Copenhagen Post Issue 18 2009 by Jason Heppenstall

NEWS

IN & OUT

HISTORICAL

Jim Bergerac? Tom Barnaby? TV actor John Nettles drops in for a chat with the CPH Post

Join the Irish at the racetrack for a Saturday of top tips, poor picks and jockey sticks

Oh lordy it’s Reptilicus! Read about the nation’s best B-Movie monster

VOL. 12 ISSUE 18 8 - 14 MAY 09

THE DANISH NEWS IN ENGLISH

NEWS

An egalitarian lot. New study reveals that a third of Danes consider themselves to be socialists NEWS

By Katie Rice 5

Many foreigners do not realise they signed up to pay taxes to the church says anti-church tax group COMMENT

Walking to success. Ecco shoes slips off the recession blues and announces large scale expansion plans Copenhagen Post T: 33 36 33 00 F: 33 93 13 13 E: info@cphpost.dk W: www.cphpost.dk

PRICE 20 DKK

The youngest son of Queen Margrethe, Prince Joachim, has announced the birth of a new prince with his wife, Princess Marie

EU Parliament passes motion to prohibit the import of seal products to member states, with special exceptions for Greenland

Media interest around the new prince ranges from the curious to the bizarre but the royals need their privacy too BUSINESS

Queen pays a visit to the new prince

RINCE JOACHIM and his wife Princess Marie welcomed a son early on Monday morning as the 33 year-old princess gave birth to a new prince at Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen. The healthy boy was born at 4.57am after a ten hour labour, weighing in at 3032 grams and 49 centimetres in length. The proud father was present for the entire birth and cut the umbilical cord. Prince Joachim admitted to shedding a tear, calling it a ‘very moving moment’. The new prince is the fifth grandchild of Queen Margrethe II and the first child for the couple since their marriage last year. Prince Joachim also has two sons from a previous marriage. The boy will be seventh in line to the throne. The couple have not yet announced the name of their new son and Prince Joachim was not giving anything away this morning. ‘As I have said before, it could be anything from Ib to

EU bans trade in sealskins

Photo: Kyle Wheeler Queen Magrethe leaves the hospital after visiting her newest grandson

Nebukaneser.’ All public buildings and buses flew the flag in honour of the new royal and the Battery Sixtus and Kronborg Cas-

tle fired a 21 gun salute from their cannons at noon. The Royal Lifeguards also wore their blue gala duty uniforms in honour of the occa-

sion, which feature special chin-straps for royal births. See Comment on page 6

Y NO LATER than the end of this year legislation will be in place to put into action the motion passed by a large majority in the European Union Parliament yesterday, prohibiting the import and trade of seal products in EU countries. However, as expected, there was a special clause for the Inuit, intended to ensure the continued economic viability of Inuit communities in Greenland and Canada. But the government of Greenland and Danish MEPs are worried that the impact of the ban, albeit with a special Inuit clause, will have an adverse affect on life in the settlements of Greenland. A long and well-publicised campaign by animal rights organisations had been aimed at the elected representatives of the EU, with seal pup cuddly toys and support from celebrities such as Paul McCartney, together with video footage of annual seal pup clubbing from Canada. (sermitsiaq.gl) Advertisements

See more. Pay less. • Free access to 60 museums and attractions in the entire metropolitan area • Free transport by train, bus and Metro • One adult can take along 2 children under the age of 10 for free

225 VALID FOR BUS, TRAIN AND METRO

See more at www.cphcard.com

Swine-Flu and the Holy Quran

Go to Page: 9

NEWS

2 POST BOX President and Publisher Ejvind Sandal

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

Sunniest April ever breaks records

IN BRIEF Naked vandals POLICE ARE hunting for three naked vandals after an unusual episode in Slagelse. A Statoil petrol station at a truck stop near the Zealand town was visited at 2am last Monday morning by three men, clad only in shoes, reports public broadcaster DR. The naked men then proceeded to urinate all over the chocolate display before taking off in a Mercedes car. The entire episode was caught on security cameras and South Zealand Police are currently tracking down the owners of the car.

Chief Executive Jesper Nymark Editor in Chief (Responsible under Danish Press Law) Philip G Shepherd Managing Editor Kevin McGwin Newspaper Editor Jason Heppenstall Newsroom info@cphpost.dk News Journalists Robert Cellini Claire Clausen Katie Rice Wesley Spyke (intern) Copy-editor Kevin McKechnie

Long shot

Staff Photographers Pamela Juhl Hasse Ferrold

THE WORLD’S longest photograph has been put on display in Kongens Nytorv Square in central Copenhagen. Simon Høgsberg created the 100 metre long portrait of more than 178 people in Germany two years ago. He spent four hours a day for 20 days photographing strangers on the Warschauer Brücke railway bridge in Berlin. The photo, entitled ‘We’re all going to die – 100 metres of existence’, was designed to show the strength and fragility of the human race in a giant picture to give a strong impression of ‘who we are and what life is about’. Most of the picture’s subjects were unaware they were being photographed and feature a broad spectrum of people; from a kissing couple to a man with an eye-patch, to another carrying a small dog in his backpack. The image will be on display in Kongens Nytorv until 28 May.

In & Out Guide Editor Ben Hamilton Art/Film/TV Editor Gabriel Birnbaum Photo: Kyle Wheeler Advertising & Subscriptions Tel: 33363300 Distribution & Corporate Sales Sara Cederlund subs@cphpost.dk Advertising & Sales Manager Jeanne Thames jeanne@cphpost.dk Sales & Advertising Mark Millen mark@cphpost.dk Lyndsay Jensen ljensen@cphpost.dk Assistants Sophia Hesselgrave (intern)

It was an April to remember for both residents and meteorologists, with new records for sunshine and temperature being set. According to the Danish Meteorological Institute, we enjoyed a record 272 hours of sunshine last month, breaking the record of 1974 by 10 hours. In addition, this April’s 9.4 degree average temperature beat 2007 by 0.1 degree. Rainfall was also at a minimum last month. Precipitation totalled 10 millimetres for April 2009, but the dry month was far from setting a record. In both 1974 and 1893 a mere three millimetres fell nationwide. The normal precipitation average for April is 41 millimetres. (rc)

Dangerous dogs cull proposal

Advertising Layout and Design Antonieta Medeiros IT Support Company Bemitech Editorial offices: Store Kongensgade 14 DK 1264 Copenhagen K Telephone: 33 36 33 00 Fax: 33 93 13 13 Editorial e-mail: info@cphpost.dk Web: www.cphpost.dk Original design by Mervyn Kurlansky Headline font by Rasmus Koch

People at The Post Name: From: Job title:

Katie Rice Dublin, Ireland Journalist

‘Skagen in northern Jutland has to be one of my favourite places to visit in Denmark. The beaches are dotted with abandoned WWII bunkers, the seas crash together at Grenen and the old church buried in the sands is a must. ‘

Founded by San Shepherd in 1998

Ban, muzzle or kill them?

MAJORITY of MPs are prepared to pass legislation banning dogs belonging to fighting breeds after several incidents where people and pets have been mauled by the animals, reports B.T. newspaper. The Liberals, Social Democrats and Danish People’s Party are in agreement that the canines pose a threat to residents and need to be outlawed. ‘Our position is that they should be eliminated,’ the Liberal Party’s Flemming Møller told TV2 News. The Danish People’s Party has an alternative proposal that muscle dogs over 6 months should be required to wear muzzles. ‘But we’re willing to consider a total ban,’ said the party’s Marianne Harpsøe. (rc)

Freedom fighters put on web By Katie Rice The national Resistance Museum is getting ready to launch its new online resistance worker database, partly enabled by a one million kroner grant from the Culture Ministry

Fatal accidents TWENTY PEOPLE have lost their lives in work-related accidents so far this year, according to the 3F union newsletter. Every year around 60 people die at work and this year is no exception. In the first four months of this year, 12 out of 20 have died as a result of vehicular accidents. Of those who died in vehicular accidents, four were truck or van drivers delivering goods. Agriculture, construction and maritime jobs have consistently been the most dangerous and 2009 is shaping up to be no different to any other year. Three construction workers have died this year, in addition to three agriculture employees and two sailors.

NEW INTERNET database will be launched by the Resistance Museum, listing at least 21,000 names of resistance fighters from the war. This first set of names, of some 70,000 active volunteers in the resistance movement, will be registered as part of a museum project. A one million kroner grant from the Culture Ministry and lottery funds has made it possible to locate the names, mainly from the so-called ‘troop lists’ created after the liberation of Denmark in 1945. ‘We want to avoid judging who was in the resistance. That’s why we’re registering those who were either on a troop list or were mentioned in some other form of literature,’ said museum curator, Henrik Lønbak to Berlingske Tidende newspaper. The Danish Data Protection Agency allowed the publication of names if the person concerned has given permis-

The museum offers a glimpse into the world of the WWII resistance

Police stop sion for the name to be made public or if the resistance fighter has been dead for at least 10 years. If the death cannot be confirmed to have taken place more than 10 years ago, the name will not be added until 2020. The archive will allow for

simple information such as the name, unit, rank and function of the resistance fighter, but it is also possible to supplement it with photo or account from the person in question. The database was made available by the museum last Monday evening.

The Copenhagen Post welcomes outside letters to the editor but all unsolicited submissions are at the writer’s own risk. Letters and comments can be sent to comments@cphpost.dk or left on our website. 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. Annual subscription fee: DKK 1100 E-mail: subs@cphpost.dk All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited by law.

A NATIONWIDE police antispeeding operation caught 5099 accelerator-happy motorists last week, reported public broadcaster DR. National Police indicated that 122 were driving so fast that their licences have been conditionally revoked. Next on the police agenda is an operation against scooter and bicycle riders failing to adhere to traffic rules. That campaign is set for 11-14 May.

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

Young Zealand woman is first swine flu case in Denmark By Katie Rice A young female patient who tested positive for the flu virus after arriving from New York no longer has any symptoms but remains in isolation while other passengers have tested negative

HE FIRST DANISH patient has tested positive for the influenza A (H1N1) virus, previously known as swine flu.

Jesper Fisker, director of the National Board of Health, said that the infected young woman from Zealand had arrived on a Continental flight from New York on the morning of 29 April. Due to the patient’s wish for anonymity, Fisker would not reveal any more information about her identity, but said that she was being kept in isolation to protect her from the media. The woman had contacted Hvidovre hospital complaining of a sore throat, was tested and sent home with face masks as a precaution. By the time test results came back positive the patient no longer had any symp-

toms, but was kept in isolation until 6 May as the virus may still have been in her body. Nineteen passengers seated in the airplane rows near the Danish woman were tracked down by the health authorities, who said all their results for the virus came back negative. So far the health authorities have tested more than 200 people displaying possible symptoms of influenza A (H1N1), but only the young woman from Zealand has tested positive. ‘There is not much to indicate that Denmark is especially hit with infection, but it all depends what happens with the virus,’ said Else Smith of the

health board. As of 5 May, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said that 21 countries had confirmed cases of the flu. There have been 1490 confirmed cases, of which 30 have resulted in death. Other flu patients have been confirmed in European countries such as Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland and Great Britain. WHO has raised the alert to the second highest level of 5, which means the virus has been spread from human to human in at least two countries. According to WHO, the Phase 5 alert is ‘a strong signal that a pandemic

is imminent’. Meanwhile, the Foreign Ministry has issued an alert advising against all unnecessary travel to Mexico in an attempt to halt the spread of the virus from the heavily-hit country. Back at home the National Board of Health said that while the virus is a new type, it is not particularly infectious and the symptoms so far seem no more severe than those of regular influenza. While health authorities have found anti-viral medication to be effective, they said that the situation requires close monitoring in case the virus mutates.

