Denmark Passes New Anti-Immigrant Bill

The left-leaning Social Democratic party posts anti-immigrant propaganda in Denmark. (Flickr).

Denmark adopted a new asylum bill on April 29 aimed at transferring the processing of asylum seekers to third-party countries. The new policy represents the latest Dutch effort to meet the government’s net-zero asylum-seeker goal, attracting the ire of humanitarian watchdog groups. 

Since Europe’s 2015 refugee crisis, Denmark has bipartisanly pursued some of the most restrictive immigration policies. For example, in 2017, the right-leaning Liberal party proposed shipping criminal refugees to an island that also holds disease research labs. “They are unwanted in Denmark and they will be exiled to feel like that,” one liberal politician wrote on her Facebook in 2017.

Although not passed, the proposition reflects Denmark’s negative stance towards immigration. Danish society prioritizes social cohesion and free expression over diversity and religious freedom, as exemplified by its mandatory migrant integration education and Burka-Ban. What’s more, across the political spectrum, many Danes consider high levels of immigration incompatible with their robust welfare state. This latest bill aiming to outsource the asylum application process to other countries fits with this mindset. 

Danish Immigration Minister Mattias Tesfaye met with Rwandan leaders on Thursday, where the two countries agreed to cooperate on migration issues. While Tesfaye has kept talks private, some pundits speculate that Rwanda will host Denmark’s first extraterritorial asylum application center. Tesfaye responded to the possibility, ambiguously noting, “We are in dialogue with a number of countries about that.”

Denmark received a record-low 1,500 asylum seekers in 2020, a mere 43 percent of 2019 levels, 5 percent of its 2015 levels, and 3 percent of Sweden’s 2020 totals. Despite government support for the legislation, not all Danes are satisfied. “The transfer of asylum seekers to a third country, as proposed in parliament today is irresponsible, lacks solidarity, and should be condemned,” the Danish Refugee Council tweeted in response to the bill. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees also spoke out against the law, saying that it “strongly urges Denmark to refrain from establishing laws and practices that would externalize its asylum obligations.”

While the law may still face legal challenges, with the next general elections not until 2023, the Danish Parliament will likely not stand in its way. If the externalized asylum application process proves successful, other European countries which have voiced concerns about immigration, such as Hungary and Poland, may adopt similar strategies.