Coronavirus DK: Why aren’t face masks necessary?

(This is the first part of a two-part post.)

During the COVID-19 pandemic, face masks have become a flashpoint of contention in America between those who favor precautions and lockdown and those who rebel against them in the name of personal freedom or because of skepticism about the disease. Masks have become the new symbol of the culture wars in the United States between the Right and Left. The CDC recommends them, and many states and cities require people to wear them on public transport, in stores and elsewhere. According to a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll, “Roughly two-thirds of Americans said they always wear a mask when they leave the house.” Yet the country has the highest number of deaths from COVID-19 in the world, and although the epidemic might be plateauing, it is not yet under control.

Worse than nothing?

In contrast, Denmark, where coronavirus infections continue to subside during the reopening of the economy, has never required masks. The government has followed the precautionary principle with a stricter lockdown than the Danish Health Authority recommended even while it drew criticism from the private sector and the right-wing opposition. Danes are much more acculturated to acting in the collective interest than Americans, yet masks have been considered unnecessary. In fact, the government and the Health Authority have always advised healthy people not to wear them because they can do more harm than good. None of the other Scandinavian countries has required masks either, and except for Sweden, which has followed a laissez faire policy, they have had an even lower infection rate than Denmark. 

So what is the reality? Do masks work at all in nonmedical settings, and if so, do the benefits outweigh the costs? Is it possible that the masks and all the strife they have occasioned in the United States have been unnecessary and even counterproductive?

False security

Masks clearly have value a protective value when health professionals wear them while treating infected patients, and there appears to be strong evidence that they reduce the spread of the virus from infected persons. Whether they have much protective value for the wearers is not as well established. What is the downside the Danish Health Authority alludes to? This is the government’s position, explained on the English FAQ page of its coronavirus website, under the heading “Other questions”: “The Danish Health Authority does not encourage healthy individuals who go about their daily business to wear mouth or face masks as is [sic] uncertain that they have any effect on virus transmission.”

The Health Authority does not deny that masks might be beneficial or reject their use altogether. They are recommended in certain situations, “such as prolonged or frequent close face-to-face contacts with customers/clients.” They are also advisable for persons in high-risk groups in “situations where you get very close to others, for example if you have to take public transport during rush hour.” 

But these are the reasons against general use: First, the infection rate in Denmark is low; people are generally conscientious about following advice on hygiene and social distancing; and in ordinary situations they are not at much risk of infection. Masks can be a liability if you don’t use them correctly, so that they cover the mouth and nose fully, and do not dispose of them correctly. If you adjust them often, your hands can become contaminated. If you wear a paper mask for too long, it may become wet and ineffective. You should not try to make your own fabric mask because it protects less well than a surgical mask. Masks can lull people into a false sense of security and make them less careful in following the guidelines on hand-washing and social distancing. They may also make people with symptoms believe they need not isolate themselves.

Practical disadvantages

The Authority argues rather that, in situations where people observe hygienic guidelines, the additional value of masks is slight and does not outweigh the risks that masks themselves entail and the disadvantages of using them. You must find them, buy them in a large supply, and replace them or wash them regularly. If everyone is wearing masks, you cannot see people’s faces and might not be able to understand their speech as easily. Some people might experience difficulty breathing. This is aside from another negative effect that is more relevant to America: the advantage it gives thieves by turning their disguise into ordinary apparel. They don’t look suspicious when they enter a store to rob it, and on the way out they don’t need to remove their masks at just the right moment between the security camera and the street.

(To be continued.)

Coronavirus DK: Backlash against packed demonstration

After seeing news reports and video clips of thousands of demonstrators crowded together on Sunday to protest against racism and police brutality in the US, many people reacted with outrage and criticism (DK). In comment fields and on social media, they expressed surprise that so many were indifferent to the risks they ran for both themselves and others. Government officials and healthcare researchers were also concerned. 

“After we kept the elderly in nursing homes isolated, people have gone bankrupt, children have not been in school, 15,000 people run out and rub against one another just when we are about to get control of the infections. IT IS INSANE,” tweeted former Minister of Justice Søren Pind. 

“Grotesque!” concurred Kristian Thulesen Dahl (DK) from the Danish People’s Party. “I think it’s unbelievable that people were not able to keep their distance,” said Karsten Hønge, political spokesperson for the Socialist People’s Party, who attended the demonstration himself.

