Denmark to introduce new law against flying foreign flags
A new law banning foreign flags from being flown in Denmark without dispensation has been formally proposed.
Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard has tabled a bill which would make it illegal to fly foreign flags in Denmark under a new law.
Hummelgaard wants the Danish flag to have special status and other flags – such as the Ukrainian flag currently – to only be permitted in extraordinary circumstances.
“Dannebrog [the Danish flag, ed.] is the most important national symbol we have in Denmark. It’s a symbol that ties us together as a nation,” he said in a press statement.
“That’s why I also think that this very special status should mean that we should once again have rules related to flying flags so that it’s not freely permitted to fly other countries’ flags. That’s how it was for more than 100 years and that’s how it should be again,” he said.
The references to “again” having rules against foreign flags refer to a 2023 Supreme Court ruling that a private individual had not breached a century-old directive against flying foreign flags when he displayed the flag of the United States at his home.
In the ruling, the Supreme Court said the directive was closely related to the situation before and during the First World War. It also noted that raising a flag may be protected by free speech rights.
As such, raising foreign nations’ flags in Denmark cannot generally be considered an offence under the directive, it concluded.
That meant the legal basis used for banning foreign flags no longer applied, so parliament revoked the First World War-era directive.
READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: Can you fly any flag you want to in Denmark?
A proposal for a new law on the area was expected after a majority in parliament voted in March in favour of a resolution proposing a new ban on flying foreign flags.
The new ban will make it illegal to raise almost all other countries’ flags, including the Stars and Stripes, but will not apply to Nordic flags or the Greenlandic, Faroese or German flags.
Flags that represent regional or international communities will likewise not be banned.
In extraordinary circumstances, the justice minister will be allowed to exempt flags from the ban – as would be the case with Ukraine’s flag currently.
The ban will meanwhile only apply to flying flags from flagpoles, meaning banners and flags at demonstrations or sporting events would not breach the law.
The new law is expected to take effect in 2025.
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Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard has tabled a bill which would make it illegal to fly foreign flags in Denmark under a new law.
Hummelgaard wants the Danish flag to have special status and other flags – such as the Ukrainian flag currently – to only be permitted in extraordinary circumstances.
“Dannebrog [the Danish flag, ed.] is the most important national symbol we have in Denmark. It’s a symbol that ties us together as a nation,” he said in a press statement.
“That’s why I also think that this very special status should mean that we should once again have rules related to flying flags so that it’s not freely permitted to fly other countries’ flags. That’s how it was for more than 100 years and that’s how it should be again,” he said.
The references to “again” having rules against foreign flags refer to a 2023 Supreme Court ruling that a private individual had not breached a century-old directive against flying foreign flags when he displayed the flag of the United States at his home.
In the ruling, the Supreme Court said the directive was closely related to the situation before and during the First World War. It also noted that raising a flag may be protected by free speech rights.
As such, raising foreign nations’ flags in Denmark cannot generally be considered an offence under the directive, it concluded.
That meant the legal basis used for banning foreign flags no longer applied, so parliament revoked the First World War-era directive.
READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: Can you fly any flag you want to in Denmark?
A proposal for a new law on the area was expected after a majority in parliament voted in March in favour of a resolution proposing a new ban on flying foreign flags.
The new ban will make it illegal to raise almost all other countries’ flags, including the Stars and Stripes, but will not apply to Nordic flags or the Greenlandic, Faroese or German flags.
Flags that represent regional or international communities will likewise not be banned.
In extraordinary circumstances, the justice minister will be allowed to exempt flags from the ban – as would be the case with Ukraine’s flag currently.
The ban will meanwhile only apply to flying flags from flagpoles, meaning banners and flags at demonstrations or sporting events would not breach the law.
The new law is expected to take effect in 2025.
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