The Copenhagen Post - Feb 25-Mar 3 by The Copenhagen Post

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How the disciples of the good lord noma went forth and multiplied their Michelin stars

Another jukebox musical, this time with the work of Bob Dylan, is set to rock this city

Persian New Year, the vernal equinox to most of us, will put a spring into all of our steps

Vol. 14 ISSUE 11 18 - 24 March 2011

The Danish News in English

News

Language schools happy to recognise students’ degrees for payment purposes even if the rest of the country doesn’t 5

special focus

In the third and final part of our series, we question whether the welfare state can survive in his present form News

Green government’s good! An economist at the EEA has praised the state’s bid to be fossil fuel-free by 2050 HISTORY

Nation mourns passing of swimmer who won Olympic medal aged 12 and refused to heil Hitler on podium Copenhagen Post T: 3336 3300 F: 3393 1313 E: info@cphpost.dk W: www.cphpost.dk

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Last one out, don’t forget the Pindprick By Kevin McGwin A Facebook campaign was mounted last week urging Danes to show they reject Søren Pind’s demand for immigrants to assimilate

hat started as one teen’s humorous protest against the new immigration minister’s comments has become something of a popular movement among social media users. Last week on Thursday, 18-year-old, left-wing political activist Christian Træholt from Aarhus changed his Facebook profile picture to Pind’s official press photo. Later, he and his 15-year-old real-life friend and fellow activist, Malthe Lange, set up a Facebook group called ‘Assimiler Søren Pind, skift dit profilbillede’ (Assimilate Søren Pind, change your profile picture). By Friday morning, about 500 had changed their picture and as of this Wednesday over 23,000 people had joined the group. According to the group’s own description on Facebook, the point of asking people to change their pictures is “to show Søren Pind how boring a country without diversity and space for multiple cultures

Presidential praise has a familiar twang

Will critics of the immigration minister prick his conscience and burst his bubble?

would be”. “We were deeply dissatisfied with Søren Pind’s statements,” Lange told The Copenhagen Post. “A country that isn’t big enough for more than one culture, and where immigrants aren’t allowed to leave their mark on our culture, even if it is for the better, is a country

that is at a standstill.” Only hours after taking over as immigration minister on Tuesday last week, Pind declared himself ready to tighten up immigration laws. He said it should be set in stone that the country welcomes foreigners that adopt and respect Danish values, norms and traditions.

“The way I see it, when you choose Denmark, you choose Denmark because you want to become Danish,” Pind told Jyllands-Posten newspaper. Pind, who has stated many times in the past that he prefers the term ‘assimilation’ to ‘integration’, said a misundercontinues on page 4

hen PM Lars Løkke Rasmussen visited the White House on Monday, he received some familiar-sounding praise from President Barack Obama. On three previous occasions, Obama has praised small nations in exactly the same way, claims Jyllands-Posten newspaper. “Denmark is a country that using an American phrase – punches above its weight,” Obama told Rasmussen, referring to the efforts of Danish soldiers in Afghanistan. In 2009 Obama told the Norwegian prime minister, Jens Stoltenberg: “Norway has always stood shoulder to shoulder with the USA, and like I told the prime minister, there is a phrase we use in the US – a boxing phrase – Norway is punching above its weight.” Earlier that year he told former Irish head of state, Brian Cowen, he said: “The Irish government is punching above its weight in crucial areas.” And when Philippine president Macapagal-Arroyo visited the White House in 2009, his country was praised with the line: “Although the Philippines aren’t among the world’s biggest nations, the country punches above its weight on the international scene.”

Pirates promise there will be blood Local Somali authorities increase efforts to rescue Danish pirate hostages

he situation has worsened this past week for the seven Danes being held hostage by pirates in the Puntland region of Somalia. Last week saw violent firefights between government forces and pirates in a rescue attempt, leaving at least ten people dead. The hostages, however, were unhurt. “The hostages have been in great danger all along,” said TV2 correspondent Simi Jan. “But now the situation has become critical.” One reason is that a Somali police officer told local media

that “we will free them with force”. “This could be regarded as a declaration of war, and the pirates have responded by saying there will be a bloodbath if that were to happen,” said Jan. Although experts say the Danish hostages are worth more to the pirates if they are handed over alive, that does not guarantee it would not happen. “Pirates are unpredictable. Four weeks ago they killed two American hostages,” she said. And although the Danish hostages have been in pirate custody for more than three weeks now, that isn’t much compared to the time it has previously taken to negotiate with pirates to release hostages.

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mark’s largest warship, the HDMS Esbern Snare, will continue its hunt for pirates off the coast of Somalia for another three months. And, following the prime minister’s visit to the White House on Monday, Denmark and the US agreed to closely collaborate in the fight against piracy. (dv)

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2 POST BOX

President and Publisher Ejvind Sandal

Business plans launched to inspire growth in capital

Chief Executive Jesper Nymark

By Peter Stanners

Editor in Chief (Responsible under Danish Press Law) Philip G Shepherd

Initiatives to foster a better business environment in the city may be hampered by immigration debate

Managing Editor Kevin McGwin Newspaper Editor Ben Hamilton Associate Editor Justin Cremer News Desk To speak to a member of The Copenhagen Post news team, please contact news@cphpost.dk 3336 4243 The Copenhagen Post welcomes outside articles and letters to the editor. All unsolicited submissions are at the writer’s own risk. Letters and comments can be left on our website or at: comments@cphpost.dk Sales, Advertising and Marketing For information about advertising and rates, contact our sales department. sales@cphpost.dk 3336 3300 Sales and Marketing Director Hans Hermansen Subscriptions To subscribe contact: subs@cphpost.dk 3336 3300 Annual home delivery rates: 1 year: 1200kr 6 months: 750kr 1 year (online): 365kr Corporate and multiple issue rates are available. Distribution Questions or enquiries regarding distribution should be directed to: distribution@cphpost.dk IT Support Bemitech info@bemitch.com Editorial offices: Slagtehusgade 4 – 6 DK 1715 Copenhagen V Telephone: 3336 3300 Fax: 3393 1313 Original design by Mervyn Kurlansky Headline font by Rasmus Koch The Copenhagen Post accepts no responsibility for the content of material submitted by advertisers. The Copenhagen Post is published weekly by CPHPOST.DK ApS Printed by Dagbladet, Ringsted. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited by law.

The Copenhagen post march 18 - 24

Competition with Stockholm The push for growth in Copenhagen’s economy is understand-

Tax our vices!

The sky’s the limit – the new business strategies aim to boost the city’s growth

able considering growth figures for Stockholm released by the city. They state that if the capital had witnessed a similar rate of growth to Stockholm between 1995 and 2005, the GDP would be 110 million kroner higher, which is approximately two and a half times the amount Denmark uses on primary education and three times the cost of the early retirement programme. While Stockholm has already branded itself as ‘The Capital of Scandinavia’, Fallesen believed that Copenhagen is still in a position to compete as Scandinavia’s main business hub. “In terms of the business environment, it’s geographically a better place than Stockholm and there’s still a lot of potential in developing the Øresund region,” he said. The strong shipping industry in Copenhagen and, in particular, the presence of global giant Maersk, makes Copenhagen an attractive site for potential investors. “We don’t have a silicone valley, but we do have a maritime valley which includes the largest shipping company in the world. In fact shipping is one of the few industries where Copenhagen has been able to attract businesses from Sweden and elsewhere.” Lacking a national strategy The Task Force initiative was met with approval at AmCham, the American chamber of commerce in Denmark. Executive director Stephen Brugger said they welcomed the initiative.

“Copenhagen is an important driver for the Danish economy so increased growth in Copenhagen will certainly benefit the whole of Denmark.” The City Council’s low business climate ranking, he believes can be explained by the fact that the capital is always the natural location foreign investors will head to, meaning the country’s other councils have to work harder in order to attract business away from the main seat of power. “Historically there hasn’t been much of a need to make it more business friendly,” he added. However, Brugger believed the Task Force’s success will be limited if the Danish state does not implement a strategy to make the country as a whole an attractive place for foreign investors. “Denmark needs to strengthen its framework conditions for attracting and retaining investment and talented minds,” he said. According to an AmCham survey conducted in 2010, 50 percent of their members have or are considering moving jobs out of Denmark, and the two main reasons for doing that are the high cost of doing business and the lack of qualified employees. “The City Council’s initiative is definitely a step in the right direction. What I just hope is that the national authorities quickly follow suit. Copenhagen is still dependent on the framework conditions of the national authorities to ensure, for instance, that we have a consistent corporate tax environment.

“This is very important for foreign and Danish authorities here. You don’t want changes every year which you can’t plan for.” Unattractive immigration policy The Task Force was launched the week before Copenhagen Capacity, the capital region’s official inward investment agency, announced a plan to attract 20 international companies, create between 150 and 300 workplaces, and raise an additional 100 million kroner a year in tax revenue. However, with new immigration minister Søren Pind stating in a recent interview with Jyllands-Posten newspaper that he believed immigrants should assimilate, the global perception of Denmark as a welcoming place may suffer. Brugger was aware of this problem with the country’s reputation. “The rhetoric over the last ten years has not been beneficial to the perceptions of Denmark as an attractive place for foreigners to come and work.” For Mayor Jensen, the issue was about attracting the foreign investment the city needs in order to grow. The identity of these foreign investors is not relevant. “The future of Copenhagen strongly depends on international, skilled labour and foreign investors who are attracted by and see the potential in living and investing in our city and region. “I don’t expect them to become Danish, whatever that is. Rather I would like our international citizens to bring inspiration and become an active part of our city life.”

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Cost of advanced language courses has increased from 110 to 16,900 kroner

teep price increases are forcing many highly educated immigrants to drop the Danish classes they need in order to take further education courses here, reports Politiken newspaper. Most non-Danish educations are not recognised here, so in order to qualify for jobs many choose to take further courses

Four Danes missing At least four Danes were still reported as missing on Monday after the devastating tsunami and earthquake that rocked northern Japan. About 550 Danes are registered as living in Japan and as of Saturday two-thirds of them were safe and accounted for. Two of the six Danes known to be staying in the affected area have contacted the Danish embassy, leaving at least four unaccounted for. However, Denmark’s ambassador in Japan told Ekstra Bladet that power cuts had made getting in contact with the embassy difficult.

he Copenhagen Business Task Force was launched last week by Mayor Frank Jensen to investigate ways of improving business in the city and stimulating growth in the regional economy. Led by former managing director and editor-in-chief of financial daily Børsen, Leif Beck Fallesen, the Task Force will present their initial findings at the beginning of August. Announcing the initiative, Jensen called growth in Copenhagen “crucial to growth in the whole of Denmark”. “Over half of Denmark’s GDP is created in the Copenhagen area. Therefore the living standards of all Danes are dependent on Copenhagen hitting the throttle in terms of enterprise and growth.” The Task Force has been given until 2020 to achieve its goals which include a 5 percent yearly average growth in GDP, a 4 percent yearly average rise in productivity, a population growth of 8.5 percent, and the creation of 20,000 more workplaces. Another target requires the City Council to move up at least ten places a year on the Confederation of Danish Industry’s list of the country’s local councils with the best business climates, where Copenhagen currently languishes 83rd out of 90. Speaking to The Copenhagen Post, Fallesen said: “The immediate change is to look at how the city deals with businesses in Copenhagen and then to improve how we treat them. The council has never done any work to promote itself as a business. You associate many things with Copenhagen but not growth.” He added that while Copenhagen generally had a good reputation the Mercer quality of life index rates it the 11th best city to live in globally, business was not something that came to mind first when people thought of the Danish capital. “The council has not invested any kind of effort.”

In brief

at the country’s adult education centres, providing they have passed an advanced Danish language course. However since January 1, they have had to pay the full price for the courses because they have a higher education – qualifications that Danish employers do not recognise. For example, a 180-hour Danish course that once cost 110 kroner now costs 16,900 kroner. “Unbelievable”, said Social Democrat education spokesperson Christine Antorini. “We re-

ally need well-educated foreigners, so it’s unfortunate that we’re so bad at recognising their educations. It is a great barrier that we’re making it so expensive for them to upgrade their qualifications in order to get jobs when they already have the qualifications that Danish businesses are looking for.” Anne Jelsøe, the head of training for the VUC adult education centre in Copenhagen, confirmed the problem. In the Copenhagen department some

250 foreigners with a higher education have dropped out of courses as a result of increased tuition fees, which rose when the state withdrew subsidies as part of its economic stimulus package. “These people work very hard to become integrated into our society. When their education is rendered useless unless they take additional courses, it makes life very hard for them because most of them can’t afford the tuition fees.” (dv)

Duties on cigarettes, booze and unhealthy food are too low, say most Danes, according to a Epinion/DR poll. The poll came on the heels of a new calculation from the Tax Ministry that the price of cigarettes (adjusted for inflation) had fallen by nearly ten percent since 2002 – a period in which alcohol prices fell by about 15 percent. Some 72 percent of people said fees on cigarettes ought to be raised. A smaller proportion, but still a majority of 59 and 58 percent respectively, thought alcohol and junk food should also bear heftier duties.