On Facebook (DK), people wrote that they were angry that while they unable to visit sick relatives and there was a strict limit on how many could attend the funeral of an old friend, there were apparently no rules or common sense at the demonstration. “It shows a lack of respect.” 

“‘But what about corona?’ asked my four-year-old child when she watched the news,” a parent tweeted (DK). “She is much wiser than about 15,000 grown-ups.”

Quarantine yourself and get tested

Jesper Petersen, political spokesperson for the Social Democrats, said that the participants should be tested for the coronavirus. People were within their rights to exercise their freedom of assembly for a political purpose and there was no law that said they had to be tested, Petersen added, but they might as well use the testing capacity that has been set up and is available to everyone.

“If you know someone who is in a high-risk group, you should be responsible and go into quarantine in order to make sure that you haven’t become infected,” said Thea Kølsen Fischer, head of research at North Zealand Hospital, warning that such events were prime occasions for superspreading. MP Rosa Lund from the Red-Green Party, who took part in the demonstration, said she will be tested.

Health minister less concerned

Minister of Health Magnus Heunicke (DK), on the other hand, did not think that everyone necessarily needed to be tested. “It depends on who you are in contact with on a daily basis and what you have done at this demonstration. . . . If you have kept your distance from others and been calm, then you should just be aware of symptoms.”

Leaders of Black Lives Matter Denmark, which arranged the event, did not respond to inquiries from reporters. One of the speakers at the gathering, Roger Courage Matthisen, said that the organization encouraged demonstrators to wear face masks and practice social distancing. “Afterward, it is up to citizens to take responsibility for how they will behave at this demonstration.” The organization is planning to hold demonstrations in two more cities, and more than 2,000 people have indicated that they will attend. 

Anyone can register for a test at coronaprover.dk (DK). The Health Authority recommends that people be tested on the fourth and sixth days after they have been exposed to a potential risk of infection.

(Coronavirus DK will be back on Thursday. Stay safe.)

#ICantBreathe DK

Yesterday in Copenhagen, like hundreds of thousands of others around the world, some 15,000 people took part in a demonstration to protest the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis and generally against police brutality and racism (DK). The demonstration, which was arranged by Black Lives Matter Denmark, began across the street from the US Embassy, and the attendees marched to the city center and gathered again in front of the Parliament building. 

The marchers chanted slogans such as “No justice, no peace. Prosecute the police!” But in contrast to developments in many American cities, the protest remained peaceful. It did not appear to contain radical elements from the Autonomous movement, Denmark’s equivalent of Antifa, which have committed vandalism in past demonstrations in Copenhagen. The police tweeted their thanks to the participants for not going amuck. The protest was also aimed at racism in Denmark. Its manifestations may not be as bad as in the US, said some participants, but it also exists in here. One participant spoke of being bullied and harassed and of receiving mail every week with messages such as “N****r pig, go home!”

Systemic racism in Denmark

In the Deadline interview program (DK) yesterday evening, Moussa Mchangama, the chair of Mino Danmark, an organization that promotes opportunities for ethnic minorities, noted that Denmark doesn’t have the same problem with police violence as the US but Floyd’s death has raised awareness that the racism it exemplified is a global phenomenon. Mchangama said that the wave of protests has taken off internationally and in Denmark because such incidents have occurred so many times that people cannot ignore the structural, systematic racism that exists here as well as in the United States. 

Also on the program was Vincent Hendriks (DK), Professor of Philosophy at University of Copenhagen, whose father, a black American, immigrated to Denmark in the 1960s. Hendriks observed that the demonstrations have grown very quickly after this instance of police abuse partly because people have been subjected for months to the coronavirus pandemic, which has hurt minorities and poor people more than others and which has exposed and exacerbated the inequality of wealth and income that have been growing for years.

The virus is still out there

With such a large gathering, healthcare researchers worried that the event could lead to a rise in coronavirus infections, noting that in such situations, a single infected person can pass the virus on to many others. Political events are exempt from the limit on gatherings because freedom of assembly is considered a fundamental democratic right. Today, which begin phase 3 of the reopening of the economy, the limit on gatherings was raised from ten to 50.

