The Greenlanders are astonished: a man pretending to be an American hoists the US flag in the capital Nuuk. But he is prevented from doing so.
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- A man causes a commotion in Greenland's capital Nuuk when he wants to fly the US flag in front of a cultural center.
- He pretends to be an American, but is actually a German comedian who works for the satirical magazine "Extra 3".
- The NDR employee has been fined - his station has apologized.
Orla Joelsen is furious. The Greenlander posts a clip on X of a man taking down an American flag in Nuuk. He is surrounded by people, one of whom is filming the scene.
"This guy tried to raise the American flag in front of a cultural center in Nuuk," reports Joelsen from Greenland's capital. "The flagpoles belong to the cultural center. Fortunately, he was stopped in time by the staff. If you don't respect our values, what are you doing in Nuuk?"
Joelsen can hardly get her head around it: "The police are investigating," she adds on X. "That's the guy." The man is certainly not a local, adds the Greenlander. And she's right - although the stranger isn't an American either, but a German called Maxi Schafroth.
According to Joelsen, this satirist pretended to represent the US government, but was actually working for the NDR satirical magazine "Extra 3".
The Greenlander can't laugh at all: "He has been reported to the police," she writes on X. "This has caused heated discussions on Facebook here in Greenland. Shame on you! Idiot!"
"He caused a lot of chaos"
NDR has confirmed the facts to several German media outlets: "Extra 3" filmed a report on the island on January 27 and 28. "A member of the team pretended to want to hoist a US flag in a public place. A fine was imposed for this on site," the broadcaster announced.
The film was not intended to discredit the local population and their values, it continues. "At no point during filming should the impression be created that the target of the satire was Greenlanders," "Der Spiegel" quotes NDR as saying. The editorial team regrets having caused displeasure on the island.
An eyewitness confirmed to "t-online" that comedian Schafroth had pretended to be an American. "He got scared when he saw how big the headwind was. He caused a lot of chaos, especially in the tense political situation." The reaction to the Germans' joke confirms how much pressure is currently on Greenland.