In-demand sperm Danish sperm has become a hit among European women who cannot get treatment for artificial insemination in their own country, reports Information newspaper. The number of foreign nationals at Danish fertility clinics has increased fivefold over the past five years. Unlike many other countries, Denmark has liberal legislation which allows artificial insemination for both single and lesbian women. Several countries have also enforced legislation on donor anonymity that have scared many donors away.

Travel shake-up Ticket rules for public transport in Greater Copenhagen will be simplified, Hans Christian Schmidt, the transport minister, has confirmed in a bid to revamp a system often described as confusing and illogical. The current set-up often makes it less expensive to travel longer distances and there are conflicting rules for senior travel cards on trains, buses and the underground.

Church attacks X Factor A Jutland bishop has blamed X Factor for churchgoers sitting with their lips sealed during hymns, reports public broadcaster DR. “We believe we need to be as good as those on X Factor in order to sing, but the truth is that we can all sing,” said Niels Henrik Arendt, the bishop of Haderslev. “There’s something very liberating about hearing people sing, and it really doesn’t matter if they don’t hit all the notes.” Read the full stories at www.cphpost.dk

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The Copenhagen post march 18 - 24

Messiah of Nordic cuisine still reigns supreme despite disciple success By Nichole Accettola City’s eateries were eagerly awaiting the release of the new 2011 Michelin Guide on Wednesday

openhagen is on a roll foodwise. Ever since the first Michelin star was given to a Danish restaurant in 1984, the food industry has done nothing but pick up momentum on its way to becoming the culinary capital of Scandinavia. And never before has the city’s restaurant scene grown with such leaps and bounds as it has over the course of the past decade. In March 2010, a total of nine city centre restaurants were awarded with a single Michelin star, and one restaurant, noma, was given a well-deserved and coveted two-star rating. As if that weren’t enough, just one month later, noma came in first place in the San Pellegrino Awards, the ‘world championship’ for restaurants. With a phenomenal reputation like that, cooks and diners alike wait to see how the 2011 Michelin stars will be awarded this month, with many hoping that noma will walk away with three stars. As far as culinary Olympics are concerned, Denmark is a winner too. After years of extensive training, Danish chef Rasmus Kofoed - along with his team of highly-skilled cooks

- won gold at the Bocus d’Or finals in Lyon, France in January this year. Having world-class restaurants with renowned chefs in their kitchens has helped put Denmark, as well as New Nordic cuisine, on the culinary map. Yet what kind of an effect does noma’s existence have on the city’s other restaurants? A former sous chef at noma and the current executive chef at Brasserie Nimb, Robert Jacobsson, believes that noma has a big influence on the city’s better restaurants. “Noma is the top of the line. The work they do there is contagious, and it inspires us chefs very much. I speak with noma’s sous chef practically on a daily basis. We give each other advice and talk about ingredients. At the brasserie, we don’t try to compete with noma, but we use them as a source of inspiration.” The dining experience at the brasserie is very different from that at noma. “Nimb Brasserie is a very busy restaurant; we do a lot more covers than they do, but we share some of the same techniques. We embrace the individual ingredients and focus on fresh flavours, and we treat our ingredients with love and respect, just as noma does. Many of our vegetables are the same; however, noma does use more expensive products, like differ-

Robert Jacobsson describes norma as a “contagious” influence

Christian Puglisi applauds the international attention norma has garnered

ent types of fish and shellfish, than we do here.” Jacobsson isn’t the only noma disciple who can feel positive vibes radiating from the gourmet house at the harbour. One of Jacobsson’s former colleagues, Christian Puglisi, also had a stint as sous chef at noma before opening up his own restaurant, Restaurant Relæ, in Østerbro late last year. Like Jacobsson, Puglisi took bits and pieces with him from his time at noma, but created a more relaxed restaurant in comparison. The result, says Puglisi, is a gourmet dining experience for a fraction of noma’s price. “I am not interested in making a luxury restaurant, so I’ve cut out everything I feel is unnecessary, and that reduces costs: things like pouring water for the guests, setting out the cutlery between each course,

chefs, and a source of culinary inspiration, in turn, are key factors in ensuring restaurant patrons have a positive dining experience. And though traditional Danish culture has a ‘stay at home’ mindset, those Danes that frequent restaurants like the Brasserie Nimb and Relæ have higher standards than those just five years ago. “Because the Danish restaurant branch has become more international, the quality level of dining is higher than before. Danes are getting used to higher quality. They are starting to appreciate it more, and they know what good is,” adds Puglisi. Puglisi is looking forward to being able to spoil his customers with goodness when the asparagus season from Lammefjorden starts. “Danish asparagus emphasises the difference between

having a lot of waiters around you all the time. These are things that people can take care of themselves, and I don’t believe that our guests would appreciate spending more money on those things anyway.” Not only do Denmark’s current success stories inspire Puglisi foodwise, they also provide the industry with fringe benefits in the form of better qualified kitchen applicants. “A lot of people come to look for work in Copenhagen. Maybe they want to work at noma and then work somewhere else in the city afterwards, or maybe they can’t even get a position at noma. It heightens the level of available staff, whereas before we only had Danish cooks. Now there is international interest.” A better qualified staff, an exchange of knowledge among

something grown locally as opposed to being flown in from another part of the world. The freshness makes all the difference. Our asparagus is picked the day before we get it.” When Jacobsson and Puglisi aren’t behind the pots and pans at their respective restaurants, they enjoy going out to eat. Jacobsson names the Frenchinspired Restaurant Oubæk as one of his favourites, especially when, Jacobsson says, “it doesn’t have to be challenging.” Both men agree on one thing: when it comes to fine dining, noma is the place to go. Only time will tell how long noma remains at the top of the list, or whether it succeeds in achieving Michelin’s three-star status, but nevertheless, its pure presence has and will continue to change the Danish restaurant scene for years to come.

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The Copenhagen post march 18 - 24

The ‘assimilation’ minister speaks out By Peter Stanners Denmark should be proud of its cultural values and principles, and should expect those wishing to become Danish to adopt them, writes the immigration minister

n articles published earlier this week, the new immigration minister, Søren Pind, stood by his belief that foreigners in Denmark should assimilate rather than integrate, despite widespread condemnation. The scandal stems from an opinion voiced in JyllandsPosten newspaper in February 2008 about the influence of integration on Danish culture. “Unfortunately integration has become an expression for the relativisation of the relationship, where both parties must bow. The Danish culture surrenders,” he said in 2008. “If they are persecuted in their homeland and if they want to contribute actively, people are whole-heartedly welcome. But only on the condition that they recognise that it is Denmark that they have come to – that until they are citizens they are guests. To contribute actively means to work with the Danish culture. “Assimilation must be the word.” Pind’s views are not widely shared, however, particularly by the left-wing. Nick Haekkerup, a Social Democrat

MP, commented that: “Assimilation is basically a totalitarian idea: There is only one way to live life. And this is determined by a small elite with the right opinions.” The media have also been less than sympathetic. Ekstra Bladet editor Poul Madsen offered: “Assimilation strikes me as being a coercive measure. The word brings back memories of a not so distant past. Of course a comparison with Hitler’s Germany is unreasonable. But is it reasonable to want to force people to give up everything to become 100 percent Danish?” Information’s George Metz chimed in too, stating that: “In rejecting the concept of integration in favour of assimilation, Pind has moved the government towards the People’s Party and revered ethnically exclusive regimes.” But Pind, writing in Berlingske newspaper on Monday, defended his use of the term and accused the left-wing of self-hatred. “What do I mean by the word? I believe that we include into our society those who want to be a part of the Danish community in Denmark. And there is a natural expectation that people who want to be a part of the community agree with this. We must seek an ‘us’ instead of us having, as we do now, an ‘us’ and a ‘them’. “They key point in all of this is: what about Denmark? Have we become so modern, progressive and multicultural

that Denmark means nothing any more? Do we not care that in fact we have succeeded in creating a country where there is a place for diversity, equality for women, freedom of expression and community that make us the happiest people in the world?” The article comes shortly after another piece published on Saturday night for the same paper, in which he wrote: “If people do not become Danish when they establish themselves in Denmark, what else should they be?” He added: “Danish culture exists. And there are certain parts of it that should be permanent. Freedom of expression. Equality. Democracy. Personal freedom. Acceptance of diversity. Freedom of religion and the separation of religion and politics.”

Pind

continued from page 1

stood notion of integration, where traditional Danish values have been compromised in an attempt to accommodate foreigners, was a threat to Denmark as a nation. “In my view, mixing cultures creates friction, and I will do everything I can to fight that,” he said, adding that he would seek to roll back what he saw as appeasements the nation had made to immigrants in the name of integration. According to the group’s founders, however, “most of Denmark’s culture comes from immigrants from all over the

Conservative leader: time for euro The Conservative Party’s new leader joins PM and European Commissioner in call to adopt euro

or the first time in his new role as leader of the Conservative Party, Lars Barfoed has made his position on the euro clear. According to Barfoed it’s time for Denmark to accept the euro, or risk losing influence in EU economic policies now taking shape in the euro pact. The euro pact is the economic proposal being pushed by Germany and France. It was discussed at an extraordinary meeting of EU heads of state and government leaders in Brussels last week friday. It would require EU countries to maintain stringent economic policies and implement, for example, EU-established salary requirements. The salary provision, in particular, has raised alarm with the Danish Confederation of Trade Unions. But according to Barfoed, the euro pact is good medicine for Denmark and is precisely why the country needs to quit resisting the common currency. “The goals of the euro pact are in total agreement with Dan-

ish economic policies,” said Barfoed. He added that Denmark risks becoming politically and economically marginalised in terms of EU governance, if it does not accept the euro and take a place at the bargaining table. “We have to take up the battle with both the euro and the other provisos,” said Barfoed. Although Denmark is a member of the European Monetary Union, voters have repeatedly voted down proposals to enter into its final phase – the adoption of the euro. The Danish krone, however, is pegged to the euro. “To a large degree the pact puts further pressure on us: we have to make up our minds whether we actually stand outside, or whether we will be a part of it,” said Barfoed. PM Lars Løkke Rasmussen and the country’s European commissioner, Connie Hedegaard, expressed the same point of view last month. Barfoed would not say precisely when a new euro vote should be held, but said “depending on how matters proceed with the euro pact, I believe there is quite a growing need for a vote.” However, the Danish Peo-

ple’s Party, the minority government’s traditional political ally, is vehemently opposed to adopting the euro and recent polls have shown that most Danes are also sceptical. “It is unwise of Lars Barfoed, and I would warn him against it,” said the Danish People’s Party deputy chairman Peter Skaarup. “If there is going to be a vote on the euro now, it needs to be grounded in a thorough debate, so that citizens are included in the discussion and people have the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the pros and cons.” (dv)

PM’s advisors quit Two of the prime minister’s advisors quit within an hour of one another on Monday morning while Lars Løkke Rasmussen was on an official visit to Washington. Søs Marie Serup Laybourn, the head of the Liberal Party Centre for Communications and Politics, released an email saying she could no longer support the Liberal Party’s strategy. And it was later announced that Michael Helbo, Rasmussen’s day-to-day advisor and head of press, had accepted a position with the consulting firm McKinsey & Co. She will be replaced by Mikael Børsting, the Liberal Party’s publicity manager.

Give school kids flexitime Pind as a Borg from Star Trek — who forcefully assimilated other races — made by a member of the Facebook group

Despite repeated requests, Immigration Minister Søren Pind has refused to speak with The Copenhagen Post to introduce himself and explain his views about immigration, integration and assimilation. world, who have each contributed to Denmark in their own special way.” Lange added they were surprised by the number of people following their example. “We figured people would find it funny, but didn’t expect that so many people would join the group,” he said. Over 300 people have signed up to another Facebook event planned for Monday, ‘Assimilate Søren Pind Day’, which encourages people to dress up as the minster to show “how boring a homogenous, mono-cultural society is”. Despite the fact the campaign was designed to ridicule Pind’s beliefs, his own response to the Facebook ini-

tiative was that it served as a “good advertisement”. “It just gets my name out there more,” he told The Copenhagen Post by text message. “It means I’ll have to hang fewer posters during the election.” At the time of going to press the event was no longer online after Facebook closed the account used to set it up. One of the founders explained that his Facebook account was closed without warning, because he had changed his profile picture and name to Søren Pind. “Facebook saw it as a big violation and chose to deactivate my profile and my events without hesitation or warning.”

