Diplomatic Briefing
Your exclusive news aggregator handpicked daily!Archive for Denmark
Newsline: Controversial Danish filmmaker denied Indian entry visa
In a move that smacks of an attempt to smother press freedom, the Indian government has banned journalists of the Danish public broadcaster from coming to India for making documentaries. The Indian embassy in Denmark has been told to reject the visa applications of journalists working for Danish Broadcasting Corporation (DR) and others who may be connected with it. Journalist unions in Denmark have protested against the move saying it was an assault on the freedom of press. They want Danish authorities to take up the matter with the Indian government. Sources in the ministry of external affairs (MEA), however, clarified that the informal ban applied only to the state broadcaster and not all Danish journalists. MEA officials explained the ground for imposing the ban thus: ‘The stated purpose when DR journalists applied for a visa the last time was to make a documentary, but they ended up producing a reality show based on India. The series depicted all sorts of things, including life in our slums.’ The series, titled Blood, Sweat and T-shirts, focused on poor working-conditions in India’s textile industry. ‘There has been a breach of trust in the past. That’s why they have been denied visas,’ government sources said. The latest instance that has caused an uproar in Danish press circles relates to award-winning documentary maker Tom Heinemann and his cameraperson-wife Lotte la Cour, who were denied visas on January 31. The couple sais they had applied for a tourist visa and had no plans to do any professional work. Heinemann’s passport has been stamped ‘VAF’, which he says means ‘Visa Application Failed’. But Indian officials clarified that it stands for ‘Visa Applied For’ just to ensure that the person does not make a fresh application at any other Indian mission. ‘The VAF stamp on our passports is like a label of Cain – a stamp saying “Visa Application Failed”, which means there are several other countries that I will never be able to go to. It’s like being labelled a terrorist. I am not a terrorist. I am just a journalist who wants to do his job,’ an upset Heinemann said.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/indiahome/indianews/article-2096177/Incredibly-intolerant-India-Controversial-Danish-filmmaker-denied-entry-visa–wants-vacation-here.html?ito=feeds-newsxml
Commentary: Why Denmark’s Embassy In Beijing Is Twice The Size Of The One In Washington
China has a new best friend in Europe – Denmark. Wonder why the Eastern goliath would choose to be so close to a medium sized trading power? WSJ reports that the pair’s trading is worth less than $10 billion total per year – a measly figure compared to China’s big trading partners. So what’s the real reason? Greenland of course, and its ability to provide access to the Arctic’s natural resources. Danish diplomacy is literally following the money as some of the country’s policy elites turn away from the U.S. Copenhagen’s largest embassy is in Beijing, and is twice the size of its embassy in Washington. Denmark’s ploy to pull China closer is likely to work: From Beijing’s perspective, having Chinese companies buy several billion dollars per year worth of pharmaceuticals and machinery and doing container shipping business with Maersk is well worth it to gain access to Arctic negotiating tables and Greenland’s minerals.
http://www.businessinsider.com/china-greenland-denmark-arctic-2012-1
US embassy cables: Syria backed embassy attacks
Newly-leaked US government cables are showing that Syria supported the attacks on the Scandinavian embassies in its capital four years ago. The attacks on the embassies of Denmark and Norway in early 2006 came amid violent protests over the publication of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad. A cable from the US embassy in Damascus said Naji Otri, the Syrian prime minister, “instructed the Grand Mufti Sheikh Hassoun to issue a strongly worded directive to the imams delivering Friday sermons in the mosques of Damascus without setting any ceilings on the type of language to be used”. The US cable said the information was provided to US officials in Syria by “one of the most influential Sunni religious figures in Damascus”, whose name is erased in the document. The religious figure told US officials the Syrian government had “allowed the rioting to continue for an extended period” and reacted with serious threats of force to stop it when it felt that “the message had been delivered”. The cable said the Syrian government at the same time wanted to show it was “protecting the dignity of Islam” and “allowing Muslims freedom on the streets of Damascus they are not allowed on the streets of Cairo, Amman or Tunis”. The embassies of Norway and Denmark – which housed the Swedish and Chilean missions – in Damascus were set on fire on February 4, 2006, by protesters voicing their anger at the publication of 12 caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad by a Danish daily. The Danish government recalled its envoy to Damascus to protest the lack of protection given by Syrian officials.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2010/12/2010122717421555334.html
Newsline: Mail Bomb Scare at German Embassy in Denmark
Danish bomb squad experts were called to the German embassy to investigate a suspicious parcel there but quickly determined that the package was harmless. Copenhagen police said the specialists, aided by sniffer dogs, examined the parcel in the embassy yard and determined that the package was not dangerous. The package, which had been “beeping suspiciously,” turned out to contain job application documents, a German government spokesman said. The parcel had been sent from a Danish address. Embassy staff were able to continue their work, as the building was not evacuated. The incident comes in the wake of heightened security after developments earlier in the week when parcel bombs mailed from Greece were sent to several addresses around Europe, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Newsline: Indonesia Foils Plot On Danish Embassy
Indonesia’s most wanted terror suspect had been planning attacks on the Danish Embassy and a police ceremony before his arrest. Bomb-making material and revolvers were seized from his rented home. Abdullah Sunata and two of his aides were taken into custody following a series of coordinated raids in Central Java province. Tito Karnavian, who heads the anti-terror squad, said Sunata allegedly wanted to bomb the Danish Embassy over anger about a Danish newspaper’s publication of cartoons depicting Islam’s Prophet Muhammad. Members of the Danish Security and Intelligence Service were heading to Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta, to help reinforce security at their embassy.