Officials hoped that participants would follow the healthcare guidelines and keep a distance from one another. A few of the marchers wore face masks, which have never been mandatory in Denmark. Some appeared to try to maintain one or two meters’ distance from the others, but most of them walked and stood very close to others and did not seem to worry that their chanting also increased the chances that the virus could spread. The only mitigating factor was  that the great majority of the participants were young people, who are relatively resistant to the coronavirus. 

#ICantBreathe demonstrators in central Copenhagen

Coronavirus DK: Reopening the risk of superspreading

Tomorrow, June 8, begins phase 3 of Denmark’s reopening schedule, and the government is recommending that indoor sports and exercise facilities can resume activities (DK). Fitness centers, swimming halls, children’s indoor play areas, and the like have been closed since mid-March. Earlier, this step had been scheduled as part of phase 4, which would begin in August. But since the spread of COVID-19 infections has been low for some time, the government has decided to accelerate the timetable. 

The other political parties agree with the move. “Sports and clubs are bleeding, so it is fortunate that we have reached this stage,” said Orla Østerby, the sports spokesperson for the Conservative Party. “It is good for all age groups that they can move around again.” The various organizations must prepare guidelines for their facilities based on the Health Authority’s general recommendations. The step comes at the same time that the limit on gatherings is being increased from ten to 50 persons.

Health Authority abstains

Concerning the proposal, SSI, the agency responsible for preparedness against infectious diseases, has stated that it is “impossible to make quantitative model calculations (DK) for indoor sports,” partly because there are large variations among different types of sports: for example, the degree of physical contact, the intensity, and the opportunity to clean equipment. Officials from the Sports Federation of Denmark have been impatient to reopen facilities. Morten Mølholm Hansen, the director of the organization says that studies show that the closing of the facilities has had serious consequences for the population: 40 percent of the people who were active in sports have stopped during the coronavirus crisis.

Researchers are doubtful

But some experts are warning (DK) that not everyone should rush back into crowded fitness clubs. Maybe it is better to “wait until the virus is hopefully completely gone before you join a zumba or spinning class if you are elderly or in a high-risk group,” says Thea Kølsen Fischer, head of research at North Zealand Hospital. The problem is that when your pulse speeds up, you breathe deeply, and the infection can easily spread in group activities. Other researchers agree. “It’s hard for me to see how you can make an infection-free fitness center,” says Christian Wejse of Aarhus University Hospital, adding the reopening offers especially good conditions for superspreaders.

Potential antiracist superspreading

Health researchers are also warning about another activity that will take place today, a demonstration against police brutality (DK) in the US occasioned by the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Some 8,000 people on Facebook have indicated interest in attending the event, which has been organized by Black Lives Matter and will begin at the American Embassy in the Østerbro district of Copenhagen. 

With a large number of people close together, chanting or yelling, “It is actually a type of activity that we should avoid completely in order to prevent another outbreak of the epidemic,” says Allan Randrup Thomsen, Professor of Virology at University of Copenhagen. But according to Danish law, political events are exempt from the ban on large gatherings, so the police cannot stop or break up a group of demonstrators unless the event becomes violent. Similar demonstrations against racism in the US took place earlier in the week. Some 2,500 people gathered in Aarhus on Wednesday, including the mayor, and demonstrations have also been held in smaller cities around the country.

Coronavirus DK: Pop the champagne, play ball, and defend Greenland

Maybe Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was reading the same opinion column (DK) as I was yesterday about relaxing the restriction on freedom of assembly because the government has proposed increasing the number of people allowed at a gathering from ten to 50 on Monday. It sent a letter to the other party leaders as a preparation for negotiations on the measure this weekend. The proposal entails a plan to raise the limit on gatherings (DK) in three phases: to 50 on June 8, to 100 on July 8, and to 200 on August 8, with certain exceptions and qualifications. The government has been under increasing pressure to lift the ban recently as the number of COVID-19 infections and deaths continue to decline during the reopening of the economy.

Stay in your seats

The most important exception to the limitations concerns the first phase. The government will allow up to 500 persons to attend an event if the participants are sitting down, for example at a soccer match in a stadium, at a wedding reception in a restaurant, and at an annual general meeting in a conference center, as well as for summer activities for children. The increase to 200 in August will be allowed only for events that are arranged in accordance with “sector partnership guidelines.” The proposal also contains an extension of the limit on space for individuals in private businesses – that is, of one person per 2 square meters – to apply to all locations where attendees are sitting down. The parties had agreed on a general intention to ease the limit on gatherings at earlier negotiations in May. 

