List of Relevant Laws Impacting Free Speech (Denmark) (2015-2022)
2021
Religious preaching, Danish Criminal Code section 136, 3. The section has been a part of the Danish legislation since 2016, but in 2021 the section was altered and permanently included. The section entails that advice to commit or applaud of several criminal offences, including underage marriage, acts of terror etc. are criminalized when voiced in a preaching situation. The 2021 alteration can be found here.
Hindering economic transactions from/to people who are undermining the Danish democratic system. The scope is to create barriers for economic transactions to and from organizations and persons who are believed to undermine Danish democratic values. The hindrance is then that some communities will not have opportunity to seek funding for their aim. The list of these individuals can be found here.
Hate speech towards more members of the LGBTQ+ community Danish Criminal Code section 266 b. The hate speech section was altered to include more minorities specifically statements regarding a person’s gender identity, gender expression or gender characteristics. The section has been altered several times. The 2021 alteration is available here.
2020
Double and quadruple sentencing for corona related crime Danish Criminal Code section 81 d. The section entailed that corona related felonies could be sentenced with the double or quadruple length as opposed to crimes that were not related. This meant that demonstrations towards the political system could be sentenced harsher if the demonstration were about the handling of the virus compared to other political issues. The section, which can be found here is no longer in force.
2019
Cooperation with foreign intelligence services which aim to alter the formation of opinion Danish Criminal Code section 108. This criminalizes the act of cooperation with a foreign intelligence service to try to alter the democratic opinion or the political decision making in Denmark. The sentencing is higher if the alteration occurs during parliamentary elections. The section is available here.
2018
The Burqa ban, Danish Criminal Code section 134 c. With this section it was criminalized to wear any face coverings, including for religious reasons. However, modification is accepted when the face covering serves a worthy purpose. In reality hitting people wearing niqab or burqa. The legislation is available here.
2017
Report suspicion of radicalized students. It was decided to strengthen the obligation to report suspicious radicalized behavior such as social media activity or statements by elementary students. The obligation to report relies on the teachers and must be reported to the proper authorities.
“Gang-package III” Danish Criminal Code sections 38, 39 and 41 and Danish Law on Execution of Penalties section 53, 55 and 57. The legislation entails that former gang-members, who are not attending a so-called “exit-program” are not eligible for parole. That leading gang-members are not entitled to secrecy in their correspondence and they will be supervised during visits outside of prison. The package legislation is accessible here.
Restrictions in movement of gang-members. The legislation entails that people who have been convicted of gang-related crimes can through this legislation be restricted in their movement by a restraining order. Thus, they cannot reside, occupy or move through the area where the crime was committed.
Blocking access to websites which entail specific illegal content The Administration of Justice Act section 791 d. The blocking concerns websites which contain enticement for acts of terrorism, violence and threats towards state officials. The website providers can be ordered to assist in the blocking. The alteration is available here.
2016
Banning religious preachers of entering the country through a publicly available list. The legislation entails that the listed people cannot enter the territory of Denmark. The placement on the list stems from previous acts, statements or behavior that could undermine Danish core values. The list can be accessed here.
Threats towards civil servants Danish Criminal Code section 121. The penalty for this offence was tightened from 6 months of imprisonment to 12, as a part of a package called “Respect of the common community.” The legislation makes it harder to criticize the system. The package legislation is available here.