Muslims are less at home in the sticks

Colourbox Will these colourful bills be lining our pockets soon?

in brief

recent study about Muslims in Europe by the Open Society Foundation reports that Copenhagen has become better at integrating Muslims and minorities. However, the study also showed that young Muslims, in particular, are often subjected to ethnic and religious discrimination. Copenhagen was among eleven European cities studied to determine how Muslims view their lives in various EU countries. The Copenhagen study focused on the district of Nørrebro, which is known for its multi-ethnic population. Depending on who you talk to, Nørrebro is either described as a dangerous ghetto or Copenhagen’s most vibrant, artistic and multicultural neighbourhood. The Open Society Foundation’s study showed that Muslims and ethnic-minorities particularly see Nørrebro in a positive light. The study found that the majority of Copenhagen’s Muslims feel a strong sense

of belonging in Nørrebro and also in the city of Copenhagen. Very few, however, feel the same about Denmark as a whole. Most Muslims in Denmark want to be considered Danish by people of Danish heritage, but only a small minority feel they actually are, according to the study. Significantly, the report found that the national media has grown increasingly negative towards Muslims over the past 20 years, while local media in Copenhagen has remained more even-handed. The study emphasised that the media is highly instrumental in shaping public attitudes and discourse regarding minority groups. Most Muslims and nonMuslim ethnic minorities in the study reported having little or no trust in Denmark’s national government. Approximately 180,000 Muslims live in Denmark, representing 3.3 percent of the total population. (jb)

Parents want more say on when their kids take their school holidays and when they start their school day. “Most parents have flexible work hours,” Benedikte Ask Skotte, the head of parent organisation Skole & Forældre, told Jyllands-Posten newspaper. “It would therefore make sense for the school to follow suit.” Some schools have already introduced flexible start times, while others have offered a choice of two or three weeks for the winter break. Ultimately, the councils decide the times of all the holidays, bar the summer break, which must start on the last weekend in June.

Prison better than home A new study reveals that many young people think prison is better than home. Inge M Bryderup from the Danish School of Education spoke to 14 young adults who praised getting three meals a day, having their pick of cable TV channels and, most importantly, getting some peace and quiet. One 18-year-old, Zaid, compared prison to taking a nice holiday. “It is the best place to go and take a break,” he told the study. “Right now I actually wouldn’t mind getting in and just having a rest for a month.”

Publisher nets Google deal An agreement between publisher Gyldendal and Google will allow readers all over the world online access to a large selection of Danish books on Google Books, to read up to 20 percent of them online, and to buy entire books through an easy link, reports Berlingske newspaper. Gyldendal, which publishes fiction and nonfiction titles as well as reference books, is now contacting any writers and agents who may be affected by the new agreement

Gang war crackdown A spate of gang-related gunfire has led to the Copenhagen Police establishing stop and search zones in Nørrebro and Nord Vest. The latest incident saw a 19-year-old shot and killed near Blågaards Plads in inner Nørrebro on Sunday evening. As a result the police on Monday ransacked 43 addresses, arresting six people and uncovering a loaded pistol, a kilo of hash, and 200,000 kroner in cash.

Read the full stories at www.cphpost.dk

special focus

The Copenhagen post march 18 - 24

If we don’t fix the welfare state Sarkozy will By Dann Vinther This week Gunnar Viby Mogensen talks about the effect the welfare state has had on our work ethic

ummarising his new two-volume book on the history of the country’s welfare state since 1970, Gunnar Viby Mogensen drew two main conclusions. Firstly, Danes can’t afford their current levels of welfare – and even less the automatic increases in benefits that the population has come to take for granted. Secondly, there are two possible solutions to the problems of financing the welfare state. “Either we do what politicians and the public currently seem to prefer – no reforms, or insignificant ones, which just further extends our dependency on borrowing money, until the other nations start interfering with our reluctance to make reforms,” contended Mogensen. “Or we push through with the unpopular reforms of our welfare system so that we could stop all this borrowing, while also making sure the reforms confine the benefits to those who are genuinely weak.” Mogensen, who worked for 35 years as a social historian before retiring in 2003, has never before spoken in public about the future of the welfare state. But sitting in his home in Lyngby flicking through the pages of his book on a cold day in late February, he started to by evaluating the two possible solutions. In the current political climate, he said, the first option is the most likely: the small efforts – minor reductions to welfare services, chosen according to how much public resistance there might be. This, he reckoned, would only reduce the annual public deficit of around 50 billion kroner by 10-25 billion kroner. “So the massive borrowing to finance our welfare look set to continue until it’s stopped by the interest burden and by political pressure from the EU.” Mogensen believes the welfare state will gradually start to adopt the more successful continental model, where a larger share of welfare expenses are covered by pension insurance policies linked to the recipients’ terms of employment. “You can view such pension insurances either as compulsory, and therefore public, or as private, in which case it would be a relief to the public spending on welfare services. But, he argued, in the absence of extensive reforms, just about all other aspects of the welfare model would continue pushing up the public expenses And with the rapid increases in technology, life expectancy will continue to increase. That means more expenses caring for

the elderly, while at the same time the working age population will shrink . To further halt any development, he argues, strong organisations such as the public sector trade unions and Daneage, the national organisation for the elderly, will keep defending the rights of the country’s large middle class to claim benefits as well as securing them steady and well-paid jobs in the public sector. “The customer base for the public sector will furthermore be maintained and renewed through an expansion via immigration of the group of people eligible for benefits,” he said. “Only two weeks ago, the foreign minister suggested we relax our tight immigration policy from 2001 to make room for the large numbers of north African immigrants and refugees cur-

“

A further ten billion kroner, according to experts, could be saved annually through privatisation, outsourcing measures, and improving efficiency in the worst-functioning parts of the public sector – known as ‘best practice’ strategy. The remaining five billion kroner could be saved by improving efficiency at schools and universities – which are currently well below the EU average – while also lowering the generous student grants to somewhere nearer the EU standard. “To get these numbers to work in practice, you need to assume that the group of eligible recipients of welfare benefits is not expanded through a further influx of those immigrants who would have difficulties finding work in Denmark, but who would get access to the welfare

The massive borrowing to finance our welfare look set to continue until it’s stopped by the interest burden and by political pressure from the EU

rently escaping the tumult in their countries and heading for Europe.” The high taxes, he added, will be sustained, extending the negative effect on work incentives and thereby also on the growth of the economy. Mogensen was reluctant to predict when the continued borrowing to sustain the public sector growth will stop. “At the very latest it will be when Merkel and Sarkozy pass their common EU economic and welfare packages. “However, with such rules being imposed on us by the EU, we would have a lot less influence on the future of our own welfare model than if we went through with the necessary reforms right now.” Pushing through with reforms to the welfare model would lead to great conflicts with the public sector trade unions. But if the politicians acted now, believed Mogensen, they could make the necessary annual savings of 50 billion kroner. Mogensen sees three main areas where significant savings can be found. A full 35 billion kroner could, according to government and opposition calculation methods, be gained if people worked more. According to Mogensen, this could be achieved by abolishing the early retirement scheme, syncing the pension age with life expectancy and eliminating the eight “unecessary” annual days off Danes have gained in recent years.

benefits.” Alternatively, Mogensen added, there is a lot of money to be saved by reducing nonwelfare public spending. With regards to environmental issues, Denmark, he said, has chosen to label itself as a pioneer by taking huge and costly steps towards phasing out its dependency on fossil fuels. “Our slightly lower demand for fossil fuels makes these fuels cheaper for those countries that have a demand for it, which leaves them wanting to buy more of it – and that just cancels out our extremely expensive pioneering efforts to fight climate change. “If only we could take off our halo and make do with just keeping up with the other countries’ pace in our environmental venture, we would have a lot more resources to finance our welfare.” Mogensen concluded that the country’s weakest groups would be a lot better served in the long run by having the necessary reforms made not by foreign bankers of the near future, but by their own politicians, right here and right now. This is the third and final article in a series of interviews with Gunnar Viby Mogensen about the welfare state. The first two articles, ‘How the welfare state broke the national economy’ and ‘Why earn a living when you can demand one?’, can be read at cphpost.dk.

Mogensen: If the EU were to force a reform on us, we’d have much less influence over our own futures

Gunnar Viby Mogensen Is a doctor in economic and social history and a former lecturer at the University of Copenhagen. He recently retired after 35-year career, first as head of research at SFI, the Danish National Centre for Social Research and then 16 years as head of the Rockwool Research Unit until he retired in 2003. Mogensen has written a long list of books on topics such as welfare, tax fraud, work ethics, economics and unemployment.

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Commentary

6 Editorial Clearing up any confusion

he new immigration minister got off to a controversial start, but looking more closely at what’s he said – and has said previously – helps paint a less menacing portrait. In his search for the correct term to describe his views about immigration the new immigration minister has settled on the word ‘assimilate’. Although he admits the word may not be a precise match for the concept he has in mind, the point is taken: new arrivals should think like Danes in order to be considered fullyfledged members of society. It’s fair to ask new arrivals in a country to live up to certain requirements. Immigration authorities in every country do so. And in a world characterised by high mobility, intractable conflict and economic disparity, residence and citizenship should be closely guarded. It is also laudable that the new immigration minister makes his position clear, even though he knows it will stir controversy. And then when he finds himself misunderstood, it is to his credit that he seeks to explain what he really meant. Søren Pind has, politely and correctly, pointed out that he never said “be like us or go home”. It was a newspaper headline, originally run by Jyllands-Posten and propagated by the rest of the press. Pind’s explanation is that he was trying to ask whether Denmark means so little to the people who live here (Danes and immigrants alike) that only what is foreign is interesting. Explaining his position to the media, Pind says he takes pride in Denmark and its great names like Niels Bohr, Hans Christian Andersen and the Vikings. What’s worth noting, though, is that Bohr was influenced by Einstein; Andersen’s motto was “to travel is to live” and it is impossible to imagine that he wasn’t inspired by his trips abroad; and the Vikings, (the Danish ones anyway) made their reputation in England. None of that makes Denmark less of a country or diminishes in anyway the accomplishments of the greatest Danes. If anything, it shows that Danish culture is healthy enough to take on new influences without losing its sense of itself. Citing an old adage, Søren Pind wrote that Denmark for him was the country where “there’s room for everyone – room for everyone who’s willing to make an effort.” What a great motto for an immigration minister. Let’s just hope that there’s no confusion about what he means by it.

The Copenhagen post march 18 - 24

Who is ... 18 kilometres. Straight ahead. Under water Lise Rønne? Opinion

By Knud Erik Andersen

n 1 February, the nation’s traffic policy politicians decided that the new road link to Germany would be a tunnel, not a bridge. A tunnel will create more jobs in Denmark and eliminate the risk of a collision with ships. Making a decision based on collision risk and job creation makes good sense – if you choose to overlook the fact that the Femharn link in general, as well as its financing, makes little sense. It’s good that politicians consider risk when making decisions, but they ought to think a little more about the risk drivers using the tunnel face and a little less about ships sailing over it. Fortunately, there are others that already have. In a recent article, Marianne Flø and Gunnar D Jenssen, from Norwegian research organisation SINTEF, showed that drivers are especially concerned about driving through long tunnels and underwater tunnels. Some 30 percent believe it is dangerous to drive through tunnels, and 45 percent of older drivers are afraid of long tunnels. So the decision is just a matter of cold figures. The decision can have a considerable consequence on the number of people using the tunnel, and by extension, its intake from tolls. Proponents point to the success of the train tunnel under the great belt. People don’t get

Pind: become like us or stay away Most of us chose Denmark because we fell in love with a Dane, not to become Danish. We came to Denmark to be with our spouse, leaving behind everything we knew. Why should we also give up our identities as well? Why should we have to give up our individuality and free will just because people are afraid of our differences? Stranger Via website He has become delusional. Until Denmark wakes up, this nation will go to the drains. Foreigner Via website And to think that it’s actually double standards. I read documents from Udenringsministeriet (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) urging Danes abroad to keep their traditions, speak Danish to their kids and celebrate Danish festivities. If you tell people here to assimilate, it’s only fair that you tell the Danes abroad to assimilate to other cultures as well, only we all know that it’s not possible. I read articles about Danes forming a ‘ghetto’ in the Costa Del Sol in Spain where they talk

The motorways ‘wind’ to keep you awake, while tunnels tend to be straight

off in Nyborg and Korsør out of fear of passing through the tunnel. That’s correct, but only one train passes through a tunnel at a time, and every single one is closely monitored. What’s more is that you don’t have to drive yourself through a train tunnel. Most people know what it is like to sit in a queue on the motorway for hours at a time. Try placing that queue in a tunnel deep under the Baltic. It’s rare for cars on the road to catch on fire, but it does happen. It if happened in an underwater tunnel, the situation would be critical. It’s impossible to prevent drivers sitting in a queue from being injured or panicking. Fresh air needs to be pumped in from the ends of the

tunnel – up to nine kilometres away. I’ve driven through a sevenkilometre mountain tunnel. By the end, it felt like I was in a driving simulator and the tunnel walls were being projected around me. Things became unreal, not necessarily dangerous, but uncomfortable. And that tunnel was only seven kilometres. The Fehmarn tunnel will be 18. What’s going to happen to the tired lorry driver with a dangerous cargo or a family driving non-stop on their way back from their holiday in southern Europe. Both will have been on the road far too long, and then they drive into a monotonous world that goes on kilometre after kilometre.