The proposal does not cover indoor sports, fitness centers and swimming halls. Negotiations on those activities, which are subject to one of the last remaining prohibitions, are also supposed to be completed by Monday.

Grudging acknowledgment

The other parties were pleased with the news. “It’s about time that the government made this announcement,” said Kristian Thulesen Dahl of the Danish People’s Party, which has wanted people to be able to hold receptions and large parties, which will also help restaurants recover some of their usual revenues. Sophie Løhde from the Liberal Party wished the announcement had come earlier because uncertainty about the prohibition might have caused some people to cancel their wedding plans. She also wants soccer clubs to receive compensation if they normally attract more than 500 spectators. The government’s supporting parties also think the proposal is sensible, adding that they depend on the continued observance of hygienic recommendations as well as contact tracing and isolation of infection cases.

Not him again

If this weren’t enough good news for Constitution Day, Denmark, via the person of Queen Margrethe, received congratulations from an unexpected quarter (DK), none other than the national leader whose reputation has sunk to the most horrendous depths this week. Trump’s people took the time to make this gesture on a day when the president was busy saying that this was "a great day for [George Floyd]" because the unemployment rate fell for the first time since the pandemic hit. The message also mentions the reopening of the US Consulate in Greenland, a reminder of the country’s security interest in the region and Trump’s offer to buy the autonomous territory last year, which was rejected as “absurd” by PM Frederiksen. 

Commentator Troels Mylenberg notes that especially on Constitution Day such congratulations should have been directed toward the democratically elected Parliament rather than a monarchic figurehead and that they wouldn’t have come at all if Trump wasn’t still interested in expanding US activities in Greenland. The message appears on the US Embassy’s website beside an alert about demonstrations against police brutality and racism that will be held in front of the Embassy this weekend. 

Coronavirus DK: Happy Constitution Day, let's party!

Today is Constitution Day in Denmark, the country’s equivalent of the Fourth of July. It is also exactly one year since the latest Danish elections, which brought the Social Democrats to power with Mette Frederiksen as Prime Minister. The party received 26 percent of the vote, not a strong showing, but the right wing was divided and lost votes to the other left-wing parties. The Social Democrats were criticized by traditional left-wing voters particularly for moving to the right on immigration in an attempt to take voters from the nationalistic Danish People’s Party. 

When the coronavirus hit, Frederiksen appealed to the population with the traditional social democratic values of a strong welfare state, especially the healthcare sector, and solidarity across classes in the common cause of containing the epidemic. She was considered almost authoritarian in her adherence to the precautionary principle during the lockdown phase, but her popularity soared. Although the government’s policy was criticized by the right-wing parties and the private sector for being too hard on the economy, Frederiksen won admiration even from former critics for her consistency and ability to communicate effectively to the citizenry. 

Triumph of the welfare state

The Social Democrats are now polling at 34 percent (DK) of the electorate, a level they haven’t seen for decades. National leaders almost always see a boost in popularity during a crisis, but Frederiksen has maintained her support even after segments of the population began to express impatience with the gradual reopening of the economy and disclosures of the government’s rejection of the Health Authority’s recommendation came to light. According to political commentator Erik Holstein, “The Social Democratic Party has succeeded in creating a story that the solution to the coronavirus crisis is the social democratic welfare state.” Holstein expects the polling number to decline somewhat but thinks there is a good possibility that the party can retain some of its new adherents and regain its clear position as the country’s largest party.

Celebrating Constitution Day on Zoom

Denmark has seen some protests against the lockdown that claim that the threat of the coronavirus has been vastly exaggerated and the government is using the crisis as a pretext to implement authoritarian controls on the population. But such charges bordering on conspiracy theory have never gained a substantial following. On the occasion of Constitution Day, however, the issue is being raised in another quarter, the Institute for Human Rights (DK). Louise Holck, the head of the organization, notes that this year Constitution Day must be observed in a different way than usual because our freedom of assembly is being limited. 

Holck asks how long Danish citizens’ rights should be restricted as drastically as they have been during the crisis. The right to assembly is one of the fundamental rights in a democratic society, and it is closely related to the essential right to expression. It is in gatherings that citizens express and exchange ideas. The Constitution says that citizens “have a right to gather unarmed without advance permission.” It says nothing about restrictions on peaceful gatherings, but the prevailing interpretation is that such restrictions should be “necessary and proportional.”

