Dozens of women in Greenland have heard Denmark's prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, formally apologise for a scandal that involved thousands of Inuit women being forcibly given contraceptive coils, as part of a controversial birth control programme during the 1960s and 70s.
Dear women. Dear families. Dear Greenland. Today there is only one right thing to say to you. Sorry, Frederiksen told a packed venue in the centre of the capital Nuuk.
During an emotionally charged event, one woman stood with her back to the prime minister in protest, a black handprint painted across her mouth.
Sorry for the injustice that was committed against you, Frederiksen said. Because you were Greenlanders. Sorry for what was taken from you. And for the pain it caused, she continued. On behalf of Denmark. Sorry.
Naja Lyberth, who was one of the first of the Inuit Greenlanders to speak out about what happened, received a standing ovation as she addressed Wednesday's event.
If we are to move forward, the apology is crucial, she said.
An official inquiry earlier this month concluded that at least 4,000 women had a coil implanted by 1970, corresponding to roughly half the Greenlandic females of childbearing age.
Welcoming Frederiksen's apology and the investigation, Naja Lyberth was also critical that it had not explored possible human rights violations. Frederiksen acknowledged many women had lived with trauma and physical complications, and some were not able to have children.
While some expressed feelings of validation from the apology, others, like Elisa Christensen, noted that no mention of compensation was made, describing the words as almost like empty words. A lawsuit demanding compensation has already been filed by 143 women affected.
Frederiksen's apology comes amid increased scrutiny of Denmark's relationship with Greenland, which has been marred by historical controversies including forced adoptions and the removal of Inuit children from families.