Reader comments

That’s how accidents happen. Part of the reason why motorways wind is to make sure drivers remain focused on the road. But because tunnel sections that curve are too expensive, this tunnel is going to be a straight shot. It will likely become the world’s longest immersed auto tunnel. The Norwegian study shows that deciding between a tunnel and a bridge is more than just a matter of numbers. The choice will also mean fewer tunnel users and fewer tolls collected. The choice of a tunnel makes it probable that Scandlines will continue to sail between Rødby and Puttgarden. The competition threatens the bridge’s financial foundation. The choice of a tunnel only highlights the need for a thorough, independent study of the risks involved with the tunnel. The transport minister wrote last year: “A bridge will be paid for in 29 years, while an immersed tunnel will be repaid in 30 years. That shows the project is financially sound.” But it makes no sense to come up with just a single figure for the repayment time. The interest rates on the loans are also unknown, the volume of traffic is also more or less unknown, and what Scandlines will do is unknown. Knud Erik Andersen, a traffic engineer, is the former chairman of the Transport Economic Association

only Danish, eat rugbrød, play bingo and put Queen Margrethe II picture on the wall. I’ve got no problem with that but before you start pointing fingers at others, take a look at yourself in the mirror. Eva Komandjaja Via Facebook

much as I can. I do my best to make sure to argue the opposite of xenophobia whenever immigration is brought up. I defend rather than attack the foreigners who’ve come here and I always have. Christina Ackerman Via Facebook

really does not add up. I had to laugh when I went to sign up for my contract with the state to integrate. The advisor said, you are very qualified, we normally help people find jobs, but we would probably not be able to help you. Rima Rajini Via Facebook

We should all start wearing yellow arm bands with the Jewish star on them. Areyou Sure Via website

I want to throw up whenever I am in an environment where everyone is the same. Basically he wants DK to be the most boring, uninspiring, uncreative, unfriendly, uninnovative, undeveloped country ever Peter Maahn Sterkenburg Via Facebook

I’d like to ask him why he tried to get special treatment for his au pair last year. Was she a particularly well suited candidate for assimilation? Laura Petersen Via Facebook

I am a Dane who’d rather stay far away from Denmark than become anything like Søren Pind or his colleagues. That said, he has a lengthy history of making ill-considered statements rich on symbolic politics and devoid of substance. And coherence. Thankfully, the next elections are scheduled for November at the latest. I am hopeful that my compatriots will manage to “throw out the rascals” this time round. THH Via website I joined the second I saw the Facebook group. Had to because I strongly disagree with Pind and Pia. I was violently appalled by what he said the other night and will fight him tooth and nail as

I think it is time to take our Danish-American son home to America so that he grows up with an open American attitude rather than this ridiculous closed myopic xenophobic Danish attitude. Tomnashdk Via website Integration to a point, but when it forces my Danish husband and I apart for months at a time because the only job I can get in Denmark is as a check out job, yet with my three degrees and experience I make over $250K a year overseas ... something

Live and learn, it’s always almost unwise to permanently move to a non-English speaking country. Jackofknives Via website At last a politician with some backbone . If only he could have done something a few years ago. I don´t see how having the country’s best interests at heart makes him a racist. Oh, that´s right, any talk about immigration if not 100 percent supporting it makes you a racist - same old same old. If you plan on living in Denmark why would you not want to become a little bit Danish?? TOLENTONE Via website

DR/Bjarne Bergius Hermansen

She is a TV presenter, currently presenting DR1’s ‘X Factor’ and ‘Aftenshowet’. Do I know her? Maybe not. She is a very petite lady of about 30, with short dark hair. All the Danish magazines seem to describe her as the smukke (beautiful) or yndige (lovely) Lise Rønne, but I’m not convinced. The jury in our office is split about 50/50. Is she any good? If you look at her CV, you would certainly think so. After being an intern at MTV in London, she made a glorious return to her home country, becoming, amongst other things, the presenter of teen-programme ‘Boogie’. In 2007 she became a reporter for ‘Aftenshowet’, and since 2008 she has been the stand-in for the permanent presenter, Louise Wolff. She is also the presenter of the hit show ‘X Factor’. Are there any other clues to her identity? Rønne is often to be seen flapping her arms, a little like a penguin who hasn’t found out that penguins can’t fly. The bosses at DR seem to have cottoned on to this, because this VERY irritating habit seems to have improved since she was first on ‘X Factor’. She is extremely thin – surely that’s not a good image for all the impressionable teenagers who watch ‘X Factor’? “I have been criticised for this and I know one shouldn’t encourage young girls to lose weight, but I’m naturally thin,” Rønne told Billed Bladet magazine. “I love food, it just doesn’t show. I know this is irritating, and I apologise.” That seems fair enough to me. Don’t you think? Yes, but it’s no excuse for the ridiculous outfits she wears on ‘X Factor’. I guess that isn’t her fault either, but really, what are those ‘stylists’ at DR thinking? Even Lady Gaga would be ashamed to wear them. Is this a balanced report? No, not really. You may have guessed that she’s not my cup of tea. Others in the office have pointed out to me that’s she’s a very talented presenter. Victoria Steffensen

news

The Copenhagen post march 18 - 24

2050 goal: a society free of fossil fuels

“

By Richard Steed EEA economist applauds state’s bid to be totally reliant on renewable energy by 2050

With energy prices predicted to double over the next 30 years, it will be Europe that will suffer most

ast month the government set out its vision for a green clean Denmark with its ‘Energy Strategy 2050’. The road map, the first of its kind in the world, describes in detail how the country can achieve independence from coal, oil and gas by 2050. “This is the right moment to launch this strategy,” Professor Mikael Skou Andersen, an environmental economist at the European Environment Agency, told The Copenhagen Post. “With oil prices on the rise again, it’s hugely important to be investing in renewable energy right now. What people need to remember is the global economy may suffer if the price of oil keeps rising.” And with world stock markets currently falling and continuing concerns over Libya, the price of a barrel of oil stands at $117, fuelling concerns that this could paralyse the global economic recovery. “Denmark has lots of expe-

Colourbox Already a leader in wind power, Denmark’s ‘Energy Strategy 2050’ aims to get the country fully off fossil fuels

rience with renewable energy so it’s not surprising they are taking the lead,” continued Andersen. “With energy prices predicted to double over the next 30 years, it will be Europe that will suffer most as it is more dependent on oil imports than others.” Andersen has been talking about environmental policies and green taxation for the last 30

years and will be giving a lecture later this month at the British Chamber of Commerce in Copenhagen on renewable energy and discussing how Denmark became a world leader in wind power. “I remember as a child back in 1973 when the first oil crisis came about,” he recalled. “I was watching our then Danish prime

minister on TV make a speech where he expressed his sympathy to Israel and then Denmark was embargoed by all the oil producing countries. I can remember Sundays when the highways were completely empty of private cars, so we learned the hard way how sensitive society can be to the energy supply.” “What triggered the renew-

able energy movement here in the 1970s came from the people, not the government. It came from the grassroots, as ordinary people could see the effects of the oil crisis and so they began to experiment with wind energy.” Wind energy is something Denmark has always championed. Interestingly, the technology itself was developed more than 125 years ago by Poul La Cour, an engineer from Greater Copenhagen, who went to Jutland to work at a folk high school. “He developed this wind blade design and created a prototype of the modern day blade windmill design,” continued Andersen. “At the same time at school he educated many young windmill engineers. One of them later convinced the government after World War Two to erect a test windmill which was put up in 1957 and ran for ten years. At the unveiling of the

windmill, the then minister said it was an interesting experiment but the future was all about oil and nuclear!” “We then realised in the ‘70s we had to go back to this technology. But most importantly the test windmill in Gedser was financed by government grants and this shows that renewable energy needs some public subsidies as the market will not take that risk.” Denmark, which currently makes 20 percent of the world’s wind turbines, is again pioneering the way ahead, this time with offshore wind technology, and it is at the forefront of this emerging technology. “Wind power is now the cornerstone of Denmark’s future energy portfolio,” contended Andersen. Professor Andersen will be speaking at the British Chamber of Commerce’s next monthly luncheon on March 25.

The glacier gallery that glistens in the Greenlandic sun By Devapriyo Das & Lei Fei, Xinhua News Agency Domestic firm’s plans for new island’s national art gallery set to put Danish architecture back on the map

new national art gallery on the coastline near Greenland’s capital Nuuk will showcase Denmark’s people-centric and environmentally-adaptive architecture across the world. The Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), a Danish architecture firm, in February won a pan-Nordic competition to design the gallery as a ring-shaped building. From directly above it looks like a perfectly geometric circle, and from the sides it appears to drape itself around the rugged contours of the coast. “We wanted to superimpose this perfect circle on to the landscape,” Andreas Pedersen, a partner in BIG, told Xinhua. “When you see it in facade, it is a soft shape, almost like a piece of ice melting over the rocks. We call this a melted circle.” The proposed gallery reflects a Danish architectural trend: whatever the style, a building must be rooted in its local environment, which in Greenland’s case is its rugged natural beauty and harsh environment. Placed on a steep slope overlooking a fjord, the white, 3,000 sqm gallery will provide visitors

with views of the open sea and surrounding terrain, while its central courtyard will house a sculpture garden and be open to the raw, Greenlandic skies. “We like this symbiosis; it creates with art and nature,” Pedersen observed. The gallery will have thick concrete walls designed to withstand the Arctic climate, and to insulate its interiors from the cold. Its modestly-sized windows will limit heat loss, and it will tap into geothermal and hydrothermal sources for heating. Adaptive Bjoern Noergaard, an internationally-renowned Danish artist, believes the gallery’s design reflects a long Danish tradition of connecting visual art, architecture, craft and technology. “A functional and materialistic shape that is borderline sculpture and architecture is a very interesting way of approaching architecture itself,” he said. “It is able to combine those four elements in a very challenging way, which shows us how we can form our environment in a new way.” Danish architecture is, after all, a fusion of old and new, foreign and local, one that borrows but does not imitate. “Today, very, very few things will be as if for the first time!” Noergaard remarked. “But it is not an issue to make something new: what is as important is to

use what you have, and use it in a new way, and show new possibilities in the world you already know.” People-centric The gallery will stand in stark contrast to the 1960s-style square, functional homes and buildings of Nuuk. “We have a tradition of round buildings in Greenland: round snow houses and a lot of round forms in our sculptures,” explained Anne-Birthe Hove, an artist who has a seat on the gallery’s board. “So I think it’s nice to see this form, because we are fed up of ‘60s-style, square architecture!” This adaptive trend extends further, with Danish architects saying that a building must adapt to the people who use it. “One of the main challenges in this project was, not only to create a building for art [but] also about creating a building that could gather a whole culture: all Greenlandic and Arctic art,” Pedersen said. “One thing that really symbolises this unity is a pure circle.” As such, the gallery is meant to serve as a focal point for Arctic region artists, art students and art lovers, and as a cultural gathering space for the people of Nuuk. “This will be the first museum ever to have a section for circumpolar art, and that is very important for us and the region,” Hove added.

SPORT

The Copenhagen post march 18 - 24

Bungling Bendt Bundesliga-bound? Dane on course for Augusta National

By Ben Hamilton As one former starlet fails to shine, another looks set to move to Ajax

Third place finish catapults Dane up world rankings

icklas Bendtner’s failure to control a simple pass in the final ten minutes of Arsenal’s Champions League defeat to Barcelona last week on Tuesday, when many onlookers were urging him to shoot first time, may very well prove to be the moment that finally persuaded his manager Arsene Wenger to sell the striker – a player he has nurtured since his move to the club as a 16-yearold seven years ago. The media is convinced he’s going. While there may be no truth in them, the English press on Monday was awash with stories about how Bendtner is now a target of several German Bundesliga clubs – including Bayern Munich, Schalke 08 and Borussia Dortmund – who are all apparently considering £10 million bids for the player, a valuation that would represent a £5 million mark-down on Arsenal’s reported asking price in January. While Wenger has previously been reluctant to sell, his confidence in the player has been visibly disintegrating all season, and it was no surprise when he chose to start the game with the

Bendtner has failed to deliver on his promise

injured Robin van Persie instead of the Dane. Still, it didn’t stop Bendtner speaking to the media about his prospects and that was his first mistake: speaking to the media about a game that he was going to start on the bench. While he didn’t say anything outlandish by his standards, it should have been obvious the media had already written the headline ‘Brash Bendtner will make Barca blush’ before the interview. Later in the week English newspaper The Sun confirmed Bendtner’s status as a national laughing stock when it ran the

headline ‘Finally bungling Bendtner scores’ in connection with a photo taken of him with a mystery woman. Meanwhile, as one former Danish starlet fails to fulfill his potential, another has signalled his intent to become one of Europe’s elite players with a move to Ajax, reports sporten.dk. FC Midtjylland’s 16-year-old striker Viktor Fischer is on the verge of joining the Dutch club, where he will hope to follow in the footsteps of Christian Eriksen, a Dane who has truly managed to nail down a first team place at one of Europe’s top clubs.

nders Hansen took a step closer to qualifying for the US Masters on Sunday with his second top four finish of the year – a result that has catapulted the Danish golfer into the top 50 in the world. Hansen finished just three shots shy of Nick Watney, the winner of the WGC Cadillac Championship in Florida, thanks to a final round of five under par. Over the course of the tournament he was the only golfer to improve each day, firing rounds of 71, 69, 68 and 67. Following on from his runner’s-up place in the Dubai Desert Classic in mid-February, the Dane is clearly in the

ascendancy, and this was reflected by Monday’s confirmation that he has now risen to number 43 in the world. The top 50 automatically qualify for April’s US Masters, and it would appear that Hansen, who based on 2011 ranking points alone would be the world number 14, has already done enough to guarantee a place. Also chasing a place in the US Masters is the rapidlyimproving Thomas Bjørn, the winner of February’s Commercialbank Qatar Masters and victor over Tiger Woods in the first round of the WGCAccenture Match Play Championship. Bjørn’s exploits have taken him to number 62 in the rankings. Søren Kjeldsen is the next highest ranked Dane at 113. (bh)

Hansen is now Scandinavia’s third highest ranked player

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In brief Duo’s delight Danish men’s badminton pairing Mathias Boe and Carsten Mogensen on Sunday finally claimed the title that had eluded them for so long, the All England Open Championships, in an incredibly tense game that went down to the wire. The pair were 11-16 down in the decider against Malaysians Koo Keat and Tan Heong, but bounced back to prevail 15-21 21-18, 2118. The victory was particularly sweet following on the back of five final losses in a row to the Malaysian pairing, who they lost to in last year’s final despite having four match points. “This is an unbelievable feeling.” Boe told media after the game. “We’re going to the Swiss Open next week – hopefully we will win that too and then we’ll have a huge party.”