http://wap.cbsnews.com/site?sid=cbsnews&pid=sections.detail&catId=TOP&storyId=6617365
Newsline: Protests turn violent outside Iranian embassies in Sweden and Denmark
Protests outside Iranian embassies in Sweden and Denmark turned violent as rock-throwing demonstrators tried to force their way into the compounds. In Stockholm, one demonstrator received minor arm injuries and several people were arrested as protesters threw rocks and Molotov cocktails at the embassy building. Police said the crowd of around 250 people demonstrating against capital punishment in Iran also burned flags. The violence began when about 70 demonstrators tried to push their way through a line of police and into the embassy grounds.
Newsline: Ghana Embassy in Denmark seen as messy place
Despite the recent bad press generated by Mr. Linus Attarah’s trouble with his visa application at the Ghana Embassy in Denmark and the counterclaim in a press release from the embassy professing no wrong, it appear Ghana’s diplomatic office in Copenhagen is indeed a messy Nordic outpost. The Embassy has posted on its website that : “According to the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) All hand written passports will not be valid for travel after 31st march 2010.” The embassy is claiming this is because Ghana, in conformity with ICAO launched biometric passports on March 23, 2010. Then in a style reminiscent of a military government announcement, the statement adds: “All holders of hand written Ghanaian passports are advised not to panic but contact the mission immediately.” On seeing this announcement while sitting in my office in Toronto, I called the Ghana High Commission in Ottawa and got an official who readily clarified that handwritten passports are valid for the next five year. The Ghana Embassy in Copenhagen should withdraw this misleading notice on its website and apologize to Ghanaians for doing a poor job representing us abroad.
Commentary: Ghana Embassy in Copenhagen needs a face-lift
We wish to react to the “GHANA EMBASSY IN COPENHAGEN NEEDS A FACE LIFT” publication which appeared on Ghanaweb on 23rd March, 2010. The visa section accepts cheques and cash for the payment of visa fees. It is therefore not correct that the Embassy accepts only cash for its transactions. Visa applicants outside Denmark pay their visa fees by cheque, the banks charge DKK100 to clear each cheque and the Embassy also charges DKK100 for registered mail to return passports to visa applicants. What this means is that a visa applicant outside Denmark needs to send a cheque of DKK500 for single visa or DKK 650 for multiple visa. In the event of the applicant requesting for express service then an extra DKK200 is added. The writer of the article would have helped the general public and done a great service to the Embassy if the name of the so called friend who paid for multiple visa and was given single visa was made available to enable the Embassy publish the details of the visa application and fees paid. Since the person did not provide his/her name we are unable to verify the claims. But we can assure the writer and the general public that it is not possible for an applicant to pay for multiple visa and then be issued with a single visa. The staff of the Embassy are up to their tasks to help our compatriots and uplift the image of Ghana.
Newsline: Russian diplomat missing in Greenland
Greenland authorities continue are searching for the Russian diplomat Adel Borisov who has gone missing. Borisov who works in the Russian Consulate in Germany, arrived at the Kulusuk settlement in East Greenland as a tourist on January, 2nd. The police have begun the search after the diplomat did not come back on January, 3rd. “The Russian embassy in Copenhagen, which is making efforts to find the missing Russian citizen, has reported that the Danish authorities continue the search, using all the means available, including helicopters,” the Russian foreign ministry said on its website on Saturday. The Russian embassy in Denmark remains in contact with Danish and Greenland officials, coordinating the search, the foreign ministry said.
Newsline: Climate talk failure protested at Danish Consulate in San Francisco
Bay Area climate justice organizations delivered a letter of concern and outrage to the Danish Consulate in San Francisco protesting their holding of climate prisoners, criminalization of activists and shutting out acreddited NGO’s from the UN Climate Summit. Climate justice groups held a protest vigil outside the Danish Consulate in San Francisco.
