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6d ago

Danish PM Apologizes in Nuuk for Decades of Forced Contraception of Greenlandic Women

Copenhagen will create a reconciliation fund for victims following an inquiry that documented thousands of non‑consensual IUD insertions.

Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen speaks during a meeting in the cultural center, in Nuuk, Greenland, September 24, 2025. Ritzau Scanpix/Mads Claus Rasmussen/via REUTERS
An Inuit woman stands with her back towards Denmark's Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, left, as she talks during a meeting in a cultural center in Nuuk, Greenland, on Sept. 24, 2025.
Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen attend a meeting in the cultural center, in Nuuk, Greenland, September 24, 2025. Ritzau Scanpix/Mads Claus Rasmussen/via REUTERS
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Overview

  • At a Sept. 24 ceremony in Greenland’s capital, Mette Frederiksen issued an in‑person apology to Inuit women and girls subjected to involuntary birth control.
  • An independent investigation published this month recorded testimonies from 354 women and found at least 4,070 IUD insertions by 1970, with estimates reaching about 4,500 overall.
  • Girls as young as 12 were fitted with IUDs or given hormonal injections without being informed or consenting, with many later reporting pain, infections and infertility.
  • Frederiksen said Denmark will establish a reconciliation fund to compensate affected women and other Greenlanders who faced discrimination based on Inuit identity.
  • Lawsuits by victims continue in Danish courts, and a separate inquiry assessing whether the campaign meets the legal definition of genocide is due to report in early 2026.