,-
Introducing a
new collection
of frame beds
(180x200 cm incl. BJ top mattress)
RRP: 43.900,-
This summer Hästens proudly presents a new collection of frame beds. Fall
asleep in a bed built by hand in Sweden, filled with all-natural materials such
as wool, cotton, flax, Swedish pine and horsehair that breathes, just like you,
keeping you cool through the summer nights.
HÄSTENS STORE RØDOVRE
Roskildevej 301, 2610 Rødovre
Tlf 36 72 00 40
HÄSTENS STORE LYNGBY
Nørgaardsvej 1, 2800 Lyngby
Tlf 20 77 09 40
hasten.dk
Ferring
Student, Global Regulatory Affairs
Research Technician(temp) Pharmaceutical Compliance & Support
Senior Formulation Scientist, Late Stage Development
Senior Scientist, Drug Substance, Chemical Development
Student, IMP
Analytical Scientist(temp) Late Stage Development
Novo Nordisk
ITG Associate Business Analyst
Craftsman, fine mechanics workshop
VP cLEAN Project Manager
Research Scientist/Principal Scientist
Sr. Project Coordinator
Project Manager
Process Development Specialist
QA validation professional
QA Professional
Quality & System Supporter
Team Leader CSP Process Support
Chemist - Column Packing
Senior International Trial Manager
For more information and other job vacancies visit our webpage www.cphpost.dk/jobvacancies
reseArch And public
diplomAcy officer
Short-term 3 months contract commencing August 2013
IB PYP Teacher
(Full-TIme)
Østerbro International School is looking to employ a positive, energetic and organised
teacher to join our school.
The position: PYP Grade 3 Class Teacher and PE Teacher in the upper
PYP (Grades 3-5), full-time for the academic school year 2013-2014.
Østerbro International School was founded in 2009 to meet the needs of the International
English-speaking community in Copenhagen. Østerbro International School is an IBPYP
and IBMYP candidate school.
The role of the Class teacher and PE teacher would be to implement the programme,
develop curricular and teach to the objectives of the subjects. The position will require
the candidate to:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Beanear-nativespeakerofEnglishwiththerelevantteachingqualifications
and experience
Have knowledge of and a commitment to the educational philosophies of the
InternationalBaccalaureate,specificallythePrimaryYearsProgramme
HavequalificationstoteachPE
Teach 26 lessons, lasting 45 minutes per week.
Have the ability to plan, deliver and evaluate lessons which stimulate and
motivate students to learn
Plan collaboratively, participating in weekly and monthly meetings
Have strong interpersonal skills
Have understanding of and sensitivity to cultural variance
The position commences August 2013
To apply: please email your CV and a letter of application to the Headmaster
Nedzat Asanovski [email protected] by June 20th 2013.
www.oEIS.dk
Østerbro International School • Præstøgade 17 • 2100 Copenhagen Ø
• Tel.: +45 70 20 63 68 • E-mail: [email protected]
The Australian Embassy is seeking a part-time Research and Public Diplomacy Officer.
The position involves research, analysis, drafting reports, translations, a significant
role in the Embassy’s public diplomacy program, and some administrative duties, as
well as helping with non-core tasks during other staff absences and peak periods.
ApplicAnts should meet the following criteriA:
»
Excellent knowledge of Danish and Norwegian political and economic
environment, including an awareness of current and international affairs
»
Proven research and analytical competency, an ability to identify critical issues
and demonstration of sound judgment
»
Good organizational skills
»
Flexibility and adaptability to work in a small office environment
»
Fluency in both written and spoken English and Danish
»
Ability to read/speak Norwegian is desirable
»
Media and/or public relations experience is an advantage
»
Knowledge of Australia is an advantage
Applications in English only may be emailed to
[email protected] or forwarded to:
Australian embassy
dampfærgevej 26
copenhagen Ø
Attention: Senior Admin Office
Applications close on Friday 21 June 2013. Applications received after the closing
date will not be considered. If you have not been requested to attend an interview
within four weeks of the closing date please assume that your application has not been
successful on this occasion.
18
culture
14- 20 June 2013
Mads Olrik Berthelsen
Museum of Copenhagen invites
expats to contribute to and learn
from a new exhibition about Søren
Kierkegaard’s writings on love
I
t’s not the answer to life,
the universe and everything,
but Søren Kierkegaard,
Denmark’s most important
philosopher who would have
turned 200 this year, still came
up with an answer to a pretty
important question: how can
you keep love flowing through
a relationship after the initial infatuation has faded?
