Greenland women take Denmark to court over historical involuntary birth control

According to their attorney on Monday, a group of women from Greenland are suing Denmark, the country’s former colonial ruler, for compensation over a forced birth control program that was started in the 1960s.

The birth control effort came to light in 2022 when documents revealed that 4,500 intrauterine devices were put into mothers and girls as young as 13 without their knowledge or consent between 1966 and 1970, according to Danish television DR.

There have been various cases in which claims of wrongdoing by Danish authorities against the citizens of their former colony have surfaced in recent years.

In 2022, Denmark issued a formal apology to the victims of an experiment conducted in the 1950s that involved the adoption of Greenland children.

With a population of only 57,000, Greenland was a Danish colony until 1953 and is currently a semi-sovereign territory of Denmark.

The women, who are now in their seventies and eighties, demanded compensation in October of 300,000 Danish crowns ($43,634) apiece.

The Danish state has refused to accept the allegation, stating that it is still conducting an inquiry to determine the full scope of the cases and the decision-making process that resulted in the campaign between 1960 and 1991, when Greenland took control of its healthcare system.

“My clients believe they were subject to a human rights violation because they have had IUDs inserted against their will, and in most cases when they were children,” the women’s lawyer, Mads Pramming, told the media.

The summons was formally submitted against Denmark’s health ministry.

“This is a deeply unfortunate case that we must get to the bottom of, and therefore an independent investigation has also been initiated,” Health Minister Sophie Lohde said in an emailed statement.

(With agency inputs)