Victoria Mørck Madsen
Photojournalist
Yutakhun khom fighters practicing in Chan Boeunthoeun’s martial arts school in Phnom Penh.
Boeunthoeun is one of only two living masters of this traditional Cambodian martial arts form, that dates back thousands of years. The warriors were comparable to European knights, a secretive society whose job was to protect their country. Today, few warriors remain as most were systematically hunted down by the Khmer Rouge for fear of an uprising against the regime.
Eid celebrations at the asylum center Holmegaard in Langeland, Denmark. Volunteers spent sleepless nights baking cakes and collecting presents from the local community in advance, ensuring a festive and chaotic atmosphere. Many children seemed puzzled by the sudden hectic activity in a place where life is usually a tense waiting game.
Social and health care assistant Jytte Spiegelhauer worked past her retirement age in the hope of earning a “senior bonus”, only to find that she did not have enough hours under her belt to qualify. Jytte works nights, which to most people are not the most attractive shifts. Therefore they count for more hours in terms of management and salaries, but apparently not for bonuses.
The rapid response and preparedness department in Copenhagen Municipality seeks to become more diverse and inclusive. Therefore it was a quite a victory when six out of the ten new students in 2020 were women.
“Our sex is no big deal here,” says Sisse. “We don’t get pampered and we’re given exactly the same amount of responsibility as the guys”.
“What they lack in muscle mass, they make up for in stubbornness,” says instructor Jan. “Also their presence curbs potential locker room talk which makes for better team spirit”.
Although 80% of Fyns population are members of the Danish national church and therefore pay church tax, few seem to be too concerned with how this money is spent. At least that’s the impression Erik Henriksen, cashier of Næsby Church’s congregation council, is getting. Half the members of the congregation don’t wish to participate any more, and there are no new candidates.
“Even though us old guys still have loads of energy and ideas for new initiatives, it’s important to get younger forces on board, who can revitalise the church,” says Erik.
This is no easy feat in Denmark, where one out of five consider themselves to be atheist and the majority of Christians only attend church for baptisms, weddings and funerals.
Almost a year after contracting COVID-19 and spending four weeks in hospital, Hosnya is still suffering from the virus. She has trouble concentrating, breathing and moving just a few steps is painful.
“I still look like myself, but something awful has happened inside me,” says Hosnya. Studies show that around 80 percent of former COVID-19 patients suffer from long term consequences known as “Long Covid”.
Traditional Cambodian singer Ouch Savy.
From the Fyens Stiftstidende article series “12 o’clock in...” exploring the small, sleepy cities of Fyn, where notoriously not much is going on. The tendency for young people to move to bigger cities is slowly but surely killing off these once vibrant communities. But some inhabitants hang in there. Life goes on. Wood is chopped.
Leader of Danish opposition party Venstre, Jakob Ellemann-Jensen has some big shoes to fill - his father’s, the former leader of Venstre, Uffe Ellemann-Jensen. “Many people have told me that I’m only a politician because of my last name. And yes, I am Uffe’s son and I’m glad I am, and yes, it might have given me some attention, but not the kind of attention I’m after”, says Jakob Ellemann-Jensen.
Jean Ascher doesn’t know what to do. For the past 35 years he has earned a living as a one man circus, sometimes helped by children and young people eager to learn his craft. Now two old nemeses threaten his livelihood - bureaucracy and technology. He must pay a large amount of money for different security measures, because his pop-up circus school involves knife throwing and fire. As a professional, Jean feels that the measures now in place are sufficient, but the authorities don’t agree. Also Pokemon Go has just come out, and the kids who come by the circus barely notice Jean and his small troupe in spite of the juggling equipment and unicycles scattered everywhere.
Mai Mercado, the then Danish Minister of Children and Social Affairs during her first week in her new office. The painting in the background belongs to her predecessor, as does the rest of the interior. There hasn’t been time to change anything yet, Mai has been too busy trying to find her feet and keep the media from focusing on her high heels and pretty girl reputation. It’s time to step up.
The air is filled with guitar music, clapping and old Danish folk and children’s songs. Every now and then, a baby cries loudly. It’s inevitable as the room is packed with small children. The average age remains high though, as we are at Rytterkasernen in Odense, a nursing home for people with severe dementia. Supposedly the interaction with the children combined with familiar music is beneficial for the patients, and just looking at the faces around the room, this seems to be very true. The children look into the eyes of the old women with wonder and curiosity, reaching out for the wrinkles in their faces. The women laugh and gently cradle the children in their arms. A place that is normally quiet and solemn is loud, light and alive for a while.
Adrian Floy has had several encounters with the local police in Montgomery, Alabama, all of them seemingly unmotivated. These episodes range from being harassed by police when parked in a public parking lot to ending up in jail on baseless claims, struggling to pay bail.
“It’s bad enough as it is, but I really worry what will happen if Donald Trump becomes president,” says Adrian Floyd.