Kierkegaard’s answer is not
uncomplicated, but you can find
it in a stately room on the second
floor of the Museum of Copenhagen. Quotes from the writer’s
massive work are lined up alongside artefacts from his own love
life, but the museum has taken
a new approach in order to also
examine how Kierkegaard’s
thoughts can be applied to our
modern world. The exhibition
displays objects that tell personal
stories about love, donated by
ordinary Copenhageners. And
at a special event on June 22, the
Museum of Copenhagen invites
the city’s expats to contribute
their own stories and artefacts of
love.
Love is an often-used theme
at museums, explains Museum
of Copenhagen historian Jakob
Parby, the curator of the exhibition, because everyone can relate
to the concept.
“But exhibitions about love
can end up being banal, if you
are not careful,” he warned. “The
great thing about Kierkegaard’s
ideas of love is that they are so
nuanced.”
Kierkegaard
distinguishes
between concepts like parental love, infatuation, love of the
other and friendship, and the donated objects and stories are also
sorted into these categories.
“In a normal exhibition we
would show objects that are representative or have a special connection to the general history of
Copenhagen,” Parby continued.
“But with these objects we are allowed insight into very personal
stories and that makes Kierkegaard’s thoughts more contemporary and tangible.”
The idea also solves a very
simple problem. “We have relatively few artefacts from Kierkegaard’s life,” Parby explained.
“And this was a chance to revitalise our collection.”
Returning to the initial question: how does Søren Kierkegaard propose that we can keep
our relationships alive, long after
the butterflies have disappeared?
For the answer, we turn to Jakob Skov, who has contributed
to the exhibition. His donation
consists of a James Bond-style
tuxedo, worn at his best friend’s
wedding, along with the Kierkegaard-inspired speech he
gave. The speech revolves around
Kierkegaard’s thoughts about the
distinction between infatuation
− falling in love − and charity.
“When relationships break
down, it is often because of the
idea that love should be storming feelings and infatuation,”
Københavns Museum
Did you fly in on the wings of love and crash-land in Herlev?
Sigrid Friis Neergaard
Proof that love can be dark, this ‘object’ appears to be the keys to a dungeon
contended Skov. “We hunt for
the rush, and when that’s gone
and all the existential angst returns we think: maybe she isn’t
right for me after all. If we want
a relationship to last, we have to
understand that love is not just
a sensation or a feeling − it’s also
a duty.”
Skov has contributed to the
exhibition because he believes
the philosopher’s thoughts are
easily applicable to the age we
live in. Kierkegaard’s ideas about
how to maintain a marriage are
as relevant today as they were
160 years ago, he says.
“Kierkegaard’s solution is to
let charity − what some call love
for the other − be the foundation
for the relationship,” Skov wrote
in his speech.
“In that way, the relationship
is no longer based on fleeting
emotions. Is she smart enough,
funny enough, or is she complaining too much − all those
questions become obsolete. You
love the other person because she
is a human being, just like you.”
And love is set free. You are
free from judging each other’s
emotions, and the love is liberated from the constraints and
stresses of everyday life. Passion
comes and goes, but charity and
love for the other will keep you
together.
The tuxedo and the speech
will be on display alongside a
number of other objects. There’s
the bracelet the donor got from
her husband just before they split
up, representing a loss of love. A
hairdresser has donated a pair
of scissors that she used to give
haircuts to her ex-boyfriend for
years, representing how love can
linger. The exhibition also includes objects like a list of hook-
ups, silverware and a pair of blue
shorts with polka dots, each with
their own story and connection
to Kierkegaard’s ideas.
Parby is looking forward to
seeing how Copenhagen’s expats
will contribute to the exhibition.
“There is something special about this event for expats,
because often it is love that has
brought them here,” he said.
Find out more on Saturday June
22, between 2 and 4pm, at the
Museum of Copenhagen, where
expats and their Danish loved
ones are especially invited to ‘Love
knows no borders’, an event being
held in association with The Copenhagen Post. Bring an item that
symbolises your love to be displayed,
either permanently or temporarily,
in the ‘Søren Kierkegaard: works
of love, objects of love’ exhibition.
Admission is free
Boyband prove they’re wankers
Lovísa Dröfn
Ben Hamilton
HHHHHH
Lille Carl
24 May
dieter hartwig
Forgive the cliché, but 3s are good
3-i-1
Pop group widely condemned
for ‘Jackass’ stunt at Field’s
shopping centre in which they
‘masturbated’ whilst looking at a
baby ... in front of its mother
T
he
performance
dance piece ‘3-i-1’ is a part
of a larger concept, called
‘Thousand Threads’, an ongoing series at the Dansehallerne.
