China critical election posters in front of the Chinese Embassy in Denmark removed by security guard. (Danish article).

3 comments

1. According to Danish criminal law §291,2 the destruction, vandalism or removal of legally hung election posters can be a fine of 800-1500 dk.kr. or if it is proven there is political motivation the punishment is up to 6 years

2. Chinese Embassy have now made this statement:

   Now the Chinese embassy is reacting to missing election posters
   The Chinese embassy is distancing itself from ten posters with a Tibetan flag that a Radical politician had hung up at the embassy. The posters disappeared a few hours after they were set up. The embassy writes to the Ritzau that it “does not interfere in the elections of other countries”, but “clearly opposes any attempt to interfere in internal affairs under the pretext of campaigning or the so-called freedom of expression.”

   So there you have it. Chinese rulers does not value freedom of expression or democratic elections.

3. [Translation since article is in danish]

   **Election posters removed at embassy – a provocation says China**

   More than a few political parties want to the Chinese ambassador to explain [lit: be disciplined in school for wrongdoing] after election posters critical of China have been removed. See China’s answer at the bottom.

   Ten election posters with the radical (center left political party) Thomas Rohden’s smiling face, the flag of Tibet and the text “Stop cooperation/collaboration with China” were apparently too much for the Chinese embassy to take.

   For some reason ten of the politician’s election were removed a few hours after Rohden had put them up Sunday afternoon in front of the Chinese embassy in Hellerup north of Copenhagen.

   **”China has not understood that we have freedom of speech and democracy in Denmark”** – Thomas Rohden

   The 25 year old regional council candidate is also the chairman of the Dansk Kina-Kritisk Selskab [lit: Danish China-critique Association] and is in part campaigning on stopping a collaboration between Region Hovedstaden (the capital region) and the Chinese Jiangsu-province.

   “I had somewhat naively thought that they would feel provoked, but would let the posters be, since it would be breaking danish law [to remove/deface them] and would be interfering with the danish election. That turned out not to be the case,” says Thomas Rohden to TV2 [news/tv organisation].

   Rohden does not have proof that it was the Chinese embassy that took down the election posters Sunday, but he cannot imagine “random pensioners or other random people passing by” tearing down posters two and a half meters in the air.

   He therefore called the police monday and charged the embassy for stealing his posters.

   **Media documents teardown**

   Tuesday trouble was once again brewing at the Chinese embassy.

   The media, De uafhængige [lit: the independents], had hung up copies of Thomas Rohden’s posters up, however these would also meet their demise as a security guard from the embassy removed them in front of recording cameras.

   The media tried to get a comment from the Chinese ambassador, but he did not comment. [Unclear if he outright refused]

   “After De Uafhængige’s revelation I am no longer in doubt as to whether it was the embassy that removed the election posters,” says Rohden.

   The Chinese-critic politician has a clear expectation that foreign minister Jeppe Kofod (S) [Social Democrats] will summon the ambassador to a talk:

   “He [Jeppe Kofod] must take this case and tell [the ambassador] how unacceptable this is. There are fundamental principles at stake here and this episode shows once again that China has not understood that we have freedom of speech and democracy in Denmark.”

   **Denouncement from Folketinget [Danish legislative branch/parliament]**

   At Christiansborg [Christian’s Castle, seat of parliament] there is broad support for Thomas Rohden.

   For example, the Dansk Folkeparti’s [lit: Danish People’s Party’s] foreign affairs spokesperson, Søren Espersen, laments that he did not get the idea to hang up posters critical of China first.

   “It is crazy how the Chinese [the embassy] partakes in such vigilantism. It is very serious and I expect Udenrigsministeriet [Lit: the Foreign Affairs department] will summon the Chinese ambassador,” he says.

   One can hear similar words from Venstre’s (lit: Left) foreign affairs spokesperson, Michael Aastrup Jensen, who wants the Chinese ambassador to explain the episode “in utmost detail” [in a disciplinary manner].

   **The pictures are worrying**

   However, Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod will not yet react to his political colleagues suggestions.

   He will await the conclusion of the investigation underway by the police before he decides how the case will continue.

   But he stresses in a comment to TV2 that the pictures taken from the road in front of the embassy are worrying.

   “Election posters and political speech are a central part of our democratic traditions. Therefore, I find it very problematic if lawfully placed election posters were removed no matter the justification. Lawfully placed election posters must be respected even if one disagrees with the message,” Kofod says.

   North Sealand’s police have confirmed that they have received a police report from Rohden, but does not wish to comment on their investigation both on whether they have interviewed employees from the embassy or will be using the recordings made by De Uafhængige in their investigation.

   The Chinese embassy in Danmark distances themselves from the posters with a tibetian flag that a polician from De Radikale sunday hung up at the embassy in Copenhagen, reports the embassy in a written statement to Ritzau tuesday evening.

   “We express our strong indignation over this intentional provocation. We never interfere in the elections of other countries, but we are strongly against any attempts to interfere in China’s internal matters, undermine its sovereignty or territorial integrity under pretense of campaigning for election or the so-called ‘freedom of speech'”, the statement reads.