Greenland says findings on genocide allegation not final

What the report says

Greenland’s justice minister has said the government cannot yet determine whether Denmark’s forced contraception programme against Inuit women and girls amounted to genocide, after two expert reports were released on Friday. The findings focus on the use of intra-uterine devices, or IUDs, in the 1960s and 1970s, a practice that has already prompted an apology from Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and a compensation plan for affected women.

According to the BBC, records show that thousands of Greenlandic women and girls, some as young as 13, were fitted with IUDs under a birth-control programme run by Danish doctors. Many later said the devices were inserted without their knowledge or consent. The reports were commissioned to assess whether human rights violations occurred and whether the conduct met the legal definition of genocide.

The expert panel did not produce a single conclusion. Two members who remained on the panel said the rights of Inuit women had been violated, but they could not conclude that genocide had been proven from contraceptive practices alone. A separate report by two other experts accepted that women had been wronged, but said it found no evidence of intent to destroy the Greenlandic population.

The issue remains politically sensitive in Greenland, which was once a Danish colony and later came under Danish control over healthcare. Greenlandic leaders say further discussion is needed, while Denmark and Greenland have said they will work together on next steps, including a reconciliation commission.