Let the curling commence Esbjerg in Jutland is playing host to the Women’s Curling World Championships from Friday, with the final set for Sunday 27 March. The hosts will compete against Germany in the first game of the tournament in its bid to qualify for the semifinals from a round-robin group made up of all 12 competing nations: Sweden (world number 1), Canada (2), China (3), Switzerland (4), Denmark (5), Germany (6), Scotland (7), USA (8), Russia (9), Norway (11), Korea (13) and Czech Republic (14). For more details see www. wwcc2011.com.

the copenhagen post March 18 - 24

COMMUNITY

Expat dinner: an evening of inclusion fusion and integrated cheese By Elisabeth Moltke

More than 500 expats and Danes met up at their local library for ‘Expat Dinner’ earlier this month, an initiative organised by Association Newdanes, Expat in Denmark and Project Newcomers (State and University Library in corporation with Greve Library). Pictured here are some of diners at Kolding Library, one of 17 that participated in the event. “Actually, we are still a bit ‘high’ on the event,” enthused Gitte from Odder Library. “It was such a good and positive evening.” At Randers Library, a TV crew from TV2 Eastern Jutland even showed up. “This kind of event is really important for someone like me, who came to Denmark with my child - it helps me build a social safety net,” enthused Beba Monagas, one of the participants. Photo: Stas Kalianov

At Frederiksberg Library, Denmark.dk, a service of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, filmed the event and interviewed participants. “I had no idea it was possible to meet this way – at a library. This would never have passed in Finland,” said one Finnish guest. Leon, a researcher from Russia said: “I like Danes. I used to work in Germany where people are very organised and controlled. Danes are much easier. But I must say sometimes the lack of conventions make you very difficult to understand.” Carla from Italy added: “It is only when I have made Danish friends and have been visiting them at home that I feel that my stay here is complete. You will never get to know a country if you do not make local friends. I have very nice colleagues at work here, but it is equally important to build a private social network that is not all about work. Expat Dinner gives me that opportunity.” Photo: Elisabeth Moltke

At Birkerød Library the children integrated over some table football

Farum Library’s evening included participants from Bulgaria, Poland, Paraguay, Sri Lanka, Britain, the USA, Norway, France, Italy and the Philippines - and the variety of the buffet didn’t disappoint

Sia Takiar (left) from Copenhagen ended up in Esbjerg for the night

Dounia Righi and Amalie Winstrøm enjoying proceedings at Esbjerg Library

The prize for winning the quiz at Greve Library - where participants from Denmark, China, France, Hungary, Australia, the USA and the Philippines gathered – was the Danish Indfødsretsprøve 2010. Here is a picture of the popular winners

Expats from Germany, Costa Rica, Spain, the USA, Sweden, Thailand, Romania, Indonesia, Ukraine, Russia and Ireland all gathered at Kolding Library. Photo: Stas Kalianov

Esbjerg Library played host to a huge gathering. I want to express my unreserved positive response to the dinner evening I attended,” said a clearly delighted Danish woman called Anna later. “I returned home and felt uplifted, inspired and filled with the glow and energy of so many lovely people. It is for sure that I will attend again.” Here Robin He from China and Toda Miho from Japan are enjoying a spot of Southeast Asian integration

On the menu at Struer Library - among many things – was hot pea soup from Holland, cauliflower cheese and shepherd’s pie from England, bobotie with rice from South Africa, confit de canard from France, fastelavnsboller from Sweden, and finally apple pie, frikadeller and tarteletter from Denmark

COMMUNITY

ABOUT TOWN

PHOTOS BY HASSE FERROLD (UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED)

A large gathering attended the Copenhagen Sustainability Lecture at the University of Copenhagen (KU), including representatives from The World Bank, a sponsor of the event. Pictured here are (left-right) KU professor Nate Elers Koch, Inger Andersen, a World Bank vice-president from the sustainable development department, and KU provost Thomas Bjorn Holm

Lykke Friis, the climate and energy minister, was at hand to cut the ribbon and officially open the Floating Crystal, a new sustainable building that will feel at home standing next to the Black Diamond and Glass Cube. Designed by architect firm Schmidt Hammer Lassen and commissioned by Nykredit, the building appears to float in the air and is only held up at three points. Pictured here with Friis are Nykredit chairman Steen E Christensen (left) and Nykredit group president Peter Engberg Jensen

Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, paid a visit to Denmark last week where he met Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen to discuss bilateral relations between the countries. Following the meeting Rasmussen said he would upgrade the status of the Palestinian delegation to a mission, meaning that the status of its diplomats will be upgraded from ‘Palestinian general representation’ to the ‘Palestinian mission to Denmark’. Abbas, who is pictured here with former foreign minister Mogens Lykketoft, said the decision reflected “the deep commitment between the two countries”. Denmark’s move follows similar moves by the UK, France, Ireland, Portugal and Spain

There was a healthy turn-out at the opening of an exhibition at The Museum of Danish Resistance 1940-1945, entitled ‘The Power of Civil Society: The Fate of Jews in Bulgaria’, which is running in co-operation with the Bulgarian Ministry until April 3. Pictured here are (left to right) Bulgarian ambassador Valentin Poriazov, US ambassador Laurie S Fulton, Bulgarian foreign minister Nickolay Mladenov, Rabbi Bent Melchior, and health minister Bertel Haarder

Charlottenborg Palace has been hosting festivities to coincide with the advent of spring (see G3 for further details). Pictured here are Israeli artist Shahar Marcus (twice if you include his photo) with Dan Oryan from the Israeli Embassy, who is becoming something of a regular on these pages

Five of the 54 contributing artists to the Charlottenborg Spring Exhibition line up for a group shot – who will look the most enigmatic? Pictured here are (left to right) the aforementioned Shahar Marcus, Finland’s Riikka Kuoppala, Norway’s Unvor Nervold Antonsen, Ireland’s Helen Hughes, and Sweden’s Malin Petterson Öberg

the copenhagen post March 18 - 24

An Actor’s Life A resident here since 1990, Ian Burns is the artistic director at That Theatre Company, and very possibly Copenhagen’s best known English language actor thanks to roles as diverse as Casonava, Oscar Wilde and Tony Hancock.

Your intranet and me This is a direct appeal to ask anyone with anything to do with the social network coordination on the intranet at your place of work. You and I should be in touch as I flatter myself that I provide high quality, intelligent and entertaining theatre in this city. English is probably the language you use most despite living in Copenhagen. You and your colleagues and friends need entertaining. Could be a win-win situation? Right now I feel like a character that Jeff Bridges might portray. With long hair and a four-week-old beard I look like a cross between a shaggy dog, an old hippy and a mad professor. It’s how the character of the professor in Oleanna developed during our rehearsals. A theatre director once said to me that my hair was my fortune. (If I had a pound for every hair on my body I’d be a multibillionaire.) He also asked me to shave my chest as he could see my hairy chest through my cheese-cloth shirt and didn’t think that a 17-year-old boy should be that hairy. I went home and dutifully began the process. Luckily my flatmate came home and asked me what the hell I was doing as I stood in the bathroom with my upper torso covered in shaving foam and the razor blade at the ready. When I told him he said: “Wear a T-shirt under your shirt!” Brilliant,

Valentine’s Day was last month!

text 05

Oleanna is playing until 26 March – see G2 in In & Out for details.

The Copenhagen Post Quick Crossword

1. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 15. 17. 18. 19. 21. The one-day Chocolate Festival was once again a major hit with the sweet-toothed brigade on Sunday at TAP 1 on Ny Carlsbergvej. You would have thought this stallholder would been overcome by the demands of thousands of chocoholics baying for his products, but he still had the presence of mind to plug them for this photo

why had no-one else thought of that? Ben Hamilton, editor of this paper, said that he heard on the radio that my dear old mate Tom McEwan had died and that could I please check this out. Luckily it turned out to be a playful dig which Tom was privy to, at how talentless people can only get their chance at “success” if people with talent die and make room for them. I’d like to give you a short example of the sort of man Tom is. On the first Tuesday of every month at the new Tivoli Hotel there’s a chance to meet other business people at the ‘Meet the World Café’. I couldn’t go this month because I’m performing, but Tom went on my behalf. On his arrival he was asked to stand in for a guest speaker who was too ill to attend. Tom did so with his usual aplomb and fun and shamelessly plugged ‘Oleanna’, saying that it was a West-End standard production. As he said that five people put their hands up to say they’d seen the public dress rehearsals and could back up Tom’s claim. There are some people you meet in your life that you are so happy for eh? In my case one of those people is Tom McEwan.

Across Infectious disease (7, 5) Afterwards (5) Fence of bushes (5) Tavern (3) Led astray (9) Song-bird (6) Mark of disgrace (6) Troubled (9) Ovum (3) Object (5) Overturn (5) A brother, for example (4, 8)

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 10. 13. 14. 16. 20.

No 342

Down Deprive of simplicity (12) Allow (3) Castigate (6) Tired out (9) Finished (5) Tongue no longer spoken (4, 8) Passenger-ship (5) Envoy (9) Large (5) Last (6) Din (5) Ocean (3)

Post Quick Crossword No 341 Across: 4 Titular; 8 Openly; 9 Appease; 10 Napkin; 11 Theory; 12 Converse; 18 Dethrone; 20 Grouse; 21 Credit; 22 Perfume; 23 Virago; 24 Restore. Down: 1 Connect; 2 Serpent; 3 Sluice; 5 Impotent; 6 Uneven; 7 Assert; 13 Redeemer; 14 Cordial; 15 Festoon; 16 Grieve; 17 Outfit; 19 Hermit.

COMMUNITY

the copenhagen post March 18 - 24

CIS honours host’s holiday – it’s like Halloween with barrels By Victoria Steffensen It may be a Danish holiday, but every year Fastelavn is proving to be increasingly popular with the international crowd Fastelavn may be an old Danish tradition, but that certainly doesn’t stop foreigners taking part in the festivities. Especially not at Copenhagen International School, where children and parents from the international community were invited to celebrate the event at the school by CIS itself, the re-location company Setwell Location, and the sports club The Irish Rovers. The children were dressed up in all sorts of costumes – from colourful princesses to the darker hues of Batman’s clothes. It was very lucky that neither The Penguin nor The Joker attended, because there were at least six Batmans present to stand up for the causes of truth and justice. As is required at all Fastelavn parties, wooden barrels were hung up from the ceiling, and the children stood in line to attempt to ‘slår katten ud af tonden’ (hit the cat out of the barrel), and took their turn hitting the wood with the bat provided. The enthusiasm in which the children carried out

their task meant that it didn’t take long for the secrets of the cask to make themselves known. Wisely, the party’s arrangers had chosen not to put real cats in the barrels, and so when successfully broken, sweets abundantly fell out on to the floor, much to the delight of the children present. It was not only small children that had decided to dress up for the event. One adult making the effort was Suzanne O’Reilly, who works for CIS and felt the need to ‘walk the talk’ so to speak. When I took a photo of her looking great in her costume, she asked me to be kind and carefully annunciated the word “Airbrush”! Hitting the barrel was not the only activity available to the children. There was also a hugely popular crafts table, where the children could draw, and also decorate masks and other accessories for their costumes. Also, light refreshments were provided including the all-important saftevand – a must at any children’s gathering. All in all, everybody seemed to enjoy Fastelaven, and in terms of dressing up, and hitting cats out of barrels, this group of expats could certainly gives the Danes a run for their money!

