Denmark: Do not copy Australia’s draconian detention laws

May 24, 2021
Issue 
Outside the Danish Consulate. Photo: Stephen Langford

Refugee rights activists gathered outside the Danish Consulate on May 24 to condemn that government’s plans to detain asylum seekers and process them in Rwanda.

Some held signs reading “Close the camps! Asylum for all” in Danish.

Refugee Action Coalition, which organised the protest, said Australia's offshore detention on Manus Island and Nauru had “set a new low in anti-refugee policies and should not be imitated anywhere”.

The Danish government wants the processing of asylum applications to take place outside the European Union, hoping that that will “break the incentive structure of the present asylum system”.

“Like Australia, Denmark wants to shift its responsibilities ... [and] for the Rwandan government, such a deal means a lot of money. For the refugees though, it means only misery.”

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