Dear Gunvør Balle,
I read in.fo‘s presentation of your opinion, and the positive response people have had to your position.
And people flock to your side. We have enough resources to learn Faroese; 20 hour classes that teach a few sentences have been available since 2013. We are also well paid; 100 kr per hour to clean hotels. Engineers that move here are even encouraged to start their own cleaning companies. We are even only cheated out of vacation pay and pension some of the time, with little recourse outside of a couple years of court battles.
Gunvør, have you asked yourself why the people who flock to your side are so animated?
Currently, there is little in the way of language classes in public institutions beyond a stunted vocabulary and limited grammar. There is also a resentment towards immigrants that we are confronted with at work, on the street, in public sector offices. We are blamed for bringing with us drugs, violence and religions that are not your own.
Yet, there is also a need for a work force that cannot be met without immigration to the Faroe Islands. Politicians say factories needs a larger work force, if the fishing industry is to continue to grow. The Faroe Islands needs foreigners to immigrate, to drive the economy.
We are needed, but we are not wanted?
I agree with you, sincerely, when you say the municipality is obligated to ensure access to effective language classes. I sit on a little advisory board that has advocated improvements in the quality of language classes, and increasing the quantity of seats available in those classes. So there shouldn’t be a problem. But, there is; there isn’t enough funding to hold courses that teach advanced Faroese. Please, take a look at the responses to in.fo‘s article. Your supporters do not want us here, and a politician is a slave to their supporters.
Your message will only cause fear and insecurity in our community. I believe you were once a member of Utlendingar Foroyar, and you were removed from the group, because we feared you Gunvør. We are afraid of your supporters. We are afraid for our children. We are afraid for our futures. Now we question if the promises made by a welcoming society will be honored, and we fear for our futures.
