Central Intelligence Agency

“ Conservative Party One of the oldest and largest political groups, the Conservative Party draws its support, as it has throughout its history, from the urban upper middle class - the industrialists, financial and business interests, white-collar workers, and state officials - and from the large landowners. During the latter part of the 19th century, it held, with the Monarch's assent, the reins of power, to the deep chagrin of the more numerous Moderate Liberals. ”

“ The dominance of the Social Democratic Party from the mid-1920s to the mid-1960s provided direction and continuity for Danish efforts in the domestic realm, and the bourgeois parties during the short breaks in Socialist power largely abstained from attempting to reverse what had been accomplished. Despite philosophical and practical differences, Danes of all political persuasions tend to agree that the government has an important role in guiding the domestic life of the nation, and that it should seek in some fashion to promote national growth and the general welfare of the people. ”

“ This rational and pragmatic approach to politics is a latter-day phenomenon for Denmark, which has experienced during the millennium of its political existence various political forms and various levels of national power. The Danes derive satisfaction from the history of their ancient kingdom and its long-lived independence, recalling with pride those days when Copenhagen was the capital of northern Europe. ”

“ It is the Prime Minister and the Cabinet, acting in the Queen's name, which exercise the bulk of the executive power. Probably the Queen's most significant independent power lies in her right to appoint the Prime Minister and the Cabinet ministers. But here, the Queen must consult with parliamentary leaders to determine the public will, since the Cabinet may be dismissed by a vote of no confidence in the Folketing; only when the political balance is obscure does she tentatively act with independence. ”

“ Recognizing that their taxes are the second highest in the free world, after those imposed on their Swedish cousins, the industrious Danes are prepared to go easy on further socialization and welfarism. The more dynamic entrepreneurs, whose imagination and skills produced Denmark's post-World War II economic miracle, not only opposed vigorously further taxation, but find the Social Democrats' "economic democracy" platform particularly unpalatable. Their influence on future policy, even that of a Social Democratic government, cannot be discounted. ”

“ Even the bourgeois parties, when in power, have felt the need to maintain a forward thrust on all sections of the domestic front, tailoring their foreign concerns to the maintenance of economic progress at home. By the early 1970s, however, such continued momentum was becoming difficult to sustain. The essential long term balance between socialization and the continued stimulation of private economic initiative - a balance which most observers of the scene consider the cornerstone of the markedly successful Scandinavian development - seemed in mid-1973 to be in some jeopardy. ”

“ Parliamentary government, free enterprise, and the welfare system are accepted by all significant political parties. Differences center about the rate of expansion of the state welfare system, the extent of government controls on business, and, most recently, the desirability of continued socialization in the labor force - the imposition of "economic democracy." Parties tend to represent particular economic interests, which they hope to advance through maneuver and compromise in the delicately balanced multi-party parliament. ”

“ Political life is characterized by stability and compromise. As in the other Scandinavian countries, a multi-party system functions with relative efficiency because of the essential pragmatism of Danish politicians and a lack of divisive issues among the population. The Social Democratic Party, while carrying on its pre-World War II role as the leading political force, has seen its strength eroded, first by the rising appeal of parties to its left and then, since 1968, by the enhanced popularity of the parties to its right. ”

“ The Radical Liberals theorize that the stability of Danish society rests upon the strength of the family. Thus, they enthusiastically support Socialist welfare efforts, such as the improvement of housing, old-age pensions, and health coverage. On economic matters, however, the Radicals remain the ideological cousins of the Moderate Liberals, endorsing the principle of private ownership and initiative on the one hand but admitting on the other the need for certain government interventions, as in the case of monopolies and prolonged labor disputes, to protect free enterprise. ”

“ Large minorities among the Radical Liberals and indeed the governing Social Democrats disapprove of Denmark's military participation in the Alliance, while all the far left factions remain opposed. Nonetheless, the Social Democrats, the Conservatives, and the two Liberal parties reached accord in February 1973, which in effect assured continued NATO adherence through 1977.
Politicians tend to view most issues as if through bifocals: one lens bringing into sharpest focus their party's history and tradition, the other lends revealing most clear the needs of present day political pragmatism. ”

“ Together with Norway, Sweden, and Finland, Denmark has moved to establish a permanent standby force of about 5,000 men, which can be placed at the disposal of the United Nations at short notice if needed to meet an emergency.
Denmark, through its membership on the UN Committee on Decolonization, has assisted at the birth of several new nations and has sought to mediate in areas of friction between Afro-Asian members and the European powers. A Danish tendency to sympathize with emergent nations has led to friction between Copenhagen and other European capitals, particularly Lisbon. ”

“ Foreign Since the end of World War II the Danish attitude toward world affairs has undergone a radical change. No longer confining their attention to those small problems which affect their national interests directly, the Danes have expanded their participation in international affairs to a marked degree. In common with their Scandinavian colleagues, to be sure, the Danes are sometimes motivated by simplistic moral impulses in their evaluation of complicated world problems. Thus, they tend to display an indiscriminate enthusiasm for "liberation" movements in the underdeveloped world. ”

“ Paradoxically, the Danes have established this record for governmental continuity with the same multi-party parliamentary system which has proved the home of democratic government outside of Scandinavia. To the big-party politician in Denmark it is common sense to practice the art of political compromise in the interest of administrative achievement and subsequent reelection. The closed-minded, doctrinaire approach is left to the politicians on the fringes. Since World War II all governments but three, whether single-party or coalition Cabinets, have rested on a shaky minority in parliament. ”

“ Appealing largely to small, independent businessmen and shopkeepers, the as-yet-to-be-organized Progressive Party was garnering a large "protest vote," recent public opinion surveys showing almost a quarter of the respondents supporting it. The phenomenon reflects the persisting doubts concerning the unlimited expansion of social welfare, the responsiveness of existing institutions to