The idea is that artistic director
Bush Hartshorn carefully selects dance performances from
around the world that are innovative and groundbreaking and
creates a show exclusively for
Danish dance enthusiasts.
The three pieces that feature
in ‘3-i-1’ are certainly innovative and each distinct from the
other. The first piece was a solo
by the Danish dancer and choreographer Christine Borch, called
‘The Body That Comes’. The
piece was an exploration of physical limits, in a way – an exploration of the physical pain that the
human body can endure. The
piece was strangely mesmerising, with Borch alone on the
stage the whole time, with no
music and no background. The
absence of any other materials
allowed for a complete focus on
Borch at all times, which put her
under a certain pressure, but she
T
Layes balanced a glass of water on his head throughout his performance
delivered a performance that was
both captivating and thoughtprovoking.
The second performance was
a duet, simply called ‘Duet For
Two Dancers’, by the Swiss choreographer Tabea Martin. The
piece, which starred Stefan Baier
and Ryan Djojokarso who gave
a fantastic performance, had
the audience in stitches while
contemplating some very deep
questions about identity and the
fear of losing oneself. The choreography was great: funny, beautiful and performed with perfect
precision.
The last performance, and
perhaps the oddest one, was
‘Allege’ by the French choreographer and dancer Clément
Who is ...
Niels Arden
Oplev?
Layes. The show seems more
like a philosophical contemplation about habits and rhythms,
rather than a classic dance piece.
Nevertheless, it was intriguing and wonderfully performed
with perfect comedic timing.
The whole piece was a constant
act of balance, both figuratively
and literally, as Layes balanced
a glass of water on his head the
entire performance.
All in all, ‘3-i-1’ proved to
be a great show and special acknowledgement must be given
to Hartshorn for choosing these
three pieces, for even though
they were wildly different, they
all explored the idea of limits in
some form or another and complemented each other well.
he depraved and music often go hand-in-hand.
We’ve all heard the urban
legends about rock-stars eating
bats, animal sperm and shit, but
while they might churn our stomach, there’s a part of us that doubt
they’re true.
Sadly in the case of a recent
episode involving The Janoskians – some ‘Jackass’ wannabes
who have found fame as arguably
Australia’s most famous boyband,
at Field’s shopping centre in the
Amager city district of Copenhagen – the truth is not in dispute.
It was filmed and posted on YouTube, where it remained for several days until the band took it down
following the widespread outrage.
The clip, entitled ‘Public
Wanking’, showed band members
appearing to masturbate in various
places at the centre: in a bus lane,
at the bottom of an escalator, in a
person’s shopping trolley, in front
of children and, in one case, whilst
looking at a six-week-old baby,
which the perpetrator calls “a cute
kid”, “a beautiful kid” and “sexy”,
whilst the infant’s mother and
grandmother look on in extreme
discomfort telling him to stop.
The clip was widely condemned, most particularly in the
Australian media, as the story
spread like wildfire across the
planet – among the celebrities who
chipped in was Matt Lucas, the cocreator of ‘Little Britain’.
“It’s repulsive” he wrote on
Twitter. “It’s probably also criminal. It’s certainly utterly witless. If
they don’t, [take it down] I have
no doubt they’ll be destroyed in
the press. I wouldn’t normally
wish that on anyone, but frankly, I
think it might be what they need.”
Back in their home country,
the Australian authorities labelled
the video “paedophilic” and “verging on sexual assault”, and across
the internet, many questioned
whether the band should face
criminal charges.
Responding to a tirade attacking the band on musicfeeds.com,
one US commenter perhaps best
summed up the outrage when he
wrote: “Although I hate to agree
with any asshole using ‘fuckingfaggots’ as a screen name, I do. Please
show your ass like that here in the
USA cause we’ll beat the shit out
of you. Fuck fame, we’ve killed for
less in this country. No offence to
you K-Roo fuckers, but these shitheads need a boot up their asses.”
A 52-year-old film director who
grew up in the small Danish town
of Himmerland.
Have I seen any of his movies?
I hope you have, because he directed the great Swedish movie
‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’.
Oh yeah, I have seen that!
It’s such a good movie, and if
you liked the lead actress Noomi
Rapace, you can now see her in
a film called ‘Dead Man Down’,
also directed by Oplev... which
last week was given one star out of
six in our InOut section .
So they like working together?
He has said she is like a sister to
him, – which normally translates
as meaning he sleeps with all her
friends.
Was he famous before?