Speed up the reopening

Holck does not deny that the limitation on gatherings was necessary when the lockdown was announced on March 13 and while the epidemic continued to pose a clear threat to the population. Her position is similar to that of conservative party leaders, who questioned only the extent and duration of lockdown. But now, as the number of patients hospitalized has fallen below 100 and the economy is reopening, the restriction no longer seems "proportional": “It is harder and harder to see the justification for maintaining a ban on gatherings as small as 11 persons.”

The government has said that it will consider raising the limit on gatherings this month.

Coronavirus DK: H.S. grads may carouse as usual

As the latest sign that Denmark believes it has the insidious coronavirus under control, this piece of breaking news hit the media yesterday: Government gives green light to high school graduation joyride (DK). You may recall that, as I reported a couple of weeks ago, at a debate about the government’s handling of the pandemic (DK), the leaders of the parliamentary parties discussed this graduation tradition:

Some people say Danish teenagers are spoiled. There is a tradition here that just after their graduation ceremony, gymnasium (high school) students are drawn around town in a large open trailer, cheering and honking, stopping at their homes for snacks, and drinking and partying long into the night. There has been some concern that this year’s graduates may not be able to enjoy the custom because of the epidemic and the increased risk of its spreading under those conditions.

At the political debate on Thursday, several of the party leaders expressed a wish that this graduating class not miss out on this rich tradition (DK), even if it was borderline unadvisable because of the difficulty of following hygienic guidelines when drunk. One of them, Josephine Fock of the small Alternative Party, made the heretical suggestion that the rides could be held without drinking. After the debate, however, Fock clarified in a tweet (DK) that she had meant it only as an alternative if the rides would otherwise be disallowed and that she also preferred that they take place “WITH alcohol.”

Are these kids being indulged? Only yesterday, I wrote about a group of high school students who took a trip to Sweden despite the government’s travel restrictions and exposed their classmates to their infections (DK). The mayor’s response: Don’t scold them – help them.

Had their hearts set on it

After thorough deliberation, Pernille Rosenkrantz-Thiel, the Minister for Children and Education,  could announce, “I have the incomprehensibly good news for students that, yes, they may ride in the trailers.” There was broad support for the decision across party lines. 

There will be some modifications to the graduation ceremony, however. Instead of the entire graduating class gathering in an auditorium to receive their diplomas, the diplomas will be awarded in smaller class units of about 30 students each. “As a government and a parliament, we had to consider the total package,” explained Rosenkrantz-Theil, “and we know from the students themselves that the most important aspect has been the trailer ride.”

Turns Health Authority’s advice on its head

This plan is actually the opposite of the recommendation from the Health Authority, which would allow the ceremony with all the graduates but would prohibit the ride. Rosenkrantz-Thiel stressed, however, that the tradition of jumping into fountains around the city and large parties with several smaller classes together would not be allowed. Negotiations about other details of the proceedings are under way. 

Other MPs endorsed the decision: It is “totally extremely important for the young people” to ride around, said Jens Henrik Thulesen Dahl of the Danish People’s Party. “Now the Health Authority must put on its work clothing and formulate some guidelines for how it can take place in a sensible way,” said Ellen Trane Nørby of the Liberal Party.

The main ingredient

The big question was then whether alcohol would be permitted. As Rozencrantz-Thiel put it, it is important for Parliament that “the young are allowed to be young. . . . So it will be with alcohol, but with slightly different guidelines than normal.”

The students themselves were of course pleased. (DK). “We are young, of course,” said Oliver Asmund Bornemann, chair of the Confederation of Commerce Students. “And we must be allowed to be. That also entails drinking alcohol and kissing on the graduation trailer.”

Coronavirus DK: It’s not over yet, Part 2

After praising citizens for their careful behavior on Pentecost weekend, the police needed to declare an area in Copenhagen off-limits (DK) because too many people were gathering there. The temperature in Denmark has risen to the highest level of the year, all of 75 degrees, and many went to popular spots at the beaches and harbors. One of the hotspots was the Sandkai and Goteborg Plads waterfront area in Nordhavn, which lies along the Sound in the northern district of Copenhagen. 