First case hits the nation

Teenager run down The fairy tale ending for city festival

The grass verge where the teenager was run down and killed

A teenage boy was run over and killed by a driver who thought he was trying to steal his car

MAN WHO believed his car was being stolen by a group of teens drove after them before hitting and killing one. The incident occurred in a town outside Århus at around 6 a.m. on Sunday morning. The 16-year-old boy slipped on the grass while trying to flee the car and got pinned under the vehicle after being hit. He later died of his injuries at Århus Hospital. According to witnesses, the group of boys were causing chaos throughout the neighbourhood, breaking into several cars and houses. The 35-year-old driver has been charged with involuntary

manslaughter but may get off without charge, according to Lars Bo Langsted, law professor at Aalborg University. ‘Anyone who has been the victim of a crime against their person or property has, according to the law, the right to defend themselves,’ said Langsted. ‘Even a person that goes far beyond what might actually be allowed in that regard can still come away free of punishment.’ In February, Hell’s Angels member Jørn Jønke Nielsen was acquitted by a city court after stabbing another man in a fight. Nielsen had pleaded selfdefence in the case. Langsted added, however, that the car chase in Sunday’s incident was neither ‘necessary nor defensible’ by law, in his opinion. (rc)

Photo: Lyndsay Jensen Kongens Nytorv was transformed into an 19th century antique market square last weekend as the Hans Christian Andersen Festival come rolling into town. Over 100 stalls crammed into the square offering an array of crafts, antiques, food, sweets and more. Blacksmiths and butchers shared their old world interests with passers-by as historically dressed police officers kept law and order. The Hans Christian Andersen Parade from Odense was also on hand to play a few traditional tunes. (ws)

ADD SOME FUN TO YOUR STAY IN DENMARK. LEASE A BRAND NEW MINI! MINI offers a full range of services to make living in Denmark easier for the international community. For example, you can drive a new MINI for as little as DKK 2,700 a month (DKK 15,000 down payment). At the end of your stay in Denmark, just return your MINI to us – it couldn't be easier! Mail us at international-dk@MINI.dk and we'll come up with a tailored leasing agreement that puts a new MINI in your hands, on your terms.

MINI Financial Services Denmark www.MINI.dk

NEWS

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

Third of Danes consider themselves socialists Experts disagree about the nation’s understanding of the political term socialist as a poll reveals that one third of us refer to ourselves as socialists

Greenland chef hunt Photo: Kyle Wheeler Crowds gather in Fælledparken to clebrate May Day, a traditional rallying point for left wing activists and voters

poll. ‘Danes have a lot of different ideas about what socialism is,’ he told Politiken newspaper. ‘Some take the term from

the literal, Marxist while others just link solidarity, community certain degree of state tion for business.’

angle, it with and a regula-

Martin Ågerup, head of liberal economic think tank Cepos, was also sceptical of the poll. ‘A socialist is what you are if

you believe that private property should be confiscated by the state and the state should also own all production mechanisms.’

‘Terror recruiters’ sue gov’t Controversy dogs Information relating to why two men are being held on tolerated stay has been made public, resulting in legal action being taken against authorities by the men’s lawyers

WO IRAQIS ON tolerated stay are suing the Integration Ministry after finally learning what crime they were suspected of, reports Politiken newspaper. The information was released through the publication of a US intelligence report, which indicated that the two Iraqis had both co-operated with Al-Qaeda and were ‘suspected of facilitating foreign fighters into Iraq’, including

Poll support A MAJORITY support negotiating with the Taliban to achieve peace in Afghanistan, according to a recent Gallup/Berlingske Tidende newspaper poll. Despite the high percentage of Danish soldiers who have lost their lives in the war, the survey indicated that 53 percent of respondents support the country’s participation. In addition, more than half favour negotiating with the Taliban in an effort to create peace in the region. Denmark has suffered the highest death rate for its soldiers in Afghanistan out of the coalition forces, relative to its population. The country has lost 23 of its men in the war so far and currently has 750 soldiers stationed in the Asian country.

By Robert Cellini

HOSE ATTENDING 1 May celebrations for the nation’s labour organisations have all the more reason to cheer, with a new national poll showing one out of every three people calling themselves socialist. The Megafon/TV 2/Politiken poll found that 32 percent of those questioned about their political leanings referred to themselves as ‘red’. Women are far more socialist that men, however, according to the poll. Nearly 40 percent of women call themselves socialists compared to 25 percent of the men. But while historian and workers’ movement expert Claus Bryld was surprised by the numbers, he challenged whether any concrete conclusion could be drawn from the

IN BRIEF

suicide bombers. The documentation was supplemented with information provided by Danish intelligence agency PET. Documentation from German and Moroccan authorities confirm that PET suspected at least one of the men as being the head of Iraqi terrorist recruitment for Northern Europe. PET had kept its suspicions secret, but the two men were jailed for a considerable period before being placed on tolerated stay status. The two men remain on that status because although PET wants to have them deported, the Refugee Appeals Board will not allow their return to Iraq because the men are considered to be at risk of torture and persecution. Both men have admitted to

meeting members of terrorist organisations but deny they were involved in terrorist recruiting. One of the suspects, Mohamed Hamid, said he was seeking their help to locate his brother, who disappeared in Iraq. The other, Amer Saeed, said the men were just friends. The men’s attorneys believe their clients have a good case particularly in light of the recent Supreme Court decision in the well-publicised ‘Tunisian case’, where the court ruled that PET’s unwillingness to present evidence against two Tunisians charged with plotting to kill Mohammed cartoon artist Kurt Westergaard failed to justify their being on tolerated stay. Tolerated stay requires that a person must report to police authorities each day. ‘My client wasn’t given any information on his alleged crime,’ attorney Henrik Stagetorn told Jyllands-Posten newspaper. ‘I’ve asked PET to provide us with the information, but they’ve refused. Then a year after he’s been released from prison we read the information on a website.’ Neither PET nor the Justice Minister has yet commented on the matter. (rc)

free speech forum

Wilders: not welcome

Worries about inviting Dutch politician Geert Wilders to Denmark leads to further delays for the troubled freedom of speech conference

HE GOVERNMENT will not be inviting controversial Dutch politician Geert Wilders to Denmark anytime soon. Conservative MP Naser Khader, previously of Liberal

Alliance, secured funding last year for an international freedom of speech conference, which was due to be held in February. Late last year it was decided to push the conference back until June and according to information received by Berlingske Tidende newspaper, the conference has been delayed again because of government’s concern over Geert Wilders. The integration minister, Birthe Rønn Hornbech, has sent out a memo saying that the free speech and anti-radicalisation conference will not be held before the autumn, ‘in spite of intense work and exploration’ that has gone into preparations. The Danish People’s Party (DF) had wanted Wilders to attend. The politician has previously been subjected to death threats and banned from entry into Britain due to his outspoken views on Islam. DF party leader, Pia Kjærsgaard, said she wants a clear answer to the repeatedly delayed meeting and that it is obvious that the conference is an irritation for the government. According to the newspaper, the Foreign Ministry has expressed concern that if Wilders turns up to the delayed conference in the autumn it could have a negative affect on the climate summit in December. The ministry is apparently worried that Wilders presence could lead to Muslim countries boycotting the climate conference. (kr)

SIX CHEFS WILL be competing for the role of television chef on a new six part television series about travel and food in Greenland. The selection of a television chef will take place at the Danish embassy in London with the lucky winner able to look forward to a comprehensive journey taking them all over the country on a hunt for raw ingredients to use in their recipes that will be created for the viewing public. The first programme will be filmed in southern Greenland, later to be presented at the MIP-TV Film Festival at Cannes in November.

Donated teddies SAFETY promotion foundation TrygFonden has continued its support of Århus Hospital and donated 3,000 cuddly bears to the children’s unit. In the past two years, the foundation has donated more than 100,000 cuddly toys to children. ‘A teddy bear can make a big difference. When we see the many positive reports and thanks we get from parents and employees at the anaesthesia unit, we’ve no doubt that we’re doing the right thing,’ said Gurli Martinussen of TrygFonden. Århus Hospital will hand out the 3,000 toys to children facing anaesthetic.

Body found A BOY SCOUT troupe in Albertslund, a suburb outside the capital, came upon a gruesome discovery on Thursday evening when they stumbled upon a dead body in Vestskoven woods. Copenhagen Police reported that the youngsters were picking up rubbish in the area when they came upon a human leg sticking out of the ground. Police indicated the body had probably been there for months and are treating the case as suspicious. Although the body was clothed, police say it will be difficult to identify the man due to the corpse’s poor condition.

NEWS

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

Foreigners unaware they are paying church tax By Katie Rice The state church receives funding in the form of tax deducted from its members’ salaries, but many foreigners are unaware that they have been signed up as members or that it involves paying tax

Five men missing after Polish trawler sinks in Baltic Sea, Danish rescue vessels are still searching the area

OTH THE ATHEIST Society and an anti-church tax website have reported repeated requests from foreigners wanting to opt-out of paying an automatic tax to a church they are not members of. Around 83 percent of Danes pay the church tax, which is on average 0.88 percent of their earnings, to pay for the upkeep of the Church of Denmark. It is expected that this will amount to almost 5.5 billion kroner this year, reports 24 Timer newspaper. Danes that are baptised in the Church of Denmark, the national Lutheran church, must pay the tax as long as they are members, but foreigners who move to Denmark are not obliged to, unless they register as church members. Mads Dørup, who runs the ingenkirkeskat.dk website (‘no church tax’), said that he receives at least five enquires every month from people wanting to opt-out of paying the tax. ‘It is mainly people who have moved here, for example, from Norway and Sweden. They are

Photo: Pamela Juhl Many foreigners don’t realise they have become members of the Danish Lutheran church

very surprised that they have been signed up as church members and it takes them by surprise that they suddenly have to pay a tax,’ said Dørup. The Atheist Society also reported receiving a number of queries each month; mainly from people who did not realise

they had been paying the tax for many years. When a foreigner moves to Denmark and signs up for the civil registration ID number, they should be asked if they want to be a member of the church. If they answer yes, then they are signed up as a paying member of

the church. Jesper Vind of the Atheist Society believes that not enough is being done to make foreigners aware that they are being registered as paying church members. If a currently registered church member wants to opt-out of membership, they must write

to their local church office and request a resignation of membership form in addition to providing their birth certificate. Once a person opts-out of the Church of Denmark, they can no longer have a minister of that church preside over religious events like a wedding or funeral.

