U.S. Department of State Annual Report on International Religious Freedom for 2003 - Denmark

Released by the U.S. Department of State Bureau for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor on December 18, 2003, covers the period from July 1, 2002, to June 30, 2003.

The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the Government generally respects this right in practice. The Evangelical Lutheran Church is the state church and enjoys some privileges not available to other faiths.

There was no change in the status of respect for religious freedom during the period covered by this report, and government policy continued to contribute to the generally free practice of religion.

The generally amicable relationship among religions in society contributed to religious freedom.

The U.S. Government discusses religious freedom issues with the Government in the context of its overall dialog and policy of promoting human rights.

Section I. Religious Demography

The country has a total area of 16,640 square miles, and its population is approximately 5.4 million. As of January 2002, 84.3 percent of the population belonged to the official Evangelical Lutheran Church. The second largest religious community is Muslim, constituting approximately three percent of the population, followed by the Catholic Church, Jehovah's Witnesses, Baptists, Pentecostals, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), and Jews. The remaining approximately 9 percent of the citizens are without a religion.

Missionaries operate within the country, including representatives of the Mormons and members of Jehovah's Witnesses; however, there is no detailed information available on missionary activity.

Section II. Status of Religious Freedom

Legal/Policy Framework

The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the Government generally respects this right in practice. The Government at all levels strives to protect this right in full and does not tolerate its abuse, either by governmental or private actors.

There is an official state religion. The Constitution stipulates that the Evangelical Lutheran Church is the national church, and it is the only Church that is subsidized directly by the Government.

However, no individual may be compelled to pay church tax or provide direct financial support to the national church or any other religious organization. The Evangelical Lutheran Church is the only religious organization that can receive funds directly through the tax system (although any tax payer may choose not to contribute), and pastors from the Evangelical Lutheran church receive wages that are subsidized by the state and not fully covered by voluntary taxes. Members of other faiths, notably Catholics, have argued that the system is not fair, and that although the Government provides for religious freedom, it does not provide for religious equality. Allowing other religious organizations to be given the same status and privileges as the Evangelical Lutheran Church would require changes to the Constitution.

The Government does not require that religious groups be licensed; however, the State's permission is required for religious ceremonies, such as weddings, if they are to have civil validity. Although there is no civil or criminal penalty for not registering, non-registered religious organizations do not qualify for tax exempt status. Eleven other religious organizations have official recognition by royal decree (essentially the State's permission for a religious organization to perform religious ceremonies that have civil validity).

The Ministry of Ecclesiastical Affairs has granted permission to clergy of 60 additional, non-recognized religious organizations to perform marriages. The Marriage Act permits weddings to be performed "within other religious organizations," provided that one of the parties to the marriage belongs to the organization, and the organization has clergy that have been granted permission to perform marriage by the Ministry of Ecclesiastical Affairs. Thus, religious organizations no longer need to obtain "recognition" since "approval" is given when the Ministry grants permission to perform weddings to specific religious organizations. Both recognized and approved religions enjoy certain tax exemptions.

The approval process is not complicated or protracted.

Guidelines for future approval of religious organizations, linked to the 1969 Marriage Act and published in 1999, established clear requirements that religious organizations must fulfill. These include providing the following: A written text of the religion's central traditions; descriptions of its most important rituals; an organizational structure accessible for public control and approval; and constitutionally elected representatives who may be held responsible by the authorities. Additionally, the organization must "not teach or perform actions inconsistent with public morality or order."

Scientologists did not seek official approval as a religious organization during the period covered by this report. Their first application for approval was made in the early 1970s and rejected; the second and third applications were made in 1976 and 1982 and both were denied. In mid-1997 the Scientologists filed a fourth application, which was suspended at their request in 2000. In suspending their application, the Scientologists asked the Ministry of Ecclesiastical Affairs to clarify the approval procedure; however, according to the Ministry, the Scientologists first must submit an application before the Ministry can provide any feedback. Despite the Scientologist's unofficial status, the church maintains its European headquarters in Copenhagen.

There are no restrictions on proselytizing so long as proselytizers obey the law and do not act inconsistently with public morality or order. All schools, including religious schools, receive government financial support. While the Evangelical Lutheran faith is taught in the public schools, a student may withdraw from religious classes with parental consent.

After several years of searching for an appropriate site, the Muslim community identified a piece of land in Broendby on which they would like to build the country's first Muslim cemetery. The Ministry of Ecclesiastical Affairs, the Copenhagen municipal government, and the Broendby municipal authorities have agreed to the sale. However, little progress has been made towards that goal because of disagreements concerning the value of the land and how the minority umbrella organization INDsam will pay for it. A growing number of municipalities have set aside pieces of land for the purposes of building Muslim cemeteries, and more and more parishes have allocated sections of their cemeteries for Muslim burials. Nonetheless, those sections do not meet all of the requirements of the Muslim community, so it would still prefer to have a cemetery of its own. The Muslim community also was attempting to identify a site and funding for the construction of a full-scale mosque in the country at the end of the period covered by this report. Authorities have agreed to the sale, but the community also continues to try to raise the appropriate funds.

Restrictions on Religious Freedom

Government policy and practice contributed to the generally free practice of religion.

There were no reports of religious prisoners or detainees.

Forced Religious Conversion

There were no reports of forced religious conversion, including of minor U.S. citizens who had been abducted or illegally removed from the United States, or of the refusal to allow such citizens to be returned to the United States.

Section III. Societal Attitudes

The country has a long history of welcoming religious minorities and affording them equal treatment. There are generally amicable relations between religious groups, although the recent influx of a substantial Muslim population has resulted in some tension with the majority population of adherents of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Minority group unemployment tends to be higher, and allegations of discrimination on the basis of religion sometimes are raised. However, it is difficult to separate religious differences from differences in language and ethnicity, and the latter may be at least as important in explaining unequal access to well-paying jobs and social advancement. The integration of immigrant groups from Islamic countries has become an important political and social topic of discussion.

There were isolated incidents of anti-Semitic and anti-immigrant vandalism, primarily graffiti, during the period covered by this report. The Government criticized the incidents and investigated several of them.

Section IV. U.S. Government Policy

The U.S. Government discusses religious freedom issues with the Government in the context of its overall dialog and policy of promoting human rights.