The place was full of sunbathers lying beside one another and not observing the guidelines on social distancing and limiting gatherings to ten persons. “Citizens did not follow our directions to go to places where there are not so many people,” wrote the police in a press release. People may still pass through the zone and swim from the quay, but they must leave immediately after swimming or else face the possibility of a fine of up to DKK 2,500 ($350). The ban applies until Thursday evening. The ban on gatherings expires on June 8, when the government has said that it will consider raising the limit from ten to 30 to 50 persons if the spread of infections remains under control.

Disperse and regroup

After the ban went into effect, there were reports that many people simply moved to Marmorbyen (DK), a nearby area on the other side of the water, and crowds were congregating there. The sunbathers understood why the police took action, but some were not concerned about the risk of infection. “Honestly, I see better and better news that the infection rate is low and fewer than ever are hospitalized and few deaths,” said one of them. “So in my mind, the worst is over.”

A month ago the Social Liberal Party proposed that the city of Copenhagen expand the number of bathing zones in order to spread out the sunbathers, and it appears that the city is now taking steps to set up new areas near the city center.

The lure of forbidden Sweden

On Monday there was a report that five high school students who had been on a trip to Sweden on Ascension Day weekend had tested positive after they returned to school (DK) and the principal had cancelled classes for a week for all first-year students at the school, Roskilde Cathedral School. A total of 12 students had been together on the trip, which had not been organized or authorized by the school. 

It is not certain that the students became infected in Sweden, but the trip violated the government’s restrictions on unnecessary travel abroad. Sweden has not implemented a strict lockdown and has a much higher rate of infection than Denmark. It is not one of the three neighboring countries in the region covered by the plan to reopen the borders to tourists on June 15. Sweden does not prohibit Danes from entering, however. Many Danes have summer houses in southern Sweden and visit them often. “You wonder why the pupils didn’t think more carefully [about the trip],” said Claus Niller Nielsen, the principal. “You wonder why there wasn’t an adult somewhere who put their foot down about the trip.”

Mixed reactions

The incident prompted a representative of the Foreign Ministry to reiterate the government’s warning (DK) against traveling abroad and reminder that travelers returning from other countries should be quarantined for 14 days. While a representative of the students’ organization was annoyed that the entire class had to miss out on classroom teaching again soon after they had returned to school, the mayor of Roskilde, Tomas Breddam, a Social Democrat, took a more indulgent view: "I think we can all remember what it was like to be a first-year high school student at the start of summer. I don’t think we should scold [them], I think we should try to help.”

Coronavirus DK: Virus-cross'd lovers petition border control

When Denmark began to relax its lockdown restrictions, it opened its borders up for a certain number of people with “worthy purposes” – those who work in the country or must deliver goods here – and close family members, meaning spouses, partners, parents and children of someone who lives in Denmark. On Thursday, the government announced that it will expand entry permission on June 15 to include residents of Germany, Norway and Iceland who have a romantic relationship with or are grandparents of someone living in Denmark as well as to people who rent a summer house here. 

The limitations were a great disappointment to many others who weren’t in that category, perhaps most of all to fiancés and fiancées of Danes in countries other than the chosen three. Some of these couples had planned to hold their weddings this summer, and now one of the partners is stranded (DK) in his or her home country because of what they feel is an arbitrary and pointless distinction. They say it is discrimination. They have complained to the government and founded a Facebook group: “Lovers Separated by the Border Closing during Coronavirus.”

Marriage postponed indefinitely

Ninna Nielsen, from Odense, and Timmie Mathews, from Virginia, for example, have been a couple for eight years and were planning to be married in Denmark in September. Now their plans are ruined. Timmie was in the US on March 14, when Denmark closed its borders, and has been locked out since. They don’t know when they will see each other again except in their daily Skype calls. They had been hoping for good news on Thursday, with the loosening of restrictions, but the government’s tentative next step after this one will be to open the borders after the summer for tourists from other EU member states and the UK.

“I don’t understand why they should discriminate according to what country your boyfriend happens to come from,” says Ninna. “Especially when at the same time the borders are open for spouses from anywhere in the world.”

Separated by a formality

“What I don’t understand is why there is a difference between spouses and lovers,” says Sanne Jacobsen, whose boyfriend has been stuck in New Hampshire since February. “There are of course many Danes who live together for years without getting married.”