Scientist has new theory on how Napoleon died A retired physician claims that Napoleon Bonaparte was not poisoned by his enemies, but died due to kidney complications

RNE W. S. SØRENSEN, one of the country’s leading nephrologists, believes the French emperor died due to his lifelong kidney problems. The argument and evidence is outlined in Sørensen’s new book, ‘Napoleons nyrer’ (‘Napoleon’s Kidneys’), which was released on Monday. A Napoleon buff for decades, Sørensen argues that the emperor battled kidney problems his entire life, even during his childhood. Sørensen refers to numerous documents including Bonaparte’s own diary and statements from his mother - as proof of this. Sørensen also attributes Napoleon’s notorious temper to his kidney problems. It is said that the emperor was often forced to lean up against army cannons for up to thirty minutes trying to urinate. The pain Napoleon must have experienced from the kidney failure must have been excruciating, argues Sørensen. Sørensen also asserts that Napoleon’s gradual weight gain can be attributed to his illness.

Polish trawler missing

But there’s no question Napoleon was saturated with arsenic as others have proven, according to Sørensen. US scientists recently claimed to have proven that Napoleon died of arsenic poisoning, as high traces of the substance were found in his hair. But Sørensen writes that the substance was found in many items in those days - especially in the tapestries that Napoleon had hanging at his many residences. A hair sample taken in 1802, nineteen years prior to Napoleon’s death, already showed the emperor had large quantities of arsenic in his body. ‘If there’s any dampness in the room, the fumes released from the tapestry can be highly toxic,’ said Stig Thornsohn, the book’s editor and Sørensen’s son-in-law, to The Copenhagen Post. ‘Arsenic was also present in the medicine he was taking for his illness.’ Thornsohn pointed out that the kidney is supposed to clean substances from urine going to the bladder. However, if there is kidney failure, then the poison builds up in the bladder, and that’s how Napoleon was really poisoned, according to Sørensen’s theories. In his book, Sørensen cites four different autopsy reports. He claims that the original

Napoleon: often had problems trying to urinate

attending physician refused to sign the first report because he felt he was being pressured to falsify it. ‘Health problems directly and indirectly influenced the

outcome of many of Napoleon’s decisions - including many of his military dispositions,’ said Thornsohn. Thornsohn said his company is working on getting the book

released in an English translation. He said he also plans to send a copy to John Curran, who is set to direct a children’s film on Napoleon with Al Pacino in the starring role. (rc)

FIVE POLISH fishermen are feared to have drowned after their fishing trawler sank off the Danish island of Bornholm in the Baltic. The Admiral Danish Fleet Headquarters (SOK) reported that a Danish environmental monitoring aircraft spotted a lifebuoy some eight kilometres south of the Baltic island yesterday afternoon. Helicopters, four Marine Guard vessels and six rescue boats from Denmark, Sweden and Finland took part in the search for the missing sailors, but so far only a defective life raft and a buoy from the trawler have been found. SOK Commander Hans Christian Iversen said they had not received any distress call and it appears the trawler sank quite quickly. Public broadcaster DR reports that the trawler last had contact with its Polish owner last Wednesday night. (kr)

Ice hockey team not relegated THE MEN’S ice hockey team defeated Austria 5-2 in the Ice Hockey World Championship relegation round, ensuring the team remained in the top international division. After defeating Germany and Hungary the match against Austria determined which of the two clubs would be relegated to the next division. However, things couldn’t have started out worse for the national side as they gave up two goals in the first two and a half minutes of the game. But the team regrouped and dominated the rest of the match, closing the gap to 2-1 with Julian Jakobsen. Phoenix Coyote forward Mikkel Bødker scored the next goal and the final empty-net goal, with Mads Christensen and Kasper Degn scoring goals 3 and 4. With the win, Denmark hopes to maintain its world ranking at number 13. Despite losing to both Austria and Denmark, Germany could not be relegated due to its status as host of the 2010 tournament. Austria and Hungary were therefore the unfortunate teams to be relegated. Two as yet undetermined 1st division teams will in turn be moved up into the top division for next year. (rc)

OPINION POST COMMENT

OPINION

The little prince

An outside insider point of view

Media hunger for pictures of the new prince musn’t intrude on the family’s need for privacy

LAGS WERE FLYING, cannons blasting and general cheer seemed to be the order of the day as the news was released that a new royal had been born this week. The queen’s youngest son, Prince Joachim, and his Frenchborn wife Princess Marie welcomed their new son to the world amid a media storm at Rigshospitalet. While most parents have high expectations for their children, the hunger for gossip in a country devoid of Paris Hiltonlevel celebrities has resulted in the new royal’s life being intricately mapped out within hours of his birth. According to various royal experts the child is ideally placed for a career in the military. Either that, or he can follow his father into farming, because he is unlikely to inherit the throne any time soon with six other family members ahead of him in the pecking order. It appeared some media couldn’t wait a couple of days for the obligatory photo op of the new child. In the absence of any photographs of the new prince national news channel TV2 threw caution to the wind and created some pretty scary computer-generated images of what it said the new child could look like. Psychology ‘experts’ also contributed their two cents about the importance of communication for Prince Joachim, who now has three children by two different mothers. But amid the media circus and photo ops lies a week-old

baby and a first-time mother. Princess Marie began her courtship with her husband-tobe in the relative confines of her Geneva home, but has been gradually drawn into the spotlight by the gossip-hungry magazines. There were stories of supposed sex-tapes from former boyfriends and intrusive photos of a heavily pregnant Marie trying on maternity wear in a store. For a ‘commoner’, adapting to life as a royal must be trying enough without the fears of intrusion on your children. Crown Prince Frederik recently gave a glimpse into what royals expect from an upbringing, stating he was brought up by nannies and didn’t have much to do with his parents until he was 21. It is refreshing to see that he is now a hands-on dad and perhaps with a little influence from his own ‘commoner’ wife, Princess Mary, he does not intend to subject his kids to the same kind of upbringing. But even though the nonblue blooded Mary and Marie have adapted to the royal life, there must be a maternal instinct that shies away from having their children subjected to intense media speculation. One can only hope that the media will continue to play fairly and restrict themselves to pre-arranged family photo-ops and that the royal family won’t have to go down the same route as their British cousins and secure a blanket ban on tabloid coverage of the young royals. Katie Rice

BRITISH CHAMBER C OF COMMERC COMMERCE CE IN DENMARK Global Eur Europe ope - A British B P Perspective erspective HMA Nic Nicholas holas Ar Archer cher - British Ambassador British Embassy Embasssy Denmark Nick Archer star Nick started ted w work ork as Ambassador on 14 October 200 2008. 8 Since joining the F 8. Foreign oreign Ofﬁce in travelled 1983 he hass tr avelled eextensively. xtensivelyy. In addition his appointments have serving ooverseas verseas ap pointments ha ve included ser ving in Norway worked Jordan, Norw way and Malta. He has also w orked as Pr Private ivate Se Secretary ecretar y to HRH Pr Prince ince of W Wales ales and was w as aawarded wardedd an MV MVO O ffor or Ser Services vices to The Ro Royal yal Family. F amilyy. Event: Event: Date: Time: Venue: V enue:

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

Annual Annual Gener General al Meeting & Lunch Friday 15th Ma Friday Mayy Lunch Meeting commenc commences ces 12:15 Radisson SAS Ro Royal yal Hot Hotel, el, Hammerichsgade Hammerichsgade 1, 1 16111 Copenhagen V

The lunch will ffollow ollo o w the ﬁrst Ann Annual ual Gener G General raal Meeting of our ne new w merged organisation. More information information about this and other otheer upcoming eevents vents can be ffound ound at www.bccd.dk www .bcccd.dk Non-memberss are welcome to Non-member t the lunc lunch. h. Register toda today! y! eevent@bccd.dk vent@bccd.dk • +45 70208410 • ofﬁcial media par partner tner

who do not wrap their opinions in waffle, hypocrisy or political correctness, and who neither accept nor understand discrimination (or so they think), the modern spin-off amounts to this:

By Klaus Bogstad, a Dane living in Britain

apposite that this discussion should have started on April 9! That nobody else has recognized this as the day Danes celebrate (or used to) liberation from the yoke of foreign invaders only proves how unintegrated you all are! OW DELICIOUSLY

Just kidding, but whilst ‘know thine enemy’ would be the wrong expression, learning about ones host country and its history goes a long way towards understanding where the Danes are coming from. This article may be considered ‘off topic’ as I am not a foreigner living in Denmark but a Dane who has lived for 60 years in Britain. As such, with infrequent visits to Denmark in recent years, I have seen the gradual evolution of Denmark and the Danes into what it and they have become, and I fully understand the vast majority of the comments foreigners in Denmark make, and recognize them as largely accurate, or at least entirely believable, which is depressing albeit understandable. My parents moved to Britain in 1949 when I was five. I was educated in the UK, but we spoke Danish at home, and half my career was spent working for Danish companies or organisations in the UK. As a result I am truly bi-lingual. I have no Danish accent when speaking English, and no English accent when speaking Danish, although my written Danish can sometimes require a spell-checker! More to the point, I have retained ‘dual culture’. My (English) wife and children have adopted many Danish traditions and tastes, as they mesh easily with those of Britain. But I have maintained my Danish nationality and have only ever had a Danish passport, although now we are all in the EU this has lost its significance. In the fifties, sixties and sev-

‘This is our country. We are proud of it and consider it better than most other countries. We have made ourselves one of the top three richest countries in the World. If you come here:

enties I visited Denmark nearly every year, for either business or pleasure, from the eighties onwards perhaps only every five years or so. That is why the changes to Denmark and my fellow Danes are more noticeable to me. So yes, I feel I may be able to contribute an insider’s view from the outside. Denmark is a tiny country of little or no global importance, a fact that Danes have a problem recognizing. It has not had any imperial ambitions for centuries. It has simply stayed at home and got on with it, so to speak, and been exceptionally successful at doing so. Even the citizens of countries Denmark has close relations with know little about it. It comes as a shock for the average Brit to learn that only about 6% of Denmark’s GNP derives from agriculture, as it is still famous for its bacon and butter. Some of them know that Lego is Danish, a very few have heard of Bang & Olufsen and still fewer know about Danish furniture. Most regard Danes (and all Scandinavians) as liberated sex maniacs. The trouble is, that level of general ignorance is reciprocal: Danes know too little about other cultures, and Denmark has not been exposed to mass immigration until relatively recently, hence it is unsure about how to handle it. It was that same ignorance that led it to seriously trample on the spinach patch (as we say) by publishing those stupid

and offensive cartoons. Raving on about free speech, freedom of worship and democracy cuts no ice in societies that have never adopted either. Freedom of speech does not include the freedom to offend. But to understand the general attitudes of Danes to foreigners, and to each other, it is necessary to acquaint yourselves with the still ingrained ‘Jante Law’ (look it up on Wikipedia), which has ten basic rules: Don’t think that you are special. Don’t think that you are of the same standing as us. Don’t think that you are smarter than us. Don’t fancy yourself as being better than us. Don’t think that you know more than us. Don’t think that you are more important than us. Don’t think that you are good at anything. Don’t laugh at us. Don’t think that anyone cares about you. Don’t think that you can teach us anything. In the book where this originated, those who transgress this unwritten ‘law’ are regarded with suspicion and hostility as it goes against communal desire, which is to preserve social stability and uniformity. That’s it in a nutshell! Given that Danes are blunt speakers

READER LETTERS AND COMMENTS Dust to dust

Cage the owners

[‘Foreigners unaware they are paying church tax’, page 5]

[‘Dangerous dogs cull proposed’, page 2]

THERE IS EVEN more to this story. Even if you have paid taxes to the church your whole life, they will not let you have a non-religious funeral service in one of their buildings. I went through this when my partner died 5 years ago. All I wanted to have was a non-religious memorial service, but three levels of the church hierarchy denied me that right. They insisted that there had to be a priest giving the "dust to dust" speech!

