In the minutes before Sarfaq Ittuk sailed south on Tuesday morning, there was as usual travel activity at the port in Nuuk. People hugged goodbye and rolling suitcases, bags of bedding and a single narwhal tooth were dragged aboard the ship. However, all was not quite as it used to be. For those who had to go all the way to the Municipality of Kujalleq, it was a slightly different reality that they would arrive at after the municipality on Friday introduced a ban on the sale and serving of alcohol.
One of those who had to travel south was Jens Jørgen Frederiksen, who was going to Qaqortoq on holiday.
In the minutes before Sarfaq Ittuk sailed south on Tuesday morning, there was as usual travel activity at the port in Nuuk. People hugged goodbye and rolling suitcases, bags of bedding and a single narwhal tooth were dragged aboard the ship. However, all was not quite as it used to be. For those who had to go all the way to the Municipality of Kujalleq, it was a slightly different reality that they would arrive at after the municipality on Friday introduced a ban on the sale and serving of alcohol.
One of those who had to travel south was Jens Jørgen Frederiksen, who was going to Qaqortoq on holiday.
– It must have been a bit hard for those who drink. Maybe the weekends will be a little quieter now, he said.
We asked him and several others for their views on the new alcohol ban and whether they think it is a good or bad move.
– You should also think about the parents
Jens Jørgen Frederiksen lives today in Aasiaat, but was born and has lived in Qaqortoq. Overall, he thinks that the alcohol ban is positive.
– Yes, that’s good. Also for those who don’t drink themselves, and those who live in the blocks – and for the children, of course, he says.
Precisely the well-being of the children seems to be a major reason why the municipality has introduced the alcohol ban. Since the ban came into effect on Friday evening, the mayor of Kujalleq Municipality, Malene Vahl Rasmussen (D), has at least been out to explain that the municipality is buried in emergency cases, and that they have therefore seen no other way out than to use drastic measures.
– Our organization does not have the hands to be able to do preventive measures, because they do firefighting and emergency cases all the time. Our budgets for out-of-home placements are increasing and increasing, and we see that action plans are also not being made for many of the placements that take place because you do not have the resources, said the mayor here in the newspaper on Monday morning.
Although Jens Jørgen Frederiksen believes that the ban benefits the children here and now, he believes that it will be necessary to supplement it with other measures.
– Because if we don’t help the parents, it’s no use. You also have to think about those who drink and about parents who have small children, he says.
How long do you hope this ban lasts?
– I don’t know if it will help, and I don’t know when it will open, but I hope it will open soon. Because there are also many who only drink a little with food – so I hope it won’t last that long, says Jens Jørgen Frederiksen.
Consequences for the pubs
Another one to board Sarfaq Ittuk is Ungaaq Lundblad. She is going to Paamiut, where she lives, but she is originally from Nanortalik. Sermitsiaq AG catches her in the middle of the queue for the ticket control.
– It’s a bit strange. It’s the first time I’ve seen it closed, she says.
Like Jens Jørgen Frederiksen, she can see both the possibilities and the limitations of using the alcohol ban as a temporary solution to the acute challenges in the municipality. She has previously worked with social issues herself, she says.
– When they (people who drink a lot, ed.) don’t get alcohol for a long time, then their problems begin. But the children will be happy – I know that, she replies.
Not far from the ticket queue, John Ezekiassen is smoking a cigarette before boarding. He is going to Qaqortoq to work. He thinks that the alcohol ban is perfectly fine when it has been the municipality’s own wish.
– After all, it is the population down there who have themselves asked for it and applied for it. It is appropriate that it has been accepted, he says.
However, John notes Ezekiassen, that the ban also has consequences
– It is a shame for the tavern owners that it goes beyond them. It is not only those who drink that are affected, he says.
There is currently no end date for the alcohol ban. However, the mayor of Municipality Kujalleq has said that it is not a long-term solution. How long it will last, John Ezekiassen does not really dare to guess.
Now, you don’t live in Qaqortoq on a daily basis, but if you did, how would you feel about such a ban?
– Absolutely fine, I rarely drink, so it doesn’t affect me at all, answers John Ezekiassen.
