Copenhagen 11 June 2008

After a good night's sleep (many staying with their new, kind and friendly host families, others at their regular homes), Team Cph. gathered up in the early morning for a full day's program focused on contemporary Danish politics.

Ushered through the lobby and passed security (none of them armed) - to observe the closing session of the Danish Parliament before they adjourned for their summer holiday. From the gallery we observed the MPs reading newspapers and chatting in the corners while having a debate. Though unfamiliar with the nuances of the debate we were struck by the representation of the young MPs as well as the number of females in positions of political party leadership.

After a brief overview of the Danish political system we had two-hour session with MP Mr. Morten Messerschmidt from the Danish Peoples Party. The issues of the session were integration and immigration with an emphasis on the position if Muslims in the Danish society.

The following Q&A was provocative and engaging. Clearly, frustrations ran through the room, as did solid counter arguments, and we could feel the commitment of the HIA fellows. Furthermore, through the questions around integration potential, Mr. Messerschmidt revealed attitudes and understandings of "Danishness" which to some extent were grounded in a desire to pursue the Danish culture as a monolithic culture.

Both sides (the speaker and HIA fellows) lifted the discussion to a fairly high and articulate level, and through the discussions both sides differed on basic assumptions on views on how to build a cohesive society.

Despite our disagreement with the speaker on his initial premises, the experience was rewarding and educational, cultivating a new respect for constitutive dialogue across differences. The experience raised more questions than answers, challenging fellows on controversial and complex issues.

We continued the dialogue among ourselves as we went to our next event, an integration project working with football as a tool.

The passionate individual engagement ignited by the issues brought up by today's program bodes well for the upcoming four weeks. We look forward to continuing to learn from speakers and fellows through an active and engaging exchange of ideas.

A preliminary thanks to Ulla, Mikkel, Emilia, David and Julia for all their hard work putting together such a stimulating program.

-Sonny Jacobsen and Jessica Mar

Ms. Ulla Tørnæs, Minister for Development Cooperation, passes HIA fellows in front of the Parliament