IT'S THE OWNERS that should be eliminated. The dogs in and of themselves are not vicious but if they're taught to be that way, or abused or neglected by irresponsible owners who use the dogs to 'prove their manhood' then any dog would become a problem even a chihuahua would be vicious if taught to be. The worst dogs in our neighborhood that I wouldn't want to be within 100 feet of are these little barking maniacs that want to take your leg off - not the 'muscle dogs'.

‘Rdrum’

‘Stranger’

‘Learn Danish. Live like we do. Do not expect us to change our beliefs or society to accommodate your alien life styles or religions. We don’t really need you here, so go find yourselves a niche we haven’t already filled. If you don’t like it here, go home.’ Why are manners so bad in Denmark? See above. It is every Dane’s right to get on the bus first! There has been a generation change, as well as a cultural change, in Denmark. What happened to the old Social Democrat slogan “Few should have too much, fewer still too little”? Since the Thatcher/Reagan era Denmark has also adopted the ‘we want it all, and we want it now, and to hell with anyone else’ attitude. Now the majority have too much and ignore those who still have too little. It has been sad for me to see the erosion of the possibly naive but well-meaning tolerance that Denmark used to exhibit, but let’s face it, that change is not exclusive to Denmark. It is all too common in most Western countries, who also sometimes share a confusion between another country’s government and its ordinary citizens. Those of us who do not approve of, say, the imperialist oil wars waged by the US and Britain, may not react positively at all times to their citizens. Total integration is not possible, true multi-culturalism is unattainable and possibly even undesirable.

NEWS

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

Greenpeace targets biofuel

Photo: Greenpeace

An activist puts a warning notice on one of the biodiesel-run buses

By Katie Rice City buses taking part in a biofuel pilot project have been targeted by activists claiming it is more polluting than regular fuel

CTIVISTS FROM environmental protection group Greenpeace are protesting on a number of buses all across the city against the use of biodiesel by transport company Movia. Movia is currently experimenting with bio-diesel fuel on nine different bus routes as part of a climate-friendly initiative, coordinated by advisory firm Niras. The Road Safety and Transport Agency funded the 17 mil-

lion kroner pilot project in an effort to meet the EU target of the transport sector using ten percent of their energy from sustainable sources by 2020. Greenpeace argues that the use of rape seed oil as part of the biofuel creates up to 70 percent more CO2 emissions than regular diesel fuel. Up to 20 activists have occupied various buses using the biodiesel and are handing out informational leaflets to passengers and drivers highlighting their case. Christina Koll of Greenpeace said they also took issue with the bus company’s practice of putting stickers on the vehicles advertising them as ‘climate-friendly biodiesel’ test vehicles. ‘We’ve had lots of discussions with them asking them to stop testing the fuel, but we haven’t seen any sign that they

want to do so, so we’ve moved on to pressuring them and informing the customers,’ said Koll. Johan Vedel, communications manager with Niras, disputes the claims by Greenpeace that biofuel releases 70 percent more CO2 than regular diesel. ‘The EU already thinks biofuel is climate friendly and the Danish government has said it will introduce a law requiring transport to use biofuel in the future. This is a project to focus on what the technical aspects and effects of using bio-diesel are,’ said Vedel. The project will test particle emissions from the selected vehicles in addition to testing the effectiveness of engines run on bio-diesel. The selected city buses have been using a biodiesel mixture since October and the project will run until the end of this year.

Iªc©ha ; ;

<bWji ed j^[ mWj[h % 9ef[d^W][d Ef[d ^eki[0 IkdZWoi '($)& # '* Fh_Y[i \hec :AA /"/&&

Fertility study focuses on food Hope for couples struggling with pregnancy arrives via a new diet alternative to hormone treatment

8ª]^ebc ; ;

<bWji Xo j^[ ^WhXekh % 9ef[d^W][d Ef[d ^eki[0 M[[aZWoi '' # '+" IkdZWoi '*$)& # ', Fh_Y[i \hec :AA ."/,& Photo: Pamela Juhl Study says eat healthy to help conception

and that’s through food. With the right diet many women can eat their way toward pregnancy.’ Food groups such as meats, fish, eggs, poultry, nuts and green vegetables all decrease insulin levels, according to Stigsby and Hartvig. On the flip side, they recommend avoiding sweets and foods typically high in starches and carbohydrates, such as potatoes, white bread, pasta, root-based vegetables and grain-oriented food items. Research has also shown that lower insulin levels reduce the

risk of miscarriage and toxaemia. Hartvig added that many women worry about the negative affects of traditional hormone treatments. ‘It affects their mood negatively and can sometimes lead to multiple births,’ she said. ‘The advantage of the KISS diet is that it fundamentally re-establishes the body’s balance and ensures a woman’s normal cycle.’ Stigsby added that the KISS diet can also increase potency in men, as a high insulin count can limit testosterone levels. (rc)

Oekh mWo je W h[dj[Z WYYecceZWj_ed ttt+obkqvlroÜ^q+ah <_dZ j^[ WZZh[ii[i Wj h[djoekhÅWj$Za

h[Å[aiZ[i_]d$Za

NEW BOOK claims to have come up with a better way to increase a woman’s chances of getting pregnant without the need for medical assistance. In their new book, ‘Spis dig gravid’ (‘Eat your way to pregnancy’) gynaecologist Bjarne Stigsby and dietician Charlotte Hartvig claim that high levels of insulin in the body can weaken the ovaries and inhibit fertilisation, and have therefore devised a special new diet which can lower insulin levels. The two say that sticking to the programme - called the KISS diet - can significantly increase a woman’s chances for pregnancy while eliminating the need for artificial insemination or hormone treatment. And according to Stigsby’s statistics, 69 percent of the women who have used the KISS diet methods have been able to have a child without medical treatment. ‘We used to distinguish between the natural way to have a child and the artificial ways either artificial insemination or hormone treatment,’ said Stigsby. ‘But now there’s a third way,

NEWS

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

British TV cop drops in to talk classic cars and stalkers By Katie Rice British actor John Nettles talks bizarre murders, stalkers and favourite motors with The Copenhagen Post journalist Katie Rice

O MOST TELEVISION viewers, John Nettles is the eponymous small town cop who despite recently qualifying as a pensioner, is still viewed by many as one of their all time on-screen police heroes. In a recent British television survey his characters of Bergerac and Barnaby beat a host of other famous faces as TV’s top cop. Nettles has appeared for more than two decades as a small town detective on British television. Throughout the 1980s, Nettles set hearts aflutter as the title character in ‘Bergerac’, winding his way through the streets of Jersey in his Triumph Roadster, solving crimes and getting the girl. In the late 1990s, Nettles returned to his police roots as the fictitious Tom Barnaby in Midsomer Murders, faced with weekly mysteries in a quaint English village with the highest murder rate in the world. It has become a running joke that at least three people are murdered in bizarre ways in each episode and by Nettles’ reckoning, they have killed off at least 200 characters by now.

‘The great joke is that anybody takes it seriously at all. Barnaby is very serious, but they’re extraordinarily silly murders and it invests the rural lunacy of Midsomer with a gravity that is far beyond what it merits,’ said Nettles. The 65-year-old actor was in Denmark this week to promote the release of the Midsomer Murders DVDs through a local celebrity magazine but was happy to take time out to chat to The Copenhagen Post. Viewers of the show will be aware of the high rural murder rate, but apparently when they tried to cut down on the bodycount viewers began complaining and requesting more. Nettles believes that it may be an odd reflection of English society. ‘We’re so ill at ease with ourselves that we’d love to kill each other and this provided a kind of safety valve. People go to work happy on Monday morning after getting their blood lust out.’ Various characters have met their sticky end through poisoning, stabbing, decapitating or being doused in acid, but Nettles’ favourite is the trebuchet killing. He fondly remembers the episode in which an objectionable wine buff was pinned to his croquet lawn and beaten to death with his own bottles by his crippled wife, operating a medieval catapult. While he hopes to see the series continue without him, he doesn’t expect a big bang murder finale for his character, opting to

Photo: Kyle Wheeler Actor John Nettles in the role of Tom Barnaby in the hit TV series Midsomer Murders

see him motor off to a South of France retirement home in his reliable Volvo. And while reminiscing about his motors throughout his career, he certainly doesn’t miss the Triumph Roadster from his Bergerac days. ‘I was never so glad to get rid of a car in all my life. It looked beautiful but it was hell to drive. It was slow, cumbersome, mechanically inept and unreliable,’ said Nettles, laughing when he thinks of how the pro-

FROM MAY 13TH TO 20TH IN COPENHAGEN | DENMARK

duction team dubbed the purring sound of a Jaguar over the racket of the actual Triumph. The iconic car was later sold to a collector for £34,000, when it was worth about £5,000. And despite it being put through the ringer in the ten years of the Jersey show, the buyer eventually wrote to Nettles complaining that the red beauty didn’t pass its roadworthiness test! Barnaby meanwhile has gone through a Rover 75, Jaguar and finally settled on the beloved Volvo, which Nettles uses as his own private car when nipping around the surrounds of his Stratford-upon-Avon home. Mentioning that I once bumped into Johnny Depp being harassed by fans on the streets of Stratford, I queried if Nettles has any similar problems with the public. ‘Not really, the locals are

quite used to histrionically challenged people like me meandering down the narrow streets.’ Johnny Depp has previously admitted to being a fan of the show, as has Roger Moore, and Nettles would love to see the two appear on the show, especially the former Bond star. ‘I’d love him to do something, he’s bloody wonderful. We thought he could play a dead body, a stiff, so he wouldn’t be too stretched,’ said Nettles breaking into a hearty guffaw. While the locals have let Nettles be, it seems the foreign fans are a bit more enthusiastic as the actor has been plagued with parcels and letters from an overexuberant Norwegian lady. Nettles’ wife erroneously returned a package to the fan with the family’s home address attached and now he can’t stop the flow of mail to his English home. He has

gone to the police about it, but to no avail and tries to see the funny side of the situation. ‘How on earth the sad dad that is Barnaby can be regarded as sexy, I haven’t got the faintest notion. Babe magnet? I don’t think so, but she sent me a long message the other week about what she’d like to do with me. My eyes water at the thought of it,’ he laughed. Nettles will make his last appearance as Barnaby in 2011 and hopes to return to his true love of theatre, having previously trodden the boards with the Royal Shakespeare Company. ‘Every actor wants to go back to theatre. They only reason they don’t is money. You can’t survive on what the theatre pays, but now I don’t have to worry about that,’ he said with a smile. See related article on page 10

