A Council of Europe report criticising Denmark's racism track record is cast off by the prime minister as being riddled with errors

Copenhagen Post:

Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen knows exactly where he is going to file the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance's latest review of Denmark: in the dustbin.

The ECRI released its third report about Denmark on Tuesday. Despite its praise for the progress made since the 2001 report, the new review bashed the government for not implementing several previous recommendations.

In addition, it found that 'the general climate has continued to deteriorate in Denmark, with some politicians and parts of the media constantly projecting a negative image of minority groups in general, and Muslims in particular'.

The government was also blasted for cosying up to the anti-immigrant Danish People's Party.

Rasmussen, however, was quick to point out that the complaints didn't hold water: 'The report is so riddled with errors that it can't be taken seriously.'

'Their ECRI bases their report on hearsay. Even though the government can prove that it is factually wrong, they didn't listen to us.'

In a 13-page reply posted on the website of the Ministry of Immigration, the government identified 24 'errors and inaccuracies' and 20 'politicised and/or undocumented claims and recommendations', as well as 10 comments to the report's findings about Denmark's compliance with international treaties.

The immigration minister, Rikke Hvilshøj, pointed out that Denmark was not the only country to be criticised by the ECRI.

'Other ECRI country reports have pointed out that the tone of the public debate and in the political arena is hostile to foreigners. The tone should in no way be hostile, but it is necessary to discuss the challenges that all European countries are facing when it comes to integration.'

Eva Smith, the chair of the ECRI, said the government's reaction showed that integration was a sore point for it.

'Much of what the government calls 'mistakes' are different evaluations of facts,' she said to daily newspaper Berlingske Tidende.

'When the ECRI says that not enough has been done to promote integration on the job market, the government says, 'That's wrong, we've done a whole bunch.' So has what you've done worked? We're talking about different views of the fact that there aren't enough foreigners working in Denmark.'

She called Rasmussen's rejection of the report 'arrogant' but admitted that it may have included some mistakes.

One ECRI criticism is that a radio station run by neo-Nazis receives money from the state even though its funds were cut off in 2003 and its licence revoked for making racist statements.

'It's regrettable that that kind of clearly inaccurate information didn't get weeded out,' Smith said.

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