Local artist Karl Krølle after finally finishing a Viking themed mural at Kerteminde City Hall. The process became more complicated than expected. First Karl went on strike because he felt his artistic freedom was being limited, then he caused uproar among rune enthusiasts in the area, by using an older version of the ancient Norse script, than his critics saw fitting. This made Karl laugh.
Across the Mekong River from bustling capital Phnom Penh, lies an entirely different reality. The Chroy Changvar area is a puzzling mix of fishermen, Cham Muslim communities and tall modern buildings rising out of vast empty plains. The latter seem like clues to what the future of Chroy Changvar might hold, as construction sites are appearing everywhere. Foreign investors and domestic oligarchs are slowly turning their attention to the area. But for now, the horses still need to be brought home from pasture at the end of the day.
To some, their first day at school is a magical affair filled with the allure of new friendships and a sense of responsibility. Others, like this little girl at Hindsholmskolen, Kerteminde, retain a skeptic attitude towards this undiscovered territory.
Kenyan acrobatics troupe Nafsi Acrobats have travelled a long way to teach the children at Faaborg Refugee Centre how to hula hoop and form human pyramids. Communication is not always easy, as the children speak mainly Danish and Arabic, and the acrobats speak English, but judging by the atmosphere in the somewhat dilapidated school yard of the centre, that doesn’t matter much. Laughter and smiles are everywhere, as both children and adults try their hand at simple acrobatics, plate-spinning and juggling. The aim is to make a full circus act for the people of the town in a public square.
Christina and Jonas Tranberg run a private daycare center in their home. The kids love it here, so much so, that during the first wave of Covid-19 in Denmark, they were finding it very hard to adjust to being at home with their parents all day. Attempting to uphold some normality, Christina and Jonas sent daily video greetings to each child, which seemed to make them feel better.
Cambodian farmer Lorn Lim and children from the surrounding Kampong Speu community, tending to muddy rice paddies. Usually this work would take place in knee deep water, but the paddies now lie barren due to a particularly severe case of El Niño. This typically leads to a year-long drought in parts of Asia.
In an area where 95 per cent of villagers are farmers, 90 per cent of crops have failed. This is the third attempt at rice farming this season. Though making this final effort, farmers have started sending their teenagers and young adults to urban areas, in order to take on low paid manual labor jobs and support their families.
According to the World Meteorological Organisation, this El Niño is the worst in 65 years, yet the Cambodian government has completely ignored it. In their opinion the drought is neighbouring Thailand’s problem, not theirs, and have therefore failed to inform Cambodian farmers of this imminent threat to their livelihood.
Remnants of Cambodia’s wartorn past still lie hidden and lethal under layers of soil and water in the shape of undetonated explosives. Cambodia’s casualty rate from mines is one of the highest in the world, making undetonated explosives a serious social issue. Over 25,000 amputees are left to fend for themselves without governmental support. And these survivors are the lucky ones. People in rural areas often have a long way to travel to receive medical attention following encounters with landmines. According to ICRC statistics, only 25 per cent of mine victims reach a hospital within six hours after the accident.
The Cambodian Mine Action Center (CMAC) works hard to make the country safer but until recently they were limited to dry land. Like the majority of the population, most of their demining experts could not swim. But in September 2015, after hardcore military-style training of body and mind, CMAC divers demonstrated their skills in underwater demining to the public at the Olympic Pool in Phnom Penh.
Mothers are keeping their daughters close in Angk Snuol after a 16-year-old girl drowned a nine-year-old girl in a rice paddy. The motive was stealing her earrings, worth about $20 in order to buy a cellphone. The two girls grew up in the same village and knew each other well. Needless to say, both families are in shock, especially seeing as the family of the 16-year-old wasn’t exactly poor. Apart from the money, the motive for the killing is still obscure, as the perpetrator awaits trial.
The family of Yem Chroeum, an unlicensed doctor from Cambodia’s Battambang province, watch in tears as Chroeum is taken away to serve a 25 year sentence.
Medical care in rural Cambodia is very scarce, and Chroeum saw it as his responsibility to help his local community any way he could, although he is not a professional doctor. Unfortunately, he unintentionally infected over 300 people from his village with HIV through unsterile injections. Villagers of all ages now depend on medication that few can afford and are discriminated against and looked down upon by the surrounding communities.
The proud leading lady of Vestfyn High School’s adaptation of the Broadway musical “Mamma Mia”. While the spotlight may have its allure to some of the performers, most appreciate the yearly musical for the sense of community and team spirit it brings. For once it doesn’t matter if you’re a freshman or a math nerd, if you can make yourself useful on or off stage, you’re in.
Abdullah from Syria in Hættegården Kindergarten in Ringe. Abdullah’s father Omar came to Denmark alone and lived in Ringe for almost two years before being reunited with his children after a nine day hunger strike in front a government building. Abdullah is slowly but surely learning Danish, mainly through playing with the other children. However, when the language barrier becomes too much every now and then, Abdullah withdraws from the other children for a little while before jumping back in.