Whale meat feast for Greenlanders INTERNATIONAL PERFORMING ARTS FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH

A Greenlandic whale has been caught after Greenland received its first quota last year since total protection of the species began in 1932

Read more: www.springfestival.dk Tickets & info + 45 38 77 38 88

OR THE FIRST time in 36 years a Greenlandic whale has been hunted in Qeqertarsuaq, Greenland, after special permission to hunt just one in 1973 as part of the town’s 200 year anniversary. The latest whale will be processed and its meat and blubber handed out as gifts to members of the community on 21 June to celebrate the introduction of self-rule to Greenland, currently a home rule country within the greater Kingdom of Denmark. Qeqertarsuaq was historically a whale hunting town, specialising in the hunting of the Greenlandic whale, in the 1800s and 1900s. The recent whale haul weighed in at 40 tonnes and

was more than 14 metres in length. Greenland recently received a quota from the International Whaling Commission for two Greenlandic whales per year for the period 2008-2012, with allowances being made to carry quotas forward from one year to the next. As no whales were hunted in 2008, the quota for this year is four. The first two whales caught are the property of the government, which has decided that biologists will receive sample tissues, whalebones and eyes for research purposes. The government have also covered the expenses involved in hunting the whale, according to Amalie Jessen, head of the department for hunting and fishing. A fully grown Greenland whale can reach 15-18 metres in length, with the female of the species being the largest. The weight of the whales tends to vary between 44-58 tonnes, depending on the time of year

The whale blubber being prepared

and the thickness of the blubber. The Greenlandic whale reaches sexual maturity at fifteen years old, averaging one birth every four years. This article originally appeared on Sermitsiaq. For more Greenlandic news in English, please visit: www.sermitsiaq.gl

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

Closing the Gaps Towards Civilizing Man Part 2: Awakening (7): Cosmology (3)

As promised in the previous article, our discussion today will be about the ten powers of the universe. The manifestations of these powers are essential to the universe in order for it to be the way it is, and in order for it to behave the way it does. As Quran states, everything in this universe has a purpose and a known destination:

(13:2) Allah is He Who raised the heavens without any pillars that you see, DQG +H LV ÂżUP LQ SRZHU DQG +H PDGH WKH VXQ DQG WKH PRRQ VXEVHUYLHQW WR \RX each one pursues its course WR DQ DSSRLQWHG WLPH +H UHJXODWHV WKH DIIDLU PDNLQJ FOHDU WKH VLJQV WKDW \RX PD\ EH FHUWDLQ RI PHHWLQJ \RXU Lord.

The key here is: "each one pursues its course to an appointed time.", This means that each element in the universe not only knows its function but above all it is aware of the laws that inter-connect it with the rest of the other elements around it. It is this consciousness that helps create this synergy around us and manifest the powers of the universe in their best moments of action. As mentioned in the previous chapter, it is the Creator, through His infinite wisdom, who brought these powers to existence. For a Muslim as well as for a non Muslim individual, we may not have thought about it the way I am describing here in my articles. However, the more one observes it and concentrates on it, the more one would discover the hand of the Creator anywhere in the universe through the work of these ten powers described below. All these powers are emerging out of seamlessness and they are all tangled together in such a way that one leads to another. Maybe we will come back to them in the future but for the sake of brevity, here are five of the most needed ones. 1. The first of these ten powers is "Centration;" this is the universe centering upon itself to give birth to a new being; a new person, a new animal, or a new molecule. The universe centers upon itself to do this. Think about your own existence; you come from your mother and from your father. Your mother and father came forth from your

grandmother and grandfather and so forth. So, all of that genetic information is present as you. It is compressed into you. Then we derive this (Centration) energy from the sun. The sun receives its energy from atoms and the atoms receive their energy from the universe. In a sense, the universe gathers itself together and gives birth to a new being. That is the power of Centration. What is of interest to us here in these articles is not really the scientific aspects of these powers, many books have been written about this already. What is of value to us here is the psychic aspects of the universe and what mankind needs to learn from it. What is more interesting, from an Islamic perspective, is the fact that the human psyche or self is in the center of the universe. In other words, the cosmos is made out of various psychic layers all of which are directly and sometimes indirectly impacted by the well being or illness of the human psyche. Just remember the environmental issues the world is facing these days and you will understand the role humanity is playing in changing the entire ecosystem. Above all, think of the genetic mutations occurring in humans and other creatures. Why is this happening? The answer is simple: because mankind has taken it upon itself to challenge the power of Centration. No one will be able to stop Centration from manifesting itself because it is universal. However, we can end the negative manifestations of Centration if we want to. Repeatedly Allah (God) revealed verses related to the universe to the Prophet Mohammad (may peace be upon him) to not only emphasize its importance, but also to equip man with the capability to end the negative aspect of Centration. The Qur'an is telling us that if we want to preserve the human species, then we need to learn the rules and the laws that govern all these stars and galaxies around us. In other words, the power of Centration is the power by which humanity can preserve itself. It is the power for continuous existence. Without it the world around us will be disorganized and we will perish.

What is worth PHQWLRQLQJ KHUH LV that since the 18th FHQWXU\ KXPDQLW\ has gone through PDQ\ LGHDV DQG LGHDOV EXW QRQH RI WKHP FRXOG VWDQG WKH WHVW RI WLPH 6RPH RI WKHP DUH JRQH DQG others are fading

The second power of the universe is the power of Allurement: this is the way in which the whole universe holds itself together. It's what keeps the galaxies in their place (gravitational bonds is what keeps the galaxies in their place). At the level of the molecules this power is called electro-magnetic interaction. The molecules in our bodies are held together by this power. In the case of human communities, they are held together through time by vision, ideas, and ideals that keep people together and coherent. What is worth mentioning here is that since the 18th century, humanity has gone through many ideas and ideals but none of them could stand the test of time. Some of them are gone and others are fading. Thus, there is a need for ideas and ideals that can last and as result solves the human modern drama. There are many options out there and Islam is one of them. 2. The power of Emergence: We have discovered that the universe is not a place. The universe is a story. This is the power of emergence. We thought it was a place. We realize that it is a world of an ongoing creative event. It is an ongoing creative emerging event. This power could also be called creativity. The task is how do we become power emergent in the form of the human? I don't mean here creativity in materialistic terms only, rather I am referring to that human power of psychic creativity that Qur'an talked about in chapter 49 which we will talk about in more details when we talk about the structure of community from an Islamic perspective 3. The power of Synergy: This deals with complexity. One can even look at the universe as the emergence of complexity and what we discovered is that every more advanced form of complexity depends upon the power of synergy. These synergies are working together to arrive at a strategy to be successful in the great drama of life, like, synergy, cooperation, and collaboration. Just look at the economic crisis our world is going through. You would easily find out that the main missing factor in all these attempts to overcome this crisis is synergy between the North and the South. The big 8 or 20 countries act as if they were the only one concerned with this crisis. They believe that solving their economic problems will automatically solve all economic issues in Africa, Asia, and South America. It is as if they have forgotten that we live in a small village whereby if one individual feels pain the rest of people will feel the same pain.

4. The power of Transformation: This is the realm where change takes place at all levels of society. It is the way the universe is arriving at more qualitatively achievements.

It is just astonishing WR ÂżQG RXW WKDW despite what people PD\ VHHP WR SRVVHVV VWLOO WKH\ ÂżQG QR pleasure in anything they possess Humanity too has been going through a series of transformations. However, these transformations, regardless how great they are, mostly touches our external lives; the car you drive, the cell phone you use, the house you live in, the social class you belong to, the school you go to and so on. These transformations do not have the power to penetrate the human soul, heart and mind and fill them with the most basic human needs such as an unconditional love, a hug, a touch or even a sincere smile or a few minutes to listen to someone who

simply needs to be heard. It is just astonishing to find out that despite what people may seem to possess, still they find no pleasure in anything they possess. That was the reality of people who lived prior to the seventh century. It is our reality too and thus we need to find out a divine system that pulls us out of our misery. 5. The power of InterRelatedness or Care: It is the way in which the relationship in the universe is characterized by a dimension or presence of something that over time evolves to what we call care. We can extend this all the way back and say that the ultimate objective of natureâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s relationship has to do with nurturing and caring. The same way, the ultimate objective of any human existence should be about nurturing each other and caring for one another. That has been the message of Islam since our father Adam (may peace be upon him). Ask any concerned man or woman and he or she would tell you that the solution for many of our modern problems lies in nurturing and caring.

These are, summarized, five of the powers of the universe. They are fundamental to the congruence of the universe. They are also foundational for a peaceful human continuous coexistence. What is fascinating is that the more one reads the Qur'an and ponder upon its cosmic verses, the more one transcends his or her existence and as a result gains a better understanding of who he or she is and what his or her role in this world is. This is it for this topic. Next, we will learn how Qur'an uses other means to awaken man. Until then, I appreciate your time and I look forward to hearing from you.

Dr. Abdelmalek Yamani Yamalek1@gmail.com

*All excerpts from the holy Koran taken from: www.quranexplorer.com/quran

Swine-Flu and the Holy Quran "He (Allah) has forbidden you only carrion, and Ä?ĹŻĹ˝Ĺ˝Ä&#x161;Í&#x2022; Ä&#x201A;ĹśÄ&#x161; Ć?Ç Ĺ?ĹśÄ&#x17E;Í˛Ĺ&#x2021;Ä&#x17E;Ć?Ĺ&#x161;Î&#x2014; (The cow (Al-Baqara): 173)

"Forbidden unto you (for food) are carrion and Ä?ĹŻĹ˝Ĺ˝Ä&#x161; Ä&#x201A;ĹśÄ&#x161; Ć?Ç Ĺ?ĹśÄ&#x17E;Í˛Ĺ&#x2021;Ä&#x17E;Ć?Ĺ&#x161;Í&#x2022; Ä&#x201A;ĹśÄ&#x161; Ć&#x161;Ĺ&#x161;Ä&#x201A;Ć&#x161; Ç Ĺ&#x161;Ĺ?Ä?Ĺ&#x161; Ĺ&#x161;Ä&#x201A;Ć&#x161;Ĺ&#x161; Ä?Ä&#x17E;Ä&#x17E;Ĺś dedicated unto any other than Allah, and the Ć?Ć&#x161;Ć&#x152;Ä&#x201A;ĹśĹ?ĹŻÄ&#x17E;Ä&#x161;Í&#x2022; Ä&#x201A;ĹśÄ&#x161; Ć&#x161;Ĺ&#x161;Ä&#x17E; Ä&#x161;Ä&#x17E;Ä&#x201A;Ä&#x161; Ć&#x161;Ĺ&#x161;Ć&#x152;Ĺ˝ĆľĹ?Ĺ&#x161; Ä?Ä&#x17E;Ä&#x201A;Ć&#x;ĹśĹ?Í&#x2022; Ä&#x201A;ĹśÄ&#x161; Ć&#x161;Ĺ&#x161;Ä&#x17E; dead through falling from a height, and that which hath been killed by (the goring of) horns, and the devoured of wild beasts" (The table (Al-Maeda) : 3)" These verses where revealed to Prophet Muhammad fourteen centuries ago, specifically in the year A.D 610. Since then Muslims are committed to not eating any of the above mentioned, including and especially Swine flesh. In early days of Islam there were not enough sciences or research tools to uncover the wisdom behind every dictation by Allah (God) to mankind, alternatively Muslims believed that a dictation from Allah must be for the best interest of his creatures and therefore it must be obeyed whether details of its purpose is known or not. According to scientist Pigs have been known to eat any kind of food, including dead insects, worms, tree bark, rotting carcasses, garbage, and even other pigs. Occasionally while in captivity, pigs may eat their own young if they become severely stressed. Scientist affirms Pigs harbors a range of parasites and diseases that can be transmitted to humans. These include trichinosis, Taenia solium, cysticercosis, and brucellosis. Pigs are also known to host large concentrations of parasitic Ascarid worms in their digestive tract. The presence of these diseases and parasites is one of the reasons why pork meat should always be well cooked or cured before eating. Pigs are susceptible to bronchitis and pneumonia. They have small lungs in relation to body size; for this reason, bronchitis or pneumonia can kill a pig quickly. There is concern that pigs may allow animal viruses such as influenza or Ebola Reston to infect humans more easily. Some strains of influenza are endemic in pigs, and pigs also can acquire human influenza. See more on Pigs on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pig

