21.07.2003
A trip to dreamland

Every year, the Friends of the Children of Chernobyl invite a group of children from the Chernobyl area to come to Denmark for a month. The children visited Copenhagen Airport the other day. Full of admiration and excitement, they saw the cockpit of an Airbus and got a chance to extinguish a fire. At the end of the visit, they each received a large rucksack full of gifts.

They were radiant with joy and excitement when they heard the sirens. Shortly after, two of the fire department’s yellow fire trucks rushed by, heading for the burning dummy aircraft. It was all done in honour of the 14 children from the Chernobyl area, who will be visiting Denmark for a month. After the children had admired how efficiently the fire department staff extinguished a fire using 10,000 litres of water per minute, it was their turn to be fire fighters. Many of the boys eagerly put up their hands and said in Russian: “Me, me, me”. A boy with freckles changed from his CPH cap to a big helmet and courageously started attacking the flames holding the fire hose with both hands.

They come from primitive and poor conditions

The trade unions and the municipalities of the county of Frederiksborg are some of the organisations which ensure the children get an unforgettable experience in Denmark – and not least that they eat good and healthy food and receive clothes.

“The children come from inconceivably primitive conditions and poverty in Russia. Many of them have lost relatives, who have died from radiation,” said Svend-Aage Poulsen, the prime mover of the Friends of the Children of Chernobyl. He continued, “The people in the area know very well that it is dangerous to eat locally produced food, but they have no other choice. Therefore, many people suffer from incurable gastro-intestinal diseases,” he added.

Just then, the Øresund Bridge could be seen dimly in the distance, and the Russian chaperone was telling the children vividly about the underground tunnel. But this was completely incomprehensible to the 9-13-year-olds, and the female chaperone gave up with a smile.

Summer holidays devoted to the Chernobyl children

The tour of Copenhagen Airport was one of many that the children of the town of Krasnayr Gora in the Chernobyl area participate in. The programme for the coming two weeks is full of events such as visits to the Copenhagen Zoo and the Bakken amusement park, and a harbour tour of Copenhagen. This is the eight consecutive year that Svend-Aage Poulsen of the Timber Industry and Construction Workers’ Union in Denmark and his wife spend their tree weeks of summer holidays giving the Russian children an unforgettable experience. “I usually compare it with the scouts. Once you’ve started, you’re in it for life,” he says. When he receives advertising flyers in his letterbox, he and his wife mainly look for good offers for the children. They are still in contact with many of the children who have visited Denmark over the years. They have also been in Russia twice to see how the children grow up. Moreover, the association sends large quantities of clothes to the Chernobyl children several times a year.

A rucksack with gifts

Good healthy food, fresh air and lots of events, that’s the recipe of success for the Friends of the Children of Chernobyl. And the results could both be heard and felt among the children when they gratefully received a large rucksack full of gifts after lunch at the Tivoli Inn at the airport. The airlines at Copenhagen Airport are among the sponsors of the rucksack and the gifts. After an eventful day, the children left for their hostel in North Zealand, which is their home while in Denmark.