He first became quite famous for
his 2006 film ‘Drømmen’ (‘We
Shall Overcome’), which is said
to be based on his own childhood
growing up in a small community
with a vicious headmaster. It won
30 international awards. Apart
from that, he has directed the
very moving film ‘To verdener’
(‘Worlds Apart’), which is a true
story about a young girl who is a
Jehovah’s Witness. When she falls
in love with a Danish boy, her
family turns their back on her.
Shutting the door works best
for me.
Don’t knock it... it will make you
reach for the tissues, if not shedding tears of sadness, then at least
tears of anger.
Does he only direct movies?
No, he has directed quite a few
Danish TV shows, including the
popular Rejseholdet (‘Unit One’),
which DR1 is currently repeating every Sunday. He directed the
first three episodes of the series,
which is based on true crime stories in Denmark.
And what is he working on
now?
He recently directed the pilot for
a US series of the Stephen King
bestseller ‘Under the Dome’,
which will be broadcast in the US
on June 24. Furthermore, rumour
has it that he will be directing a
remake of the Brat Pack classic
‘Flatliners’.
DENMARK THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
14 - 20 June 2013
19
Lanes and limits come and go as the city’s cyclists go to and fro
MARK WALKER
Ahead of the 150th anniversary
of the arrival of the bicycle in
Copenhagen in 2015, Through
the Looking Glass takes a look at
the history of cycling
I
F YOU are a tourist or a recent arrival to our fair city,
it’s unlikely that the number
of people on bicycles will have
escaped your notice. As a city
that is sorely lacking in any gradient whatsoever, Copenhagen
frequently competes with Amsterdam for the world’s number
one cycling city title. Bicycles
are an ordinary staple of daily
life here, but it might surprise
you to learn that the Danish
capital wasn’t always so predisposed to developing the urban
cycling paradise we enjoy today.
Since the introduction of the
first velocipede (a term that covers all human-powered vehicles
on one or more wheels) onto
our streets, Copenhagen has
seen the bicycle’s popularity wax
and wane.
Goodbye Schleswig Holstein,
hello bicycle
THE WORLD’S first bicycle
is difficult to pinpoint, but the
first recognisable pedal-powered
invention had already been put
into production by the French
inventor Pierre Michaux (and
his two sons) by 1861. In Copenhagen, the first bicycle arrived in 1865. It was probably
referred to as ‘velocipeden’ or (as
in the UK) a ‘boneshaker’ − so
called due to a heavy wooden
frame that had no suspension
and wheels lined with steel −
but like in the rest of the world,
there was little to no fanfare.
However by 1869, Copenhagen
was in the grip of a cycling fever
that showed little sign of abating. Originally importing from
France, the UK and Germany,
everyone was talking about this
new contraption, albeit as an exotic frivolity rather than a serious form of transport.
A bad penny … for ponies
IN THE 1880s, the newly-designed ‘penny farthing’ (known
as ‘væltepederen’) was received
with scepticism by some who
feared that this tall bicycle
Today’s modern sign appears to be modelled on a 19th century bicycle
would frighten the (still prevalent) horses. The farthing (also
known as the ordinary bicycle
and mostly imported from England along with special clothing)
became a luxury item that particularly attracted young men
who were determined to master
the tricky feat of combining balance and speed. By 1882, Tivoli
had played host to the country’s
first ever cycling race.
Perceptions changed later
that decade with the introduction of the ‘safety bicycle’ as a
more sturdy alternative to the
penny farthing. A safety bicycle
employed two wheels of similar
size and crucially placed the rider
much closer to the ground. This
period saw Danish manufacturers pop up across the country
and domestic production grow
rapidly. By 1890, there were
2,500 bicycles in the city.
The safety bicycle enabled
women to take to the streets
and precipitated a change in
fashions, not just in Denmark
but across the world. Out went
the corsets and large billowing dresses, and in came baggy
bloomers – a divided skirt
cinched at the knee. There was
concern that the saddles could
be sexually arousing so new ‘hygienic’ ones were introduced,
without padding.
“The safety bicycle fills a
much-needed want for women
in any station of life,” observed
the English-language cycling periodical The Bearings in 1894.
Courier careers …
around the corner
AS PRODUCTION increased,
bicycles naturally became less
expensive and more widely available. They were clearly being
taken seriously when in 1895,
Copenhagen’s telephone company became the first organisation to employ bicycle couriers
in order to deliver everything
from urgent letters to bouquets
of flowers. Following that, all
manner of merchants were offering a courier service, from
dairies to laundrettes. At the
same time, motor cars were being introduced into Denmark,
but in very small numbers. By
1903, there were just 100 cars
registered in the entire country.