COMMUNITY

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

Innovation and design fusion from a British Dane By Claire Clausen ‘Medical goes consumer’ is the new catchphrase for a whole new branch of medtech development promoted in Denmark by an international Englishman

E’S HALF BRITISH, half Danish; he works for a Swedish company which is now part-owned by the Finns – in Denmark. If it isn’t a global combination, it is certainly a Northern European one. There was a time when a combination like this was rare in Danish business life, but the world, and Scandinavia, has changed. Denmark has thrived by finding new innovative ideas and developing them. That is one of the things that attracted Kristian Bluff to this country when he finished school in England. Innovation has always been a key theme in his life and now, as the Danish Director of a company called Innovation Team, Kristian Bluff feels he has found his niche. It is Bluff ’s fresh, positive attitude that secured him the job of Director of the Danish operation, and it is the forwardlooking, innovative attitude of the company that suited him. This is a company that combines design and development – medical technology from

concept to reality. The job is almost tailor-made for Bluff who has a degree from the Danish Design School and an MBA from the University of Westminster in London, where he majored in design management. ‘I have always been fascinated by the process of innovation and the value of design in products and services,’ he says, ‘and Innovation Team is a perfect mix of design and development, designing creativity. It allows me to promote good design in business.’ Bluff has worked in design management for Lego and Knud Holscher and Fitch, and wanted the balance of the product development side. Innovation Team began as a spin-off from Halmstad Technical University where new ideas emerged for medical technology, without the means of transforming into a viable, practical reality. For twenty years the company grew steadily and last year the majority shareholding was acquired by a large Finnish group, Etteplan Oyj. The Danish operation was started by Bluff, when the company realised they needed a base in the Øresund Region’s Medicon Valley, which is ranked amongst the three largest Life Science clusters in Europe. True to its name, Innovation Team supports start-up companies mainly working in medical technology. The client gets the idea for a device, and Innovation Team makes it a reality.

Kristian Bluff displays one of his latest medical gadgets

‘Many of these ideas come from patients and hospital staff,’ explains Bluff, ‘from the people who actually need physical aids, improvements to their treatment and healthcare.’ Having worked with concept development, Bluff finds he really enjoys facilitating the innovation process which he’s done with five of the ten major med-tech companies in Den-

mark. ‘The fact that our work actually contributes to improved life quality for people in need of medical technology, is an aspect I find very rewarding. Today more and more is being done to help people manage their illnesses or disabilities in their own homes; at the ‘point of care’ as it’s known,’ explains Bluff. ‘It’s a whole new direction that’s

developing, with the catchphrase “medical goes consumer”. This is where the consumer’s input is coupled with their own willingness to pay for well-designed med-tech aids,’ he continues. ‘An example would be a wheelchair. A patient who has to spend most of the time in a wheelchair wants it to look good, to have special features designed

specifically for him.’ A great deal of money is spent and much valuable research is being carried out in many companies, but there is not sufficient product reality. ‘That’s where we come in. If you have an idea to make your treatment easier or your life more comfortable, we can help make it happen,’ concludes Bluff.

No 256

British Chamber welcomes TV’s Barnaby British actor John Nettles took time out of a promotional visit to Denmark to meet with guests of the British Chamber of Commerce

Across

Down

1. Brief (5) 1. Bean-plant (7-6) 4. Wrap up (7) 2. Speechify (5) 8. Unyielding (7) 3. Salver (4) 9. Happen again (5) 4. Ensnare (6) 10. Ogle (4) 5. Decisions (8) 11. Hand treatment (8) 6. Varnish (7) 13. In addition (4) 7. Upright (13) 14. Heavenly body (4) 12. Pledged (8) 16. Final (8) 13. Murmurs (7) 17. Fashionable (4) 15. Dress (6) 20. Wants (5) 18. Lift up (5) 21. Beginning (7) 19. Gentle (4) 22. Remainder (7) 23. Put off (5) Post Quick Crossword No 255 Across: 3 Abundance; 8 Oily; 9 Starboard; 10 Speech; 11 Heard; 14 Ruler; 15 Dear; 16 Erica; 18 Case; 20 Dress; 21 Smart; 24 Serene; 25 Impromptu; 26 Acid; 27 Incessant. Down: 1 Construct; 2 Sleepless; 4 Both; 5 Nerve; 6 Aboard; 7 Cure; 9 Score; 11 Hoist; 12 Deference; 13 Crescendo; 17 Adieu; 19 Emerge; 22 Remus; 23 Omen; 24 Stun.

HE BRITISH CHAMBER of Commerce (BCCD), together with the British Embassy, hosted an afternoon event in Copenhagen this week, with special guest John Nettles, of Midsomer Murders fame. The popular British crime series has been running for more than a decade and has proved very popular with fans all over the world, including Denmark. Nettles and the show’s producer, Brian True May, took the opportunity to meet with the BCCD over an exclusive lunch at the Radisson SAS Royal Hotel on Tuesday, 28 April. British Ambassador and Patron of the BCCD, Nick Archer, welcomed the assembled guests and noted how cultural events such as this strengthened ties between Britain and Denmark. Nettles graciously thanked his hosts and said it was good to be back in Denmark after his last visit in 1970. The 65-year-old actor first

John Nettles (left) chats with the BCCD’s Mariano Davies

shot to fame as the troubled Jersey island cop Jim Bergerac in the 1980s, before moving on to play DCI Tom Barnaby in Midsomer Murders in 1997. Having played a television detective for more than 20 years, he has attracted quite a following. He still gets a lot of

fan mail, although he said his Russian fans seem to think the show is a documentary series. This could be worrying, considering there are at least three bizarre murders per episode! Nettles also said that the show has some high-profile fans, such as the Police Chief of

Chicago who praised the show’s policing techniques. Fellow actors Johnny Depp and Sir Roger Moore have previously professed an admiration for the show and Nettles said he would like to see both appear on the show before he leaves the series at the end of next year. (kr)

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS (AUS) s COLDPLAY (UK) FAITH NO MORE (US) s NINE INCH NAILS (US) OASIS (UK) s PET SHOP BOYS (UK) s SLIPKNOT (US) TRENTEMØLLER (DK) s KANYE WEST (US) TONY ALLEN (NGA) s AMADOU & MARIAM (MALI) s TIM CHRISTENSEN (DK) s DEADMAU5 (CAN) DOWN (US) s EAGLES OF DEATH METAL (US) s FEVER RAY (S) s FLEET FOXES (US) HÅKAN HELLSTRÖM (S) s GRACE JONES (JAM) s LIL WAYNE (US) s MADNESS (UK) MALK DE KOIJN (DK) s THE MARS VOLTA (US) s MEW (DK) s RÖYKSOPP (N) s SOCIAL DISTORTION (US) VOLBEAT (DK) s LUCINDA WILLIAMS (US) s YEAH YEAH YEAHS (US) 2562 (NL) ADAM TENSTA (S) ALAMAAILMAN VASARAT (FIN) LILY ALLEN (UK) AMON AMARTH (S) ANALOGIK (DK) ...AND YOU WILL KNOW US BY THE TRAIL OF DEAD (US) BADDIES (UK) ISSA BAGAYOGO (MALI) BALSTYRKO (DK) BLACK DICE (US) THE BRONX (US) CANCER BATS (CAN) THE CHAP (UK) CHOCQUIBTOWN (COL) COLA FREAKS (DK) CUT OFF YOUR HANDS (NZ) DARKANE (S) DAWN OF DEMISE (DK) THE DEADLY GENTLEMEN (US) DEICHKIND (DE) DEN SORTE SKOLE (DK) THE DODOS (US) DRAGONTEARS (DK) DUB COLOSSUS (UK/ETH) DUNGEN (S) EL HIJO DE LA CUMBIA & ANASOL MC (ARG) FIRST AID KIT (S) FRIENDLY FIRES (UK) FRIGHTENED RABBIT (UK)

FUCKED UP (CAN) GANG GANG DANCE (US) GET WELL SOON (DE) GLASVEGAS (UK) GOJIRA (FR) GROUNDATION (US) HANGGAI (CHN) JON HASSELL & MAARIFA STREET (US) HAUSCHKA (DE) HJALTALÍN (ISL) HOT 8 BRASS BAND (US) HUNTSVILLE (N) IDA MARIA (N) IMAM BAILDI (GR) ISIS (US) KASAI ALLSTARS (CD) KASSAV' (FR ANT) KATZENJAMMER (N) KLOVNER I KAMP (N) LA-33 (COL) LABRASSBANDA (DE) LA COKA NOSTRA (US) LUCY LOVE (DK) ULF LUNDELL (S) MAGNIFICO (SVN) MAJOR LAZER (US) MICACHU & THE SHAPES (UK) MONO (JPN) MUNGOLIAN JET SET (N) M. WARD (US) MARISSA NADLER (US) NOVALIMA (PER)

WWW.ROSKILDE-FESTIVAL.DK

OH NO ONO (DK) ORKA (FO) PAAVOHARJU (FIN) PABLO MOSES & U-ROY (JAM) THE PAINS OF BEING PURE AT HEART (US) PEDE B (DK) PETTER (S) PHARFAR presents A RUB A DUB NIGHT feat. special guests (INT) RUMPISTOL (DK) SATYRICON (N) SHASTRIYA SYNDICATE (IND) MIKE SHERIDAN (DK) MIKAEL SIMPSON & SØLVSTORM (DK) SKAMBANKT (N) SOCALLED (CAN) THE SOFT PACK (US) SOIL & "PIMP" SESSIONS (JPN) PETER SOMMER (DK) STEINSKI (US) MARNIE STERN (US) SHUGO TOKUMARU (JPN) ROKIA TRAORÉ (MALI) WHITE LIES (UK) JENNY WILSON (S) WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM (US) YOGA FIRE (N) ZIZEK CLUB (ARG)

- AND MANY MORE...