Organiser Suzanne O’Reilly put on a brave face when she was told that no over 20s could hit the barrel

Late arrivals Batman and Rodhino (alias Will and Nick Coffin) were pleased they still had the chance to hit the barrel

Despite his hunger, this Hungry Caterpillar Isaac Summerfield, doesn’t find the Pritt Stick appetising

Stella Croucher enjoyed making accessories for her princess costume

Spread fit for a Persian king New Year festival will take over the city on Monday While Persia - the home of rugs, cats and Sinbad – was how the west referred to Iran until 1935, it wasn’t long ago that its borders stretched much further afield as an empire encompassing Turkey, Afghanistan, India (mostly what is modern day Pakistan), most of Arabia, and many former members of the Soviet Union. And it is no surprise to learn that the Persian New Year, which will be marked by celebrations across the city on March 21 – that sound you can hear is Søren Pind crying into his milk - is a big deal to any residents of this country who still have ties to these countries. There are an estimated 18,000 Iranians residing in Denmark – a healthy proportion of whom moved here following the outbreak of the war with Iraq in 1982 – and the Iranian Embassy is holding its own celebration at the Royal Theatre, to which it has invited 500 international guests to enjoy food, drinks, an address by the Iranian ambassador and performances. The new year is commonly known as the Day of Nowruz (pronounced no-rooz, formed by the Persian words for new

and day), a spring festival that has been celebrated for over 3,000 years as the start of the vernal equinox and as the first day of Farvardin of the Islamic solar calendar. Typically, on the day, family members gather around a laidout cloth on which they put seven items: lentils (representing rebirth), a pudding mixture

(affluence), apples (health and beauty), dried fruits (love), garlic (medicine and cure), sumac berries (sunrise - the triumph of good over evil) and vinegar (age and patience). Additionally, many spreads include a small goldfish bowl and mirror to represent elements of the earth and human consciousness.

The celebrations are colourful and charming

All seven are here, plus the goldfish

COMING UP SOON... Benelux Business Club www.bbcs.dk The club is a Danish network with Benelux roots that is always looking for new members. Its president is Jeroen Tiel, the Dutch managing director of a recruitment agency responsible for Denmark and Sweden, and it currently has 100 active members who meet once a month. “Members come from Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, Holland and Luxembourg, but it is no longer necessary to have strong ties with the Benelux countries,” says Tiel. “We are interested in attracting people that are willing to participate actively in the club, in order to create business opportunities or simply by exchanging knowledge and experiences with other members.” BH Join Copenhagen Celtic! Valby Idrætspark, Jul. Andersens vej 3, 2500 Valby; meet Friday 17:45, 4023 2920; copenhagenceltic@hotmail.com; www.copenhagencelticfc.dk Copenhagen’s only truly international football club is looking for new members ahead of the 2011 season that kicks off in mid-April. Simply turn up at one of their Friday training sessions. The club welcomes all abilities: it has two teams that train twice a week and others who only partake once a season. Don’t forget your shinpads! BH Photography Workshop Books&Company, Sofievej 1, Hellerup; Thu 31 March and Thu 7 April, 19:00-20:00 both days; Adm 500kr for the two sessions, includes drinks and snacks; sign up

by sending an e-mail to signup@booksandcompany.dk; www.booksandcompany.dk Want to learn how to use your camera properly in order to get the great photos you really want? Here’s your chance! Freelance photographer and former teacher Leah Meany Kristensen will teach you everything about shutter speed, aperture and ISO, so you can master sports shots, portraits, group shots and landscapes. All you need to do is sign up, bring a camera that has manual settings and a camera manual, and be ready to walk outside to take practice shots if weather permits. You may also request a topic by e-mailing it to Books&Company, but do so well in advance. TK Launch of New Unskilled Work Site www.worldwide-work.com A new worldwide database for those struggling to find even the most simple of jobs in a new country has just been launched. The site is the first of its kind and was created in none other than Denmark by an English-speaking expat. Theidea is to take the work that doesn’t require a foreign language, education, or special skills (jobs like labouring, factory work, and stage hands), which normally get passed by word of mouth and put them all on show in one place. The site is still in its early stages, but looks set to be the next big thing for expats and travellers alike. JHW One-day photography workshop for beginners Fotostudie, Turesensgade 5, 1368 Cph K; Saturday March 26, 10:00–14:00; price 550kr

(includes snacks & drinks), register at photo101.info@me.com, 5260 0665; www.facebook.com/event. php?eid=18784636458768 Ever thought about trying your luck behind the lens instead of buffooning about in front of it in the hope you end up looking like an idiot on Facebook, or even worse in the Copenhagen Post. Sign up for Photo 101, a one-day photography workshop for beginners. The 550kr price includes snacks and drinks. Or if you’re already a handy snapper, try the intermediate course (over four Saturdays, April 2, 16 & May 14, 28, 10:00–15:00) that covers eight topics - lighting, exposure, flash, composition, portrait, workflow management (DAM), special techniques and digital considerations (colour management; backup/storage) - for 2,250 kr (including food & drink). BH Learn to speak like a Brit The Globe, Nørregade 43-45, Cph K; Fri 20:00 If you’re regularly on the move, you’ll know that adaptation is the key to success. Whereas your American drawl or lilting Irish accent may sound perfectly clear to you, it doesn’t always help to stick out like a sore thumb. So join the American Expats in Copenhagen this Friday to learn how to speak with a stiff upper lip. Though be warned – an office poll has found that parodying the British accent can be a major turn-off. But if you adam and eve you can pull it off, climb the apples and pears into the Globe and hope it doesn’t all go Pete Tong. PS By James Honeyman-Wooler & Ben Hamilton

THE COPENHAGEN POST SPOUSE EMPLOYMENT PAGE COMMUNITY

Spouse: Dr Bev Sithole From: Australia Seeking work in: Social science research, project management, proposal writing and project evaluations. Qualification: PhD Applied Social Sciences; MSc Environmental Science; BA Hons Geography; Experiences in application of Participatory Approaches; Familiar with various project proposal writing frameworks. Experience: I am an experienced social scientist with interdisciplinary training and am also an experienced participatory research, planning and evaluation practitioner. I have worked on governance of natural resources and community development issues in southern Africa and Northern Australia for over 15 years. I have been team leader on a number of research and evaluation projects. I spent more than five years managing projects and writing project proposals involving many organizations [ in the Stockholm Environmental Institute, Sweden) and in the Center for International Forestry Research in Bogor, Indonesia and most recently at LIFE, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.]. I am an experienced communicator and facilitator. looking for: Short term or long term work in research, project management or proposal writing. Can deliver training in participatory approaches. Language skills: English IT experience: Basic computer skills. Contact: Telephone. HP 27834333 Email: bev.sithole@gmail.com Spouse: Anisha Kanjhlia From: India Seeking work in: Arhus in Teaching/Training/Administration/Media/Public Relations Qualification: Post Graduate in Advertising & Communication Experience: 6+ years of professional experience in Training, Customer Service, Promotions, Brand Marketing, Content Analysis and Team Management. Strong experience in planning and executing initiatives. Extensive training experience and influencing skills that will assist me in building a high potential, motivated and an effective team. Hands-on training in soft skills like crucial conversations and people management Branch Manager & Head of Training for Cosmo Aviation Training School in New Delhi, India. Proficient in analyzing market trends to provide critical inputs for decision making and formulating training strategies. looking for: Part time or full time in Aarhus IT experience: Comfortable with all the basic computer knowledge like Excel, Word, Power Point, Internet browsing… Contact: anisha.feb@rediffmail.com P: 4522305837 Spouse: Chiara Stevanato From: Italy Seeking work in: København or nearby areas Qualification: Bachelor degree in Physics Experience: Now completing the Master’s degree in Physics at Københavns Universitet looking for: Research in Physics. Research projects related to scientific areas Language skills: Written and spoken Italian, written and spoken English, written and Spoken French, very basic written and spoken Danish (still attending a second level course) IT experience: Operating systems: Windows, Linux. Programming languages: basic C, C++; Python Contact: chiarasteva@gmail.com. Tel: 41681741 Spouse: Miss Parminder Lally From: United Kingdom Seeking work in: Copenhagen in the Biotechnology industry, Patent Law (trainee position), Science communication, Physics tutor/teacher Qualification: Masters in Physics from Imperial College London. PhD in DNA Structural Nanotechnology from the University of Oxford (thesis to be submitted in Autumn 2010) Experience: Science and Engineering Ambassador in the UK – encouraging adults and children to take an interest in science by demonstrating scientific principals in fun and interactive ways. Tutor in undergraduate Physics at the University of Oxford, and some experience of teaching science in school. Language skills: English (native speaker), Panjabi (fluent), German (basic), Portuguese (basic), Danish (currently learning) IT experience: Familiarity with the Windows O/S and the MS Office and OpenOffice suites, MATLAB (for mathematical modelling), CorelDRAW graphics package and some basic C/C++ knowledge. Contact: parminder.lally@googlemail.com Spouse: Chao Wen From: China Seeking work in: Great Copenhagen Qualification: Language teacher (German, Chinese) Experience: Teaching Chinese as a foreign language by offering company-course for 2 years, in Germany; teaching Chinese to native speaker in private school for 4 years, in Germany; teaching German as a foreign language by offering private course; exhibition interpreter; translator. looking for: Part time or full time in Aarhus, Language teacher, translator or interpreter Language skills: Chinese, English, German, Danish IT experience: Windows, Open office, Powerpoint Contact: wenlily80@googlemail.com tel.: 48417526 Spouse: Francesco Grandesso From: Italy Seeking work in: Copenhagen Qualification: Constructing architect Experience: 4 years at TFF Engineering 2005-2009, 3 years at ADproject 2002-2005 Language skills: English, Italian & Danish IT experience: AutoCAD 2011 Contact: grandessodk@gmail.com Mobile: 50110653 PARTNERS:

the copenhagen post March 18 - 24

Spouse: Isabel Douglass From: San Francisco-USA Seeking work in: Music Education Qualification: BA in Music Experience: 10 years of internationally touring performances and 7 years of accordion teaching experience. looking for: I offer piano accordion lessons to individuals and small groups. In the courses students will learn a repertoire of songs ranging in styles including French musette, Argentine Tango, and Klezmer while strengthening there technique and understanding of music theory. Please visit www.myspace.com/isabeldouglass to learn more about me. Language skills: Native English Speaker Contact: isabeldouglass@gmail.com Phone: 60653401 Spouse: Miss Marta Guerrero From: Spain Seeking work in: Great Copenhagen Qualification: Bachelor of English teacher for Primary Education. Bachelor of Psychologist for Education. Experience: Over the past five years I have worked in a Primary School in Barcelona as English teacher for children from 6 to 11 years old. Moreover, last year I gained experience teaching Spanish, as a foreign language, in the UK. I also have some experience teaching adults. looking for: Full time position as Spanish or English teacher in a Kindergarden, a Primary School or in a High School. Language skills: Spanish and Catalan (mother tongue). English (fluent speaking and writing). IT experience: A good user of all the basic computer knowledge (Word, Excel, Power Point,...) as well as blog and web publication and maintenance. Contact: martaguerrero13@gmail.com Spouse: Isaac P Thomas From: India Seeking work in: East Juthland preferably Århus Qualification: Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Science) Experience:Process Consulting, Quality Assurance, CMMI, ISO, Quality Audit, Process Definition, Software testing, software development, data analysis, best practice sharing, quality gap analysis looking for: Process Consulting, Quality Assurance, CMMI, ISO, Quality Audit, Process Definition Language skills: Danish beginner, english, malayalam, hindi tamil IT experience: 8 years experence in IT Industry in software quality assurance, software quality control, software development. Contact: isaacpthomas@gmail.com, +4552225642 Spouse: Chia-Pei CHEN From: Taiwan Seeking work in: Business Chinese/ Tutorial Chinese teaching in corporations, institutions or International schools. Qualification: A certified teacher of teaching Chinese as a second language. A degree in Social Science discipline. Continuously participation in training program (organized by Beijing Hanban of CHINA and CBS) to teach Chinese to foreigners in western context. Enrolment to distance Chinese teaching education system that keeps professional Chinese teachers resourceful. Experience: I am a certified teacher of teaching Chinese as a second language to foreigners. And I have started teaching Chinese with English in my class for 2 years. I design suitable materials to teach Chinese with different phonetic systems (PinYin for China and HongKong, and Mandarin Phonetic Symbols for Taiwan) as well as to interpret differences between simplified and traditional Chinese characters. My past positions were Chinese language-related, such as: reporter, translator and social science researcher. Students who I taught before regard me as a sincere, discreet teacher who helps learners to progress in short time. looking for: Business Chinese/ Tutorial Chinese teaching Language skills: Chinese (mother tongue), English (Fluent), French (basic), Danish (beginner) IT experience: Word Office, SPSS statistic software, Basic Video and Audio editing, Blog writing Contact: teacherchen@live.com, Tel: 25 81 65 18 Spouse: Attila Simon From: Romania Seeking work in: Greater Copenhagen Qualification: International Welding Engineer (IWE/EWE), MSc in Welding Engineering, MSc in Flexible Manufacturing Systems, MSc in Quality Assurance of Metallic Structures Experience: 10+ years experience in designing and manufacturing railway wagons, buses, trolleybuses and their subsystems. More than 7 years international project management experience in these areas. More than 2 years experience in industrial trading and investments looking for: Transport, railway or welding related engineering job, also project management positions Language skills: English (fluent speaking and writing), Danish (intermediate), Hungarian (mother tongue), Romanian (native speaker) IT experience: Several years experience working with SolidWorks, AutoCAD, ProgeCAD and VariCAD. User level of Microsoft Office Contact: attilon2@gmail.com; tel.: 28316752 Spouse: Enikő Tóth From: Hungary Seeking work in: Psychology Qualification: Psychologist (MA), Teacher of English (BA) Experience: A beginner in psychology, 10 years of teaching experience looking for: A possibility in getting practical experience in clinical psychology, voluntary work Language skills: English, Hungarian, elementary French and Danish IT experience: Basic computer skills Contact: tenila@gmail.com

