Prime Minister apologises to Greenland Inuit who were separated from their families in 1951 under the pretext of a social experiment as children
On 9 March, Denmark’s Prime Minister personally apologized to a group of Inuit who were separated from their families and transferred to Copenhagen more than 70 years ago as part of a study to establish a Danish-speaking elite. The 22 children were separated from their families by the authorities with promises of a better life but, after two years during which they were not allowed to have any contact with their families, 16 of these children were returned to Greenland and placed in orphanages instead of with their families. Today, only six of the total survive. Kristine Heinesen, taken away from her family aged 5 and now aged 76, declared: “I missed my family, the language, the culture. All this, I haven’t had during my childhood”. The Government had given a written apology in 2020, following an enquiry and a report based on that enquiry which highlighted « major consequences for their relationship with family and society […] » and a loss of identity. CHIP welcomes the Danish government’s initial efforts and takes the opportunity to highlight once again the responsibility of states to protect children’s identities and to re-establish the elements of identity where these are missing, in accordance with international standards.
https://amp.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/10/denmark-pm-says-sorry-to-greenland-inuits-taken-for-heartless-social-experiment and https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-60646898.amp