WARM-UP FROM 28 JUNE

LOUNGE: ASS (S) BADEN/PEDER/STRUCK (DK) PETER BRODERICK (US) CHRIS COCO (UK) ESCHO presents THULEBASEN, ALLE MED BALLONER OG TERRASSER and LAMBURG TONY (DK) PETE GOODING (UK) WILL HAROLD (UK) KB18 presents WAQAR & KOBBE (DK) LULU ROUGE (DK) TOM MIDDLETON (UK) MIKE SALTA (DK) NANCY ELIZABETH (UK) JOSÉ PADILLA (E) STELLA POLARIS SOUND SYSTEM (DK) TRIO CAMPANELLA (DK) VEKTORMUSIK (DK) ÅRHUS E presents PUZZLEWEASEL, VOKS, WÄLDCHENGARTEN, VECTRAL and MORTEN RIIS (DK) PAVILION JUNIOR 28 JUNE - 1 JULY: THE 20BELOWS (DK) BABIAN (S) CODY (DK) GIANA FACTORY (DK) GINGER NINJA (DK) HARRYS GYM (N) JOOKS (DK) KELLERMENSCH (DK) KVELERTAK (N) THE MEGAPHONIC THRIFT (N) MEN AMONG ANIMALS (DK) OPGANG F (DK) SCAMP (DK) TAKO LAKO (DK) THE TELSTAR SOUND DRONE (DK) VINNIE WHO (DK) VON DÜ (DK)

BUSINESS

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

Hotel prices show a fall in the capital The effects of the financial crisis on tourism in the capital have resulted in hotels reducing their prices and offering incentives to guests

FTER YEARS OF holding their prices far above the European average, hotels in Copenhagen are finally feeling the crunch of the global financial crisis. Hotels have to drop their prices or offer special deals to lure customers as capacity far outweighs demand, according to business travel and consultancy company Travelbroker.dk. The average price for a onenight stay at one of the city’s three star hotels has typically cost around 1000 kroner, approximately 130 euro. But now even four star hotels, such as those operated by Choice Hotels, are offering deals where an overnight stay including breakfast costs 600 kroner. First Hotels is offering one

free night for customers who book a one night stay or more before 21 June. In addition, the company has a deal for its flagship, five-star Skt. Petri Hotel starting at 698 kroner. The Arp Hansen Group, which owns the Phoenix Copenhagen, 71 Nyhavn Hotel, Imperial Hotel, Grand Hotel and The Square, has set aside a limited number of rooms for a special that runs until the end of the year. For 690 kroner, customers can get an overnight stay in a single room with breakfast and free internet access. The double room price is 860 kroner. Hotel room capacity will increase even more in the autumn, when the new Crown Plaza Hotel opens on 19 November - just in time to house participants of the Copenhagen Climate Summit in December. Despite the fact that many hotels will be full during the summit, Travelbroker.dk and other travel experts say that 2009 is expected to be a slow year for the hotel industry. (rc)

Photo: Pamela Juhl Striding ahead. Ecco plans to walk all over the competition and open hundreds of new stores

Ecco to open 700 new shoe stores By Robert Cellini Despite a downturn in profits shoe retailer Ecco plans to continue its worldwide expansion over the next five years

UTLAND BASED Ecco is planning to open 700 new stores by 2013 despite the financial crisis.

Although company executives expect 2009 figures to be less than those of the last three years - where profits exceed 700 million each year - Ecco bosses want to have 1,500 stores worldwide within the next five years. ‘We’ve got the capacity to do it,’ said Dieter Kasprzak, Ecco’s managing director. ‘There won’t be any new factories or other expansion until after 2013, so we’re concentrating on the retail side of things.’

In early April, Ecco laid off 1,150 of its employees in its manufacturing locations of Slovakia, Indonesia, Thailand and China. But the lay-offs have not hampered the desire for growth within the company. ‘We’re not in a crisis at Ecco,’ said Kasprzak. ‘We had a fantastic 2008 and we believe we’ll get through 2009 relatively well, although our turnover will probably be 10-15 percent lower in comparison.’

Ecco also plans to expand its internet boutique, which has given more than 30,000 sales each year in the US alone. But Ecco has a substantial amount of capital, and the low costs of real estate will help it to achieve its expansion goals. Kasprzak said customers should not expect the price of Ecco shoes to fall, however. ‘Our shoes cost what they cost and we won’t compromise on the quality.’

Efforts to help out foreign firms Gourmet ale brewer sold to Harboe The 25 largest foreign subsidiaries in the country are now in annual dialogues with Invest in Denmark to avoid downsizing

Photo: Wesley Spyke Top hotels have had to cut prices to remain competitive

Priser gældende fra 01/02/09 1 week 2 weeks 3 weeks 1 month 2 months Special Value Car Audi A4/Volvo S40 Economy Ford Fiesta Sedans Ford Mondeo

3295 Kr. 4795 Kr. 6195 Kr. 7895 Kr. 14795 Kr. 2795 Kr. 3995 Kr. 5195 Kr. 6495 Kr. 11495 Kr. 3095 Kr. 4495 Kr. 5895 Kr. 7495 Kr. 13495 Kr.

Station Wagons Ford Focus Wagon 3095 Kr. 4495 Kr. 5895 Kr. 7495 Kr. 13495 Kr. Toyota Avensis Wagon 3495 Kr. 5495 Kr. 5995 Kr. 8795 Kr. 15495 Kr. MPV 7 Personer VW Touran/Opel Zafira Automatics Ford Focus Wagon Aut. Volvo V70 Aut. Volvo S80 Aut.

3495 Kr. 5295 Kr. 6595 Kr. 8395 Kr. 14995 Kr. 3895 Kr. 5395 Kr. 6995 Kr. 8995 Kr. 15995 Kr. 5295 Kr. 7795 Kr. 9895 Kr. 12695 Kr. 22795 Kr. 6295 Kr. 8895 Kr. 11395 Kr. 14495 Kr. 25995 Kr.

Prices include all taxes, airport fee, unlimited KM. Full insurance with no deductible.

Contact Tel Danmark +45 80 20 50 10 Email: service@DanskAutoRent.dk

HE TRADE COUNCIL’S investment arm, Invest in Denmark, has had to increase its efforts to retain foreign companies in Denmark. Invest in Denmark has experienced a growing number of downsizing and closures of foreign companies’ Danish subsidiaries as the financial crisis takes hold, reports Børsen financial daily. US giant Motorola closed its development department in Nørresundby in January, affecting 265 employees, but efforts by Invest in Denmark ensured some of the jobs remained in Denmark. Motorola’s antennae team was purchased by Molex Incorporated and talks are continuing with other investors to see if other former Motorola employees can be rehired. Invest in Denmark has now extended its ‘after care’ programme for foreign companies that have already invested in the country.

Motorola: ex-employees receiving help

‘We’ve place an employee with each of the 25 largest foreign companies and have a dialogue with them at least twice a year to make sure all is well,’ said Ole Frijs-Madsen, head of Invest in Denmark. The organisation has also established a new system to keep a close eye on the next 100 largest companies on the list.

‘The risk of large international companies reducing or closing departments in Denmark has become greater as a clear effect of the financial crisis. The IT sector has been particularly hard hit, as have the pharmaceutical and biotech industries to a lesser degree, where Denmark has traditionally been very strong,’ said Frijs-Madsen. (kr)

ONE OF DENMARK’S largest craft breweries, Gourmetbryggerietm, has been purchased by Harboe, Scandinavia’s second largest purveyor of beer and soft drinks. Harboe has bought out 75 percent of Gourmetbryggeriet (GB) shares through its own stock, with GB’s primary owners Michael Knoth and Lars Dietrichsen each receiving around 15 million in Harboe shares. The total price Harboe is expected to pay for GB is estimated to be 25 million kroner - 19 million less than the craft brewery’s market value prior to the deal. ‘The market for specialist beers is under pressure, which is why it will help GB enormously to get a strong partner that can help us bring down our costs and make us more competitive,’ said Dietrichsen. In 2007, GB bought out Ølfabrikken, a microbrewery that was allowed to continue its own brewing operations after the purchase. (rc)

BUSINESS

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

Gloomy economic view from the EU Digital football only By Philip Shepherd Denmark is experiencing negative growth and sharply rising jobless figures, EU economists say

Bernstein was more optimistic

IN BRIEF Wireless trains COMMUTERS on the city’s Strains will be able to avail of free wireless internet on the rail network from the autumn. The train company will also introduce televisions to a number of carriages from next spring where commuters will be able to see news updates and traffic information. The services will be free for customers as it is being provided by Gratis Danmark, which is covering costs by broadcasting advertisements on the television screens and customers’ laptops. Gratis Danmark currently offers free wireless internet on regional trains on Lolland, while national train company DSB offers internet access for a price on its Copenhagen to Århus route.

More unemployment UNEMPLOYMENT levels have risen by 35 percent since the start of the year, according to new figures released by Statistics Denmark. Between February and March, an extra 10,600 people lost their jobs, bringing national unemployment levels up to 2.9 percent. At the end of March there were 82,100 people unemployed, with the highest jobless levels hitting the island of Bornholm, where unemployment rose from 4.9 to 5.3 percent in one month.

Stock boost THE STOCK market is on the way to a yearly high after the C20 index of leading shares rose to 287.4 on Monday. The index of the top 20 Danish companies had risen by 3.9 percent by 9.35am, reaching a record high for the year. The previous record for 2009 was set on 6 January when the index reached 280.45. The C20 index has now risen more than 15 percentage points since the start of the year.

HE EU COMMISSION has dramatically revised its 2009 prognosis for the Danish economy, predicting a fall in GNP of at least 3.3 percent. This contrasts with earlier predictions, including one made just two weeks ago by Niels Bernstein, boss of the Danish Central Bank, Nationalbanken, setting the fall in productivity at a

much more conservative 1.8 to 2 percent. New figures released by the Commission at the weekend indicate that the current recession – which, economists in Brussels claim, began earlier in Denmark than elsewhere - will see a doubling of unemployment levels to over 6 percent, by the start of 2010. If these EU numbers are correct, more than 160,000 people will be out of work in less than twelve months time. Nationalbanken’s Bernstein had predicted unemployment rising to as much as 190,000 by 2011. However, according to the EU Commission, the early

Bank denies stock value manipulation

Capinordic CEO Lasse Lindblad has denied any involvement in wrongdoing

One of the nation’s leading private banks is under investigation by stock exchange authorities for allegedly manipulating share values

OLLOWING newspaper allegations last week that leading private bank Capinordic used a fake investor to buy shares in mobile software start-up WirTek, stock exchange authorities have launched a comprehensive investigation into several stock market flotations underwritten by the bank. These include the WirTek flotation in June 2006 and the launch of online marketing agency Guava one month earlier. Both companies are listed on Copenhagen’s OMX Stock Exchange. Executives at WirTek and Guava confirmed that they have been ordered by OMX regulators to provide details of circumstances surrounding their companies’ listings. Based in the upmarket Copenhagen suburb of Hellerup, Capinordic specialises in asset management for wealthy individuals. Despite the

bank’s claim to provide expert investment assistance and advice, a number of its former shareholders have recently been declared bankrupt. According to the allegations, Capinordic bankers tried to guarantee the success of the WirTek IPO by creating a dummy sale of 68,000 WirTek shares – worth at the time 2.8 million kroner – which they subsequently ‘bought’ back five months later. The dummy sale would have given an impression to other investors that the IPO was fully subscribed, when in fact it was not. Capinordic CEO Lasse Lindblad has denied that his bank was involved in any wrongdoing. ‘Capinordic never even acted as an official underwriter to the Wirtek share issue, but simply as an advisor. There is certainly no question of stock manipulation.’ The value of shares in WirTek have plummeted more than 90 per cent since they were listed in 2006 at 48 kroner, and are now worth just 0.75 kroner each. Guava shares have also collapsed in value by over 90 percent in the last two years. (ps)

start of the Danish recession could also have some positive effects. Commenting on its new figures, the Commission noted that fiscal measures introduced by the government have been well-timed and of a sufficient substance to minimize the nation’s exposure to what it characterises as a panregional European economic crisis. The Commission further predicts that Denmark is likely to emerge from its current financial woes more quickly that most other EU nations, probably experiencing renewed GNP growth of 0.3 percent already in 2010.