Spouse: Fernando Carlos Cardeira da Silva From: Portugal Seeking work in: Copenhagen Qualification: Accounting course from Danish Institution (Regnskabs medarbejder at Niels Brock), previous frequency of Accounting and Management courses in Portugal. Experience: I have more than 5 years of experience in accounting looking for: Job as accounting assistant IT experience: Microsoft Office (Excel, Word and Power point) and accounting software such as Navision C5 Language skills: I can read and write Danish, English, Portuguese, Spanish and French Contact: fercardeira@gmail.com +45 50437588 Spouse: Dolon Roy From: India Seeking work in: Sjælland Qualification: Masters in Science(Chemistry), BEd.(Teacher training course) Experience: St. John Diocessan School February-May 2005, Kolkata, India. The Assembly of God Church School April-May 2006, Kolkata, India. Disari Public School June 2006-October 2007, India. Research project work Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Copenhagen University, March-July 2009 looking for: Part time or full time work teaching in primary,secondary or higher school level (Chemistry, Mathematics, Science) Language skills: English, Hindi, Bengali, Danish (modul 3/modul 5) IT experience: Microsoft office Contact: dolonroy2005@yahoo.com. Mob: +45 60668239 Spouse: Ying Yuan From: China Seeking work in: Great Copenhagen Qualification: Medical Degree & Master in Human Nutrition Experience: Practiced medicine for 2 years China 2000-200. Conducted a clinical trial for ½ year England 2008. Work in nutrition, pharmaceutical industry, food industry and health secto IT experience: I am experienced in Statistical software SPSS and MINITAB, Nutritional software NetWISP/WISP Language skills: Chinese, English and Danish Contact: yuanying118@hotmail.com +45 31 36 92 58 Spouse: Laxmi Chawan From: India Seeking work in: Sjælland, as an architect/ interior designer or as a logistic co-ordinator. Qualification: Masters in Design Sciences and Sustainable Design, University of Sydney, Australia; Bachelors in Architecture, University of Mumbai, India Experience: Practiced medicine for 2 years China 2000-200. Conducted a clinical trial for ½ year England 2008. Work in nutrition, pharmaceutical industry, food industry and health secto looking for: Part time /Fulltime work in Architecture/Construction /Interior Designing Firm or Supply chain management field. IT experience:AutoCAD 2009, Adobe In Design, Photoshop, Microsoft Office, Project management softwares Language skills: English,Hindi Contact: lchawan@gmail.com Mobile : +4552532498 Spouse: Debjani Nandy Biswas From: India Seeking work in: Would like to join in kindergarten, School teacher in English, official work in English. Qualification: B.A., M.A in English literature and language (American, European and Indian). Experience: Temporary school teacher in Bongaon, India and involved in social work (handicapped society). looking for: A possibility in getting practical experiences in kindergarten or any international school, official work (administration) in English, voluntary work also. Language skills: English, Hindi, Sanskrit, Bengali, little Danish (currently learning). IT experience: Diploma in basic computer applications. Contact: E-mail: debjaninb@gmail.com, Tel: +45 50219942. Spouse: Brant Lang From: Australia Seeking work in: Copenhagen Qualification: Bachelor of Management (Hons), Bachelor of International Studies, starting Danish lessons Jan 2011 Experience: 4 years recruitment consultant looking for: An opportunity within consulting, administration, analyst or project work in an English speaking company. Language skills: English IT experience: Microsoft Office, Adapt Contact: brantlang@hotmail.com or +45 50 33 94 10

The Copenhagen Post Spouse employment page Why: The Copenhagen Post wishes to help spouses looking for jobs in Denmark. We have on our own initiative started a weekly spouse job page in The Copenhagen Post, with the aim to show that there are already within Denmark many highly educated international candidates looking for jobs. If you are a spouse to an international employee in Denmark looking for new career opportunities, you are welcome to send a profile to The Copenhagen Post at peterk@cphpost.dk and we will post your profile on the spouse job page when possible.

employment

The Copenhagen post march 418- -1024

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25/03/09 11:22:12

Industry focus: energy

The Copenhagen post march 18 - 24

Matchmaker with his eyes on the prize across the Atlantic By Claus Clausen Medicon Valley’s new life science ambassador has a mission to create contacts in one of the world’s leading clusters. Identifying American risk capital will be one of his key tasks

usiness-driven, analytical, a skilled networker with an excellent ability to visualise ideas so that they result in concrete business. These are some of the words 34-year-old Torsten Jepsen uses to describe himself. He can now write “life science ambassador” on his business card as part of the expansion of the Medicon Valley Alliance’s life science ambassador programme, which now has representatives in Japan, South Korea and Canada and the US. In practice this means that companies and universities in Medicon Valley have their own representative to call on in the US, the world’s largest life science market. The new life science ambassador will be located in Boston, but will also focus on the rest of the east coast. Torsten Jepsen comes from a position as senior project manager in the Medicon Valley Alliance (MVA). Over the past three years he has, among other things, been responsible for

building closer relations to leading European life science clusters and for facilitating strategic discussions among public and private stakeholders in Medicon Valley on how to strengthen regional competitiveness. “I have a good insight into the Medicon Valley region. My key task will be to brand Medicon Valley and create a platform in the US which Medicon Valley stakeholders can use for establishing relationships of collaboration and business development. Essentially, I will be a matchmaker who can get people to meet across the Atlantic,” says Jepsen, who will be based at an office in the Cambridge Innovation Centre, a neighbour to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. World class universities The life science ambassador programme aims to establish partnerships between Medicon Valley and leading life science clusters in North America, Asia and Europe. The Medicon Valley Alliance posts life science ambassadors to the foreign clusters for a period of three years. The ambassadors create an extensive network that can be used to help companies and universities establish new international collaboration.

Charlotte Ahlgren Moritz, the executive vice president of the Medicon Valley Alliance and responsible for the ambassador programme, emphasised the importance of expansion to the US for Medicon Valley. “In Massachusetts you find some of the best universities in the world, and the concentration of life science companies is impressive. Small and mediumsized biotech and medtech companies in Medicon Valley will benefit from being able to call on a life science ambassador in Boston. For many of these companies close collaboration with a foreign partner will be impossible because individually they do not have the resources to develop the necessary contacts, nor do they have the time to maintain such contacts,” Moritz says. Broad scope of work Before he takes off for Beantown, Jepsen is busy building a portfolio of interesting projects in close dialogue with relevant stakeholders in Medicon Valley. Over the last month before leaving Denmark this work will be intensified and he will meet a large number of companies and universities. “The scope of work is very broad,” Jepsen says, explaining

COPENHAGEN SUMMER UNIVERSITY

that he will work on three different levels: policy, in order to help optimise framework conditions and the region’s life science ecosystem in general; platform, in order to bring larger groups of stakeholders together; and organisational by helping companies and universities on an individual basis to identify and meet potential partners”. A key priority is attracting US venture capital. American biotech companies raised in 2009 five times as much capital than biotech companies in the entire continent of Europe. “The US is the most important source of venture capital for the life science industry. My task is to develop a model that makes Medicon Valley more interesting to the American venture capitalists. I will monitor their investments closely and develop personal relationships with them. After meeting each other for coffee a couple of times or after playing tennis together for the second time, a useful relationship may very well develop. Hopefully they will find interest in what our companies and universities in Medicon Valley have to offer”, reveals Jepsen. My approach to get integrated swiftly in the life science society in Massachusetts will be to ask: How do you manage to do so well? And, how can Medicon Valley stakeholders support your key objectives? Having a contributing, positive, curious approach is far better than merely saying: How can you help me and the life science environment in Medicon Valley?” Ability to visualise

It only takes a week to get a couple of years wIser

Jepsen has a background in economic geography with a strong focus on cluster development. His knowledge of the life science industry derives from his experience at Medicon Valley Alliance combined with a diploma in Managing Medical Product Innovation (MMPI) from the Scandinavian International Management Institute (SIMI). “Essentially I have developed a sound knowledge of life

Jepsen is excited about his move stateside

science, from research to development and marketing. I find both the science side and business side of the industry very interesting due to the high level of complexity, so I read a lot to learn more. However, my role as a life science ambassador is not to be an expert in every recess of research and development. Instead I must have a holistic overview to understand the dynamics of the industry and a creative and engaging approach to develop new collaborations and alliances. As far as I am concerned, I must be able to explain the life science environment in Boston and Medicon Valley respectively, and where they can benefit from collabora-

tion,” Jepsen says. Cluster development with an international focus has been an integrated part of Jepsen’s career. Before he came to the Medicon Valley Alliance, he worked as a consultant at Rambøll Management on major international projects. He has worked in Tanzania and Russia and has been project director on several large projects in the former Eastern Europe. “I am used to developing novel solutions in complex environments. I am highly analytical in my work, and I have an ability to visualise projects and get people to co-operate on common objectives,” Jepsen says.

Factfile | Medicon Valley life science ambassador programme

The University of Copenhagen offers 22 research based and specialised courses for working professionals on August 15th-19th 2011. Most courses are taught in English and cover subjects from the entire academic field of the University, e.g. coaching with help from Søren Kierkegaard, doing business in China or India, programming next generation computers or courses within pharma, science and medicine. For complete list, detailed course descriptions and registration please visit copenhagensummeruniversity.ku.dk

copenhagensummeruniversity.ku.dk

Medicon Valley Alliance began developing the life science ambassador programme in 2006. The programme provides companies and research institutions within the life sciences industry a unique opportunity to find partners, collaborators, investors and sponsors. In their work, the ambassadors create a network of contacts and clients that can be used to help companies and universities establish new international relationships. The Medicon Valley Alliance currently has life science ambassadors in Japan, South Korea, the US and Canada, and hosts a life science ambassador from British Columbia, Canada.

Medicon Valley Alliance Ambassadors Thomas Jonsson Responsible for Japan and South Korea Based in Kobe-Kansai, Japan

Morten Fæster Responsible for Vancouver Based in Vancouver, Canada

Torsten Jepsen Responsible for Boston-Cambridge and the eastern US Based in Boston, US

Søren Harbel Foreign life science ambassadors at Medicon Valley Represents British Columbia

Business Analysis

The Copenhagen post march 18 - 24

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Banks need to look after each other By Morten W Langer New procedures would leave it up to the industry to deal with collapsing banks

No guarantee of success for IPOs W

By Morten Sørensen

s ISS prepares the groundwork for an IPO later this year, major investors say there are a number of considerations that determine whether an IPO will take off. Sceptical of venture capital

cessful IPOs are those that can document they have strong cash flows, according to Anne Broeng at PFA. For that reason, biotechs, venture projects and other investments that won’t show a return for a number of years are of little interest for the time being, she said. Other investors say biotech is a good investment right now.

The simple fact that most companies going public being owned by venture capital firms makes investors sceptical. “We’re particularly careful if we see an IPO where we know the operations and finances have been optimised for going public, which is normally the case when the sellers are venture capital firms,” said Søren Dal Thomsen from AP Pension. In such cases, he said, investors need to ask why they should pay more than the owners could have got had they sold to another capital firm. ISS – like the recently floated Chr. Hansen, Pandora and TDC – is owned by a venture capital firm.

Good IPO discount a must

Case by case

No automatic seal of approval

Not all IPOs are lined with gold. Out of the market’s four IPOs last year, two shares, TDC and Zealand Pharma, have lost value (12 percent and 20 percent respectively). Chr. Hansen has gained 36 percent and Pandora 47 percent.

Although investors generally smile on IPOs, support isn’t guaranteed. Companies like ISS and TDC, they say, are solid companies people now have the opportunity to invest in, and, as Wiinblad put it, “generally, it’s great that more companies are going public, but that doesn’t mean we are going to be interested in all of them. We turn down most offers.”

Strong cash flows perform best Those companies that have suc-

Companies looking to go public need to set their offering price 10 to 15 percent lower than fair value in order to give investors an incentive to accept the inherent risk in an IPO, according to Broeng. Shrinking tolerance for debt Even though high debt ratios don’t automatically prevent major investors from taking part in an IPO, the current business climate means they “look more closely at it”, according to Claus Wiinblad at ATP, who added that the company’s debt tolerance had gone down.

hen it comes to the question of how best to deal with failed banks, Danmarks Nationalbank, the central bank, is changing its hard-line approach. Currently, the central bank does not intervene when banks begin to fail, regardless of the consequences. The philosophy is that forcing a bank to face the consequences of their situation serves as a lesson to others. The bank underscored that philosophy in print in a hearing statement last summer, and it was seen in practice earlier this year when Amagerbanken crumbled. But as the credit crunch forces more banks, most recently Spar Nord Bank, to put off its scheduled refinancing of loans, that line could be softening as it seeks to give the banking industry an incentive to bail out each other – dubbed a “bail-in”. “Proper burden sharing will increase the incentive within the financial sector to strive for private solutions rather than letting a failing bank be resolved by the authorities, as they will ultimately bear the costs, but without any influence as to how the bank is wound up,” the bank wrote in a new hearing statement to the EU. Officials at Nationalbanken also point out that under the bail-in system, bank cracks would not require public funds to be used to clean up, unlike the case of Amagerbanken, which saw the state issue a 12 billion kroner guarantee in the wake of the bankruptcy. However, before throwing its support behind a shift from

Lessons have been learned from the collapse of Amagerbanken

the bail-out model, the central bank told the EU it needed to carry out further studies. One area of concern, it said, was how investors would act when a bank approached the bail-in trigger. “There is among other things a need for accurate and detailed case studies about how the market would react to a debt write down tool and a debt conversion tool respectively, including an assessment as to which tool would have less negative impact on market behaviour, fire sales by debtholders, and arbitrage opportunities, it started.” Another issue Nationalbanken is addressing is whether a healthy division of a bank would be permitted to rescue an ailing one. In the finance industry’s previous experience with this, Icelandic bank Kaupting bank was not permitted to transfer money from its healthy Danish subsidiary FIH Bank. The situation could, theo-

Interest rates continue to drive EUR/USD exchange rate search. Should the market choose to shift its focus from interest rate differences to debt problems we could see exchange rate movements later this month, and that

could unleash new pressures on the euro. Economists have described the current situation in which Portugal is paying well over 7 percent on ten-year bonds as “unsustainable”.

Projected exchange rates for key currencies Rate as of Projected exchange rates: Price including 6 month Jan 14 1 month forward 3 months forward 6 months forward forward premium EUR 7.46 7.46 7.46 7.45 7.46 (7.45-7.46) (7.45-7.46) (7.45-7.46) GBP ! 8.65 8.63 8.63 8.83 8.65 (8.53-8.70) (8.48-8.76) (8.47-9.07) SEK ! 0.84 0.85 0.86 0.86 0.84 (0.84-0.85) (0.85-0.87) (0.84-0.88) NOK ! 0.95 0.97 0.97 0.97 0.95 (0.96-0.98) (0.94-0.98) (0.96-0.98) CHF ! 5.80 5.80 5.71 5.74 5.83 (5.74-5.92) (5.65-5.78) (5.52-5.96) PLN ! 1.84 1.89 1.90 1.94 1.84 (1.86-1.90) (1.86-1.94) (1.87-2.01) USD !! 5.42 5.33 5.34 5.56 5.44 (5.18-5.40) (5.18-5.47) (5.25-5.76) JPY !! 6.59 6.46 6.41 6.65 6.62 (X100) (6.39-6.50) (6.34-6.49) (6.03-6.99) EUR/USD !! 1.38 1.40 1.39 1.33 1.37 (1.38-1.42) (1.37-1.42) (1.25-1.42)

Note: Exclamation points indicate degree of uncertainty. !!! indicates the highest level of uncertainty. The upper figure is the panel’s average forecast. The span below indicates the highest and lowest forecasts. The forward premium is the average for sales and purchases.

By Ejlif Thomasen

ince November, the driving factor forcing the euro up against the dollar has been exchange rate differences. “The

market is focusing on two-year interest rates, and it has been that way since Portugal appeared to not need help,” said Mik Ingenuus, lead foreign exchange analyst for Nordea Re-

Forecasts made by representatives from: Alm. Brand Markets Danske Markets Handelsbanken Markets Nykredit Markets Saxo Bank and Sydbank

retically at least, replay itself if one of Nordea’s subsidiaries in Sweden or Finland needed financial assistance from its Danish subsidiary. Although the government would like to be able to continue to protect national subsidiaries, the central bank, in its answer to the EU, appeared to be open to the possibility. “We must bear in mind that

intra-group financial support arrangements contain an inherent risk of contagion. This risk must be minimised to the greatest extent possible by defining the respective legal obligations, including the trigger conditions. No transfer should be allowed, if this means that another group entity potentially becomes at risk should it not fulfill the capital requirements.”

BRITISH CHAMBER OF OF BRITISH CHAMBER COMMERCE INDENMARK DENMARK COMMERCE Prof. Mikael Skou Andersen, European Environment Agency An appraisal of the plans for a fossil fuel free energy system

ikael Skou Andersen is currently employed as an environmental economist at the European Environment Agency. He is also a Professor in Policy Analysis at Denmarks National Environmental Research Institute, now part of Aarhus University. Mikael’s hometown, Aarhus, is the hub of Denmark’s windpower industry, which has experienced first hand how conversion to renewable energy means real momentum for green growth. In Denmark, Mikael is known for his research dedicated to quantifying the health costs of air pollution from fossil fuels. In 2005 he was part of the team that prepared the cost-benefit assessment that paved the way for Copenhagen’s environmental zone with restrictions for heavy traffic. In 1989 he pioneered the idea of environmental tax reform, which involves the shifting of tax burdens away from labour and onto pollution and resource use – a method that has risen to prominence in the Nordic countries. He has been a member of an international task force advising Premier Wen Jiabao on how to introduce carbon-energy taxation as part of China’s next 5 year plan – which may obtain final approval at the People’s Congress this spring.

Date: Friday 25 March Venue: Conference Suite on 1st floor, Radisson Blu Royal Hotel, Hammerichsgade 1, Copenhagen K

ProgrAMME: 11.45 Arrival and drinks 12.05 Welcome and introduction by Mariano A. Davies, President, BCCD 12.10 Guest speaker - Prof Mikael Skou Andersen followed by questions and discussions 13.00 Buffet lunch and networking

You can sign up via the website, send an email to event”@”bccd.dk or phone 31 18 75 58. Non-members may attend for DKK 300 inc moms, on request to the secretariat. • official media partner

Postscript Denmark through the looking glass

Nation mourns swimmer whose defiance captivated their hearts By Jennifer Buley ‘Little Inge’, Denmark’s super swimming star dies and with her a piece of history

he was just 12 years old when she swam to a bronze medal at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin and refused to heil Hitler as she stood on the winners’ podium. Last week ‘Little Captivating Inge’ Sørensen, an 86-yearold Danish expat and worldclass swimmer who remains the youngest female swimmer to ever win an Olympic medal, died at her home in New Jersey, USA. It was Denmark’s legendary radio journalist Gunnar ‘Nu’ Hansen, who gave Sørensen the epithet ‘Little Captivating Inge’, while reporting live for Danish Radio from the Olympics in Berlin. The nickname stuck and even inspired a popular song. Denmark was captivated by the little girl from Skovshoved who took the bronze for the 200 metres breaststroke. When she returned from the games, her train, the Berlin Express, was met by 30,000 fans. Sørensen was paraded through the streets of Copenhagen to the harbour, where she was met by a boat that sailed her ceremoniously home to Skovshoved, just north of Copenhagen. In a 2006 interview she told

Danish Royal Library The swimmer was the subject of a popular 1930s song

Politiken newspaper she had been blessed with natural ability and barely trained at all – then she apologised for bragging. “I trained one hour a week at the swimming hall in Østerbro. The rest of the time was in the harbour or at the beach in Skovshoved – where I played in the water with my friends and swam out to the stone that I called ‘my dad’s stone’. If I really wanted to do something special, then I might swim to the stone two times. I was a sort of natural talent, who lived by the strength in my legs and barely felt the water’s resistance at all, because I was so thin. I had nothing like the other swimmers’ power. Oh, that sounds like bragging – nobody wants to hear about that.” She said that she had given up watching television years ago, because she hated to see how commercialised sports had become. But Sørensen was one of the most admired and popular athletes of her era – as big, or even bigger, than a Caroline Wozniacki – not only because she was extremely gifted and ‘captivating’, but because she refused to compete in the Nazis’ propagandist sports competitions during World War Two. Professor Hans Bonde from the University of Copenhagen wrote the book ‘Football with the Foe: Danish sport under the swastika’ (2008) about how athletes and the sports federation (DIF) co-operated with the Nazis during the German occupation of Denmark from 19401945. Throughout the 1930s, the Nazis had used ‘Aryan’ or ‘north Germanic’ female sports stars to create heroic images of the “perfection of the Aryan race”, Bonde writes. Leni Riefenstahl’s famous film, ‘Olympia’, from the 1936 Olympics, epitomised the propaganda. “Women swimmers were incomparably the most popular sportspeople of the time, and attention was primarily focused

Photos: Scanpix As a 12-year-old, Inge Sørensen from Skovshoved won a bronze medal at the 1936 Olympics and the love of an entire nation

on Ragnhild Hveger, Inge Sørensen and Jenny Kammersgaard,” he writes. But unlike Hveger and Kammersgaard, Sørensen was “less willing to compete in games with the occupying forces”. Hveger and Kammersgaard, both Nazi sympathisers, enthusiastically took part. Like something out of the film ‘Escape to Victory’, Nazi leaders were especially anxious to get Denmark’s star swimmer and darling, Inge Sørensen, to compete against the German champion Annie Kapell, but she refused. Sørensen herself never said whether her refusal to compete for the Nazis was an act of conscience. Hveger, an Olympic silver medallist, complained that Sørensen’s parents would not let her “We don’t know her motives. Since she didn’t have any hesitations to meet the Germans during the war in Denmark, the

argument that it was her parents’ fear that prevented her from going to Germany to compete seems probable,” Bonde told The Copenhagen Post. When the Danish resistance to German occupation took hold and began to grow in 1943, the image of the then 12-year-old ‘Little Captivating Inge’, who did not heil Hitler when she stood on the winners’ podium in 1936, became a symbol for the Danish resistance. Bonde writes that it was “a dreadful human temptation” for world-class Danish athletes in their prime years, who were barred from competing with athletes from outside the Axis power countries, to accept the Nazi invitation to compete. Phenomenally talented Inge Sørensen, who broke 14 Danish records and three world records as an 11-year-old and won Olympic bronze when she was just 12 years and 24 days old – the

second youngest female winner of a medal after Luigina Giavotti, an 11-year-old Italian gymnast who won a silver in 1928 – did not fall into that temptation. We can only wonder what she would have achieved in her sport if not for World War Two. After the liberation in May 1945, the Danish athletes who co-operated with the Nazis were disgraced, and the DIF itself was at pains to “shake the mental images of Danish-German collaboration from its memory as quickly as possible ... through hastily-organised matches against Denmark’s English liberators and against Nordic sister nations,” Bonde writes. ‘Little Inge’, who remained neutral, was forced to retire as an amateur and ‘go professional’ in 1944 at the age of 20 when she took an education as a swimming instructor. According to the stricter rules that governed amateur athletics at the

Jian Kang means good health Traditional Chinese medicine TCM is said to be around 5000 years old. Through times knowledge about preventing illness and how to restore health by natural treatment like herbs, acupuncture, QiGong and massage has been growing.Your Chinese doctor will try to bring your body in harmony by offering a treatment that removes any imbalance and brings your body back to its natural, normal condition.

Keeping the yin-yang balance is important due to the Chinese philosophy. To be healthy means to obtain balance in your life UN’s health organization WHO approved and recommended in 1989 treatment with acupuncture for 43 diseases. Now acupuncture is also recommended for headache, migraine, immune-system, asthma, blood pressure problems, anxiety, depression, after effects of chemotherapy, menopause, menstrual problems etc. Just ask.

Dr. Kun has a university degree in Chinese medicine. She worked as the head physician in charge of Hospital No. 10 in Shenyang, Liaoning Province in China, when she came as a visiting doctor to work with patients in Denmark. Since October 2008 she has been doctor of acupuncture in the clinic. She is a person with an open heart.

Akupunkturklinikken Jian Kang - Skånegade 2 st.th. 2300 København S Metro Amagerbro - Bus 2A and 5A • Pay cash or Dankort • Phone 6591 5555 – http://jiankang.dk Open Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday 8.30 – 16.30, Sunday 11 - 19 RAB-registered – health insurance refund

time, her education disqualified her from amateur competition. She moved to neutral Sweden, where she helped train the Swedish swimming team, leading them to victory in an international competition in September 1945. Sørensen married her swimming companion, the engineer Janus Tabur, in 1948, and the couple settled in the USA in 1951. But they never lost their affinity for the water, and on three occasions sailed across the Atlantic to pay visits home to Denmark. Half of Inge Sørensen’s ashes will be scattered over her garden in New Jersey, and the other half over her family grave in Ordrup Kirkegård. ‘Football with the Foe: Danish sport under the swastika’, by Hans Bonde, is available from www.universitypress.dk