In contrast, the Danish Cycling
Federation was formed in 1905,
and by 1907 there were as many
as 80,000 bicycles in Copenhagen alone. Utility cyclists
(cycling for non-recreational
transport) were commonplace,
and Copenhagen was already
being marked out as Europe’s
foremost cycling city.
As for a proper cycling infrastructure, that took much
longer to establish, although the
city’s first cycle path appeared
on Esplanaden as early as 1892,
while Paths were marked out
around The Lakes (Søerne) in
1910.
Cycling’s popularity surged
throughout the 1920s and 30s.
During the same period, however, the motor car was gaining
strength, and by 1930, nationwide registrations had shot up
to over 100,000.
Cars, collisions and
the Occupation
It’s strange to think that Michaux’s creation preceded the penny farthing
WITH THIS, there came all
manner of problems for cyclists
− especially in regard to road
accidents. In 1934 there were
14,000 road accidents (impossible to know which were bicyclerelated – a fair few as they had
the right of way at all junctions)
and 251 of those included a fatality. In 1935 the Road Safety
association was formed and one
If you thought driving was hard today, just try negotiating this lot on your way to Netto
of their first acts was to increase
cyclist visibility by inviting citizens to show up at designated
points in order to have their
rear mudguards painted white.
A few of these can still be seen
around today. Through these
kind of initiatives and others,
such as setting speed limits
(which were abolished in the
‘50s) and traffic awareness lessons for school children, there
was a sharp drop in accidents
by 1937. In 1939, the state became more involved with the
restructuring of roads to accommodate the new forms of
modern transport.
The rise of the motor car
was curbed in 1940 by the
Second World War when Denmark saw its petroleum heavily
rationed and cycling became
the logical option for transport.
But after the Nazi occupation,
the motor vehicle returned in
force. Imports and production
were up as Danes were keen
to enjoy their new-found freedom and display their wealth as
their economy grew (recovering from both the war and the
Great Depression). The motor
car was the ultimate symbol of
upward mobility. In addition
to this, the 1950s saw Copenhagen expand into newly-built
suburbs − inhabitants working
in the city naturally chose the
motor car as an obvious solution to their extra daily distance
to and from work. Many painted cycle lanes were repainted
to allow more space for cars or
erased altogether. Cycling was
fast going out of fashion.
pendent on the Middle East
for its oil, and when the Energy Crisis hit in the early ‘70s,
few were affected as badly as
Denmark. The Organisation
of Arab Petroleum Exporting
Countries had put a complete
embargo on its oil in 1973 as a
protest against the US support
of Israel. This meant the Danish government was forced to
introduce ‘car-free Sundays’ as
a conservational measure, and
nowhere were these days embraced as much as in the capital. People accordingly began
taking to their bicycles again.
Especially young people.
Speeding curbed,
the lanes are superb
A GALVANISED movement
emerged, protesting for improvements to the roads − in
particular to have segregated
cycle paths. To demonstrate the
importance of their demands,
the protesters began painting
white crosses throughout the
city at locations where cyclists
had been killed. Their efforts
saw speed limits reintroduced
in the mid-70s and car seatbelts became mandatory. Finally, in the mid-80s, the demands for segregated, curbed
cycle lanes were met, and roads
without them became the exception. Initially reluctant, officials
tried to restrict the lanes to back
streets and secondary routes, but
the cyclists insisted they have
lanes on the most direct routes
too.
World’s premier cycling city
TRAFFIC MONITORING
began in earnest during the mid90s, since which time the modal
share (recorded percentage of
different forms of transport)
has risen from approximately
20 percent for cyclists in the
city to 41 percent in 2004. The
benefits for people’s health, the
environment and the economy
are well documented. The future
involves a recently implemented
network of ‘bicycle superhighways’ that are intended to encourage people in the suburbs
to abandon their cars and commute by bicycle. When optimal, this should raise the modal
share for the whole of Greater
Copenhagen to a whopping 50
percent. This goal was set by
municipal policy to be achieved
by 2015 and will purportedly
cement Copenhagen as the indisputable world number one
cycling city.
Striking lucky in the oil crisis
THE MEMBERSHIP numbers of the Danish Cycling
Federation dwindled to virtually nothing during the 1960s.
Cyclists accounted for just 10
percent of traffic − an all-time
low. In the meantime, western
Europe grew ever more de-
And to think there used to be concerns that the saddles were sexuallyarousing
WANT TO SPEAK
DANISH THIS SUMMER?
INTENSIVE SUMMER COURSES
1st - 19th July
Bernstorffsvej 20
2900 Hellerup
T 3946 3050
F 3946 3051
E [email protected]
W sprogcenterhellerup.dk

Peace, love and politics

Transcription

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