ONE OF DANISH football’s biggest matches may not reach the television sets of over a million homes due to an agreement between digital providers. Although national team games are normally shown on public broadcasting stations DR or TV2, rights to show the World Cup clash against Sweden on 6 June are held by TV companies Viasat, TDC, YouSee and Stofa. This means that only customers with digital receivers have access to the game. Even Viasat’s own customers, who can normally see games televised on the company’s Channel 3 or 3+ station, must have a digital receiver to see the match. The four digital companies

EXCHANGE CROSS-RATES Price for 100 units DKK USD DKK 536,57 USD 18,64 CAD 19,84 106,48 GBP 10,55 56,62 SEK 130,40 699,66 21,09 113,16 CHF 1963 10534 JPY 13,41 71,93 EUR

CAD

GBP

SEK

CHF

503,91 93,91 53,17 657,07 106,27 9893 67,55

947,65 176,61 188,06 1235,69 199,85 18604 127,03

76,69 14,29 15,22 8,09 16,17 1506 10,28

474,19 88,37 94,10 50,04 618,32 9309 63,57

JPY 5,09 0,95 1,01 0,54 6,64 1,07 0,68

EUR 745,99 139,03 148,04 78,72 972,73 157,32 14645 -

had to join forces to afford the asking price for the game, whose broadcasting rights are held by Swedish company Hagenburg Media. Although the final price was not disclosed, it was reportedly too high for TV2, which declined to bid for the rights. According to a Gallup poll, around 900,000 homes currently have digital TV, but it is unknown how many of those are customers of the four companies with rights to the match. Lars Berendt, head of communications for the Danish Football Association (DBU), said the organisation does its best to ensure that national team games are broadcast on public television. (rc)

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

Learn Danish in a Quick and Effective Way

Our success is based on ďŹ ve fundamental things: - Modern methods - Professional teachers - Teaching that is effective, entertaining and relevant to the student - Newest technology and learning tools - Focus on oral communication - conversational skills

Try IAÂ´s Intensive Course NOW! Enrollment at: 3888 3233 Classes start every month

IA SPROG Hejrevej 26, 2nd floor 2400 Copenhagen NV Phone: 3888 3233 Mail: info@iasprog.dk web: www.iasprog.dk

EMPLOYMENT

THE COPENHAGEN POST 8 - 14 MAY 2009

Denmark is the global headquarter for Siemens’ activities within the wind industry. Siemens Wind Power A/S has a strong position on the global market due to its leading edge products and outstanding employees. Our staff currently totals more than 5,600 employees worldwide, 3,900 in Denmark at our global head office in Brande and at our blade factories in Aalborg and Engesvang. Read more at www.siemens.com/windpower.

Communication Specialist Editor for internal publications at our head office in Brande Siemens Wind Power A/S is a company in growth and a key factor for our increasing success is our staff of competent and professional employees. We continuously strive to strengthen our position, and we are therefore looking for bright minds eager to join a dynamic, international organization offering unique opportunities for its employees. The Communication department is a central, global function which handles Siemens Wind Power’s communication activities worldwide. For the department, we are looking for an experienced, creative and self-directed Communication Specialist, who will contribute to the further strengthening of the company’s communicative expression. Work Assignments As a Communication Specialist your main responsibilities will cover: • Editorial responsibility for our internal employee magazine, published in English and Danish and appearing four times a year • Editorial responsibility for an internal broadcast system based on slide presentations to be shown on TV screens • Writing and editing of internal and external publications like newsletters, press releases or marketing material Your Profile You have an education as journalist and possess at least three years of experience in professional, English language journaGive your career wings

Siemens Wind Power www.siemens.com/jobswindpower

lism from which you have gained excellent knowledge of electronic media channels like Internet and Intranet as well as profound experience in print and electronic media publishing. Additionally, you have experience in managing a publication from editorial planning to print and you have a record in writing about technical topics. You are an outgoing person who takes initiative and responsibility and are able to make decisions. Furthermore, you possess the ability to make strategic judgements and you have the necessary skills and sensitivity for working in an international environment. Preferably, you are a native English speaker but you could also have a school or university education in an English language country. Interested? We offer exciting challenges and international career opportunities in an innovative, global company at the leading edge of green technology. Our working environment is open, inspiring and international, and we provide great potentials for personal and professional development. For further information about the job content, please contact Director Communication Oliver Loenker on tel.: +45 99 42 28 92. Further questions can be directed at Recruiting Consultant Anette Neumann on tel.: +45 99 42 80 74. Apply online in English for the job on www.siemens.com/jobswindpower. Please note that we will reply by e-mail. Deadline for Applications: 22 May 2009

POSTSCRIPT DENMARK THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS

Copenhageners terrorized by man-eating dinosaur By Wesley Spyke It was supposed to be Denmark’s contribution to the horror B movie genre but when Reptilicus was released the audience rolled around the aisles with laughter

HE NUCLEAR and cold war era of the early 1960s was also the golden age of the movie monster. Cinema audiences worldwide thrilled to the sight of Godzilla destroying Tokyo, The Blob wreaking havoc across the USA and the giant dinosaur Gorgo demolishing London. Few domestic movie-goers, however, could have envisaged such a ferocious cinematic beast let loose on the streets of the Danish capital. All this changed with the 1962 film Reptilicus - a homegrown monster which launched a full scale assault on such historic sights as Copenhagen’s Langebro Bridge and the City Hall. In a book entitled ‘Land of a Thousand Balconies’ (Critical Vision / Headpress 2003), author and film enthusiast Jack Stevenson sheds light on the events which led to the monster

venting its wrath on Copenhagen. Reptilicus, he writes, was the brainchild of maverick US film producer and distributor Sydney Pink, who fell in love with Copenhagen during a 1959 visit, returning to the USA full of enthusiasm for Danish icons such as Tivoli and mermaids. Pink’s Danophilia, combined with the latest craze for science fiction, led to his brainchild – a monster movie unifying the low costs of filming in Europe with the ‘beauties of the Danish countryside’. Surprisingly, Pink was able to recruit investors from both sides of the Atlantic, and his powers of persuasion also convinced some of Denmark’s finest classical actors to take part in the project. With one eye firmly on the US box office, it was agreed that Reptilicus would be filmed in both English and Danish, with the Danish actors doing their best to speak in US accents on a second take. However, the film’s biggest US investor, Samuel Z. Arkoff, was less than impressed. Arkoff, who had reportedly sunk $100,000 into the film, ‘shut the projector off in horror after viewing the first rough cut. ‘The monster didn’t horrify him nearly as much as the Danish accents,’ writes Stevenson. Over Pink’s protestations, Arkoff insisted the film be dubbed with

American voices, prompting an exchange of lawsuits across the Atlantic that was to herald the start of Reptilicus’s woes. Any behind-the-scenes misgivings of the film’s investors did not affect the hype in Denmark. Reptilicus was touted as the movie event of the year and, in an interview with Berlingske Tidende, Pink even claimed that the film was in line to win an Oscar. The Danish premiere was held on 20 February 1961 at the Saga Cinema on Vesterbrogade, where the expectant audience was presented with the story of an oil drilling expedition discovering part of a prehistoric dinosaur in Lapland. After the remains are entrusted to a Danish scientist the beast is revived during an electrical storm and escapes to terrorise Copenhagen. Unfortunately, the cinematic destruction of Copenhagen did not so much terrify the audience as cause large scale amusement. According to one observer, the monster ‘appeared to resemble a string puppet’, while another described it as a ‘tacky Chinese dragon’. The supposedly apocalyptic scene in which Copenhagen’s Town Hall Square (Rådhuspladsen) is demolished by the irate dinosaur was reportedly greeted with roars of laughter, while a scene in which panick-

It destroyed City Hall and ate cyclists for breakfast, but cinemagoers were more amused than scared

ing cyclists plummet into Copenhagen harbour from Langebro Bridge caused even greater hilarity. Stevenson writes that extras supposedly fleeing across the bridge in terror ‘seemed to be doing their best to repress grins’. Not surprisingly, the critics slammed the film mercilessly, describing it as ‘badly acted, appallingly directed, amateurish and implausible in every aspect.’ Few could fathom why an American general had been put in charge of the Danish armed forces, and the special effects were less than convincing. It came as no surprise when the US release was

shelved. It was not until 1963 that the film was finally released across the Atlantic, where it made little impression at the box office. Finally, it was relegated to the drive-in circuit where, Stevenson comments, amorous teenagers ‘couldn’t care less what was on the screen.’ Reptilicus, however, was not so easily subdued. After years in which the prints gathered dust, Copenhagen’s reptilian tormentor made a successful comeback as a kitsch addition to The Monkee’s television show, and was screened in full on US television in the early 1980s, with its small screen

WEATHER FRIDAY

debut in Denmark following soon afterwards. With each of its frequent late night television screenings the film’s cult status grew, with many young fans won over by what one enthusiast described as the ‘exceptional awfulness’ of the movie. Despite the film’s obvious flaws, it is today viewed with a certain amount of affection in Denmark. At least, fans claim, it succeeded in placing their capital city on par with such monster-blighted metropolises as Tokyo, New York and London. Even today, they add, Reptilicus is guaranteed to put a grin on the face of anyone familiar with Copenhagen.

8 - 14 MAY 09 SATURDAY

SUNDAY

MONDAY

TUESDAY

WEDNESDAY

THURSDAY

0 -5

-5

-10

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

CLOUDY WITH A LITTLE RAIN. Maximum day temperatures around 18 degrees, minimum night temperatures around 7 degrees. Light to moderate winds.

CLOUDY WITH A LITTLE RAIN. Maximum day temperatures around 17 degrees, minimum night temperatures around 7 degrees. Light to moderate winds.

A LITTLE RAIN WITH SUNNY SPELLS. Maximum day temperatures around 16 degrees, minimum night temperatures around 5 degrees. Light to moderate winds.

SUNNY. Maximum day temperatures around 14 degrees, minimum night temperatures around 2 degrees. Light to moderate winds.

This weather forecast is sourced from Denmark’s Meteorological Institute. For updated weather reports please visit http://www.dmi.dk