Grew up in failure and abuse - today he is nail varnish suisoq

Want to hear the whole story? Listen to Mads Pedersen's story in the podcast - you'll find it further down in the article.

We are on our way from the Self-Government building to Tuapannguit – the place where Mads Pedersen, better known as Maasi, has his first fond memories of Nuuk. At that time, he was in 4th grade at Tasersuup Atuarfia in Qaqortoq and spent the summer holidays with his mother.

– I hadn't seen my mother, who lives in Nuuk, for four years. So it was a good and happy time. She had a boyfriend who lived in block R, says Maasi.

But after the holiday, a tough day awaited back in Qaqortoq.

You can listen to the entire podcast below, where Maasi talks about his upbringing, the path out of abuse, and the initiatives he wants to work on. The podcast is in Greenlandic.

– I had a hard time when I was back in Qaqortoq. My father is mentally ill. At that time, they didn't know how to help him. It was a hard life. He drank a lot and smoked a lot of hash.

Maasi lived with his younger brother at their father's house. When there was unrest in the home, he remembers what it felt like.

– When my father was picked up by the police, we were just abandoned. We just went back to sleep. Me and my little brother woke up alone in the morning. Then we went to our family, says Maasi.

Fortunately, it wasn't long before he returned to Nuuk. He managed to move to his mother in Nuuk and away from the unsafe home in Qaqortoq. Maasi settled in quite well there.

– I quickly made a lot of friends, and we played together outside. Life couldn't be better. But I also missed Qaqortoq. I missed my brothers and worried about my father.

But the security in Nuuk was short-lived. Soon, Maasi and his mother had to leave the apartment in Tuapannguit and were suddenly left homeless. A time we will return to later.

“Why are the police leaving us alone?”

While he was still living in Qaqortoq, the police would show up every now and then when there was trouble at home. But Maasi and his little brother were left alone. And already at the age of eight, questions began to arise.

– I've always thought: Why isn't anyone helping us? Why do the police leave us alone?, he says with wonder.

He later put that experience into words. Together with Taatsi and Kunuk, he formed the rap group Prussic, which shook all of Greenland with strong lyrics about neglect and abuse.

– I thought things would change when we published as Prussic. When we put the situation into words as it was then. It will be fixed, I thought. That was 20 years ago. But things are still like that.

And it was a defeat for the teenager Maasi.

– I was discouraged when there were no changes in the years following the release.

Suddenly became naalakkersuisoq

Two decades later, the chance to really make a difference came – this time as a political leader. Suddenly, he found himself in the midst of power.

– It happened very suddenly. It was about two days before it was announced that I was asked if I wanted to become a Greenlander. I didn't even hesitate and said yes right away. But the doubts only came afterwards, laughs Maasi.

At that time he worked as acting HR manager in KNR. He also helped in the election campaign as a journalist and was, among other things, the host of the party leadership round. When he suddenly became naalakkersuisoq after his role as host of the party leadership round, he was criticized – among others from Naleraq. Ekstra Bladet also covered his sudden change.

– I can see that, but I don't think it's wrong, as I, as acting HR manager, had to help out due to a huge shortage of journalists. I didn't know at the time whether I would be asked if I wanted to be the Naalakkersuisoq. So that's why I didn't favour anyone when I moderated the debate, says Maasi.

He has previously worked as a consultant for the Atorfillit Kattuffiat union, as a journalist for KNR and as a party consultant for IA. And even though he has become a member of the Greenlanders' Party, he is still not an official member of the party.

– I haven't even become a member yet. But the party's statutes state that members of the Inatsisartut, the municipal council and Naalakkersuisut must be members of the party. So at some point I will become a member.

So you're breaking the bylaws?

– I expect that you can become a member retroactively, says Maasi.

Huge task lies ahead

The task that awaits him as the new Prime Minister of Greenland is enormous. Neglect and abuse are still everyday life for far too many children in the country. And Maasi will start by listening and learning.

– First of all, I want to travel around. I want to see it with my own eyes. But I have also said it to my department and the National Board of Health and Welfare that the system needs to look at itself. The population should not adapt to the system. The system should adapt to the population.

What he himself has experienced as a neglected child, and the hard life he has lived, is something he can use in his work as Naalakkersuisoq.

– I have seen the reality on the streets, says Naalakkersuisoq for Children, Youth and Families.

Small metal table and television with video

We return to the period when Maasi and his mother left the apartment in Block R. It was the mother's decision to move out of her then-boyfriend's home.

– We were accommodated in a room at the old Hotel Godthåb. I don't remember how long we stayed there. As far as I understood, the homeless were accommodated there.

Later, the mother managed to rent furnished apartments, and eventually they got their own in Paarnat.

– We had nothing at all. All I had was a small metal table on wheels and a television with a video recorder.

Yet Maasi remembers the time as a happy period.

“We were happy when we got an apartment,” says Maasi.

Drunk driving and car accidents

Although he and his mother gained stability, it was also a youth marked by drinking and marijuana – this time not from his father, but from his own. During that period, he became a father for the first time.

– I always told myself that I would stop when I had children. So I stopped a little when I had a child. But I couldn't stop completely.

A turning point came when he was caught drunk driving 13 years ago and ended up in detention.

– I felt great shame towards my son. He was four years old at the time. I was ashamed as a father, because I knew that the ones my son loved most were his mother and father.

But there was another incident that hit even harder. Maasi's four-year-old son said something unexpected as they walked hand in hand.

– He said it very clearly: "Dad, I think you should move somewhere else." I asked why, and he replied: "When you're drunk, you make Mom sad." It hit me hard that a child could say something so true. There were a lot of little things that happened that gave me the strength to get treated, says Maasi.

Good relationship with parents

Today Maasi is 40 years old and clean. He has created a family with Nahome, and together they have three sons. And he now looks at his own parents with new eyes.

– As a teenager and later as an adult, I was angry with them. And I also gave them something back, he says.

Today he has a good relationship with both his mother and father.

– I have forgiven them. I don't blame them because I know they did their best. That's the most important thing for me. Mom and Dad wanted the best for their child. Yes, it wasn't always the best – but they did their best. And that's enough for me, says Maasi.