There are 546 members of the Facebook group. They have written to members of Parliament, arguing that they do not pose a significant risk of starting a chain of infections, and they have received many sympathetic responses, even from members of the ruling Social Democratic Party, which has set the policy. But their pleas to the government have been refused. Besides making it impossible for them to plan their lives, many say they are suffering emotional stress and anxiety.

No exceptions to the precautionary principle 

When Jeppe Bruus, the Social Democrats’ spokesperson for legal matters, was asked why lovers from countries besides Germany, Norway and Iceland may not join their partners in Denmark, he replied that the policy is to reopen the borders in a controlled manner in order to minimize the risk of a new outbreak, in accordance with the precautionary principle that the government has followed throughout the crisis, noting that South Korea has recently had to reimplement a lockdown. The three countries Denmark is opening up to this month “are close to us and at a similar stage in their management of the pandemic.” 

Bruus couldn’t offer any promises or hopes to the frustrated couples. Sanne Jakobsen says that Iceland might open its borders for everyone soon, and she and her partner would consider meeting and getting married there so that he would become eligible to enter Denmark.

Coronavirus DK: Auspicious start to summer - at least here

On the day when the number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients fell below 100 (DK) for the first time since March 17, two researchers presented a study showing why Denmark has kept the pandemic under control.

In the week from March 17 to March 25, the number hospitalizations rose from 82 to 350, and since then it has fallen steadily to 98 yesterday, with only 20 in ICUs. The number of deaths from COVID-19 has followed a similar trend and now stands at 574. The government’s lockdown went into effect on March 13, and the trend continued downward after it began to lift restrictions on April 15.

Pareto logic

Lone Simonsen, Professor of Public Health at Roskilde University, and Kim Sneppen, Professor of Biocomplexity at the Niels Bohr Institute, have found an explanation of why the epidemic has subsided (DK) even after the increase in contact between people since the reopening. The conclusion of their study, which is based on international data, is that very few persons account for the large majority of infections, and Denmark has succeeded in limiting the influence of these superspreaders. 

The researchers found that about 10 percent of the population is responsible for 80 percent of the spread of the virus and that the largest number of infections take place at events with many participants such as concerts and sporting events. This is an example of the 80/20 rule, or the Pareto Principle, which holds that 20 percent of a phenomenon often accounts for 80 percent of the effect. Even though Denmark allowed schools to open, for example, it was able to keep the spread at bay by limiting the number of people at gatherings and avoiding potential superspreader events.

Praise from the police

The positive trend has also depended on people’s cooperation in following the government and the Health Authority’s guidelines, and the police, who are responsible for enforcing them, have just reported that they continue to do so. This is a holiday weekend. The Monday after Pentecost, or Whit Sunday, is also a holiday in Denmark, and this one of the long spring weekends when people spend more time outdoors and gather with family and friends. The weather has improved, and many are at the beaches. Restaurants and cafes have reopened recently, and the sun doesn’t set until 9:30 p.m. 

Nevertheless, the police have sent several complimentary tweets (DK) from their extra patrols around the country and report that people are avoiding large gatherings and observing social distancing recommendations: “There are certain places where people do not understand [the ban on large gatherings] and we need to get out the tablet and give a fine, but they are very few cases.” 

Since the spread of the infection is under control and the reopening is progressing steadily, people might forget that some restrictions are still in force. A violation of the ban on gatherings can still cost DKK 1,500 (about $215). The police have designated several spots where people traditionally gather as warning zones that they can close if there are too many people. Restaurants and bars must close by midnight. During the weekend, the police have made spot checks and reminded proprietors to observe the distancing requirements.

Solidarity with citizens of a failed state

From personal observation, I would say that the police are putting an optimistic spin on the situation in order to encourage people to do the right thing. But the very fact that they offer positive, encouraging comments highlights the extreme contrast to the disastrous situation in the United States at the moment in the wake of George Floyd’s death. While Danes have been very dismayed at the Trump administration’s mishandling and aggravation of the pandemic, the country’s current descent into violence and chaos is appalling and scarcely conceivable for people with the good fortune to be living here in Denmark. Local Black Lives Matter activists and others held a demonstration in front of the US Embassy yesterday, and as the police themselves predicted, it was peaceful.