Danish schools defy Parliament and demand debate on Palestinian statehood
For the first time in a school election, the House committee vetoed a debate, sparking outrage across the country.
CopenhagenSchool elections in Denmark, a simulation to introduce teenagers to the democratic political system, have become a controversial issue this year. The controversy was sparked by the Danish Parliament, which decided to veto "the recognition of Palestine as an independent state" as one of the topics proposed for students to debate in the elections.
Every two years, more than 70,000 Danish students between the ages of 13 and 15 participate in school elections (skolevalg). For three weeks, students present and debate political proposals, and then a voting day is held, with an election night in the Parliament, which is broadcast on television. The intention is to familiarize teenagers with and interest in politics, but this year it ended with the country's schools outraged by the Parliament's decision.
Unlike Norway and Sweden, Denmark has not recognized the state of Palestine, and its prime minister, Social Democrat Mette Frederiksen, has repeatedly stated that she will only vote for it. recognition of Palestinian sovereignty If there is a two-state solution with Israel.
According to the Parliament's roundtable, made up of the five major political groups, the conflict in Gaza, despite being highly topical, is a "potentially very sensitive issue for many students and their families" and with a "high degree of complexity." With these arguments, the deputies have decided, for the first time, to prohibit one of the debate proposals in school elections. In previous years, students have also addressed other current issues such as the reception of refugees, the toughening of prison sentences, or the deportation of immigrants from the country, but never has such controversy arisen as now.
Schools and the Danish Youth Council (DUF), made up of the youth wings of the political parties that propose the 20 topics to be discussed in the school elections, have criticized the roundtable's decision as an attempt at censorship. Other organizations, such as Amnesty International, have also added to the criticism, stating that the ban "has no place in a country with freedom of expression."
Fear of conflict in the classroom
In response to these accusations, the speaker of the parliamentary committee and MP for the Liberal Party (Venstre), Soren Gade, stood firm on his decision, explaining that "a proper debate on the matter cannot be held in the short timeframe of school elections, but it could set a classroom on fire." Gade added that in the debate over Denmark's recognition of a state for Palestine, "there is a risk that the debate could further divide students and not unite them in a democratic dialogue," which is the ultimate goal of the school elections.
The speaker also denied accusations of censorship, "as schools are free to discuss it any other day of the year." The Liberal MP admitted that "in some schools, the topic of Palestine can be discussed without problems," but added that "it must also be acknowledged that in other classrooms, especially where there are more students of non-Danish ethnic origin, emotions when discussing this topic can be so strong that it can be difficult for teachers to keep the class together."
Criticism of the decision
Despite these arguments, several schools with a high proportion of students from families originating outside Denmark have expressed their disagreement with the Parliament's committee's decision to veto the debate. "If we do this, then we run the risk of it becoming a real problem," the newspaper noted. Jyllands-PostenHelle Monster, headmistress of a school on the outskirts of Aarhus, where 90% of the students are of a non-Danish origin, stated that in her classrooms, "the conflict in Gaza has been discussed since the beginning of the war without any discussion taking place." "If we want to educate our young people to participate in democracy, imposing censorship will be of no use," she argued.
The country's main media outlets have also criticized the decision of the Parliamentary committee in their editorial columns. So much so that the daily Politics has decided to host a debate with students on the recognition of Palestine at the newspaper's headquarters. Its editor-in-chief, Christian Jensen, stated that with the Parliament's veto, "censorship is disguised as protection of young people," and argued that Parliament "seriously underestimates the capabilities of Danish youth," he said.
On the other hand, the same newspaper published the opinion of a member of the youth wing of the Liberal Alliance party, Noah Dromme Bredberg, who argued that among young people the debate on Israel and Palestine is marked by misinformation and opinions taken from TikTok: "I'd rather go to a school and give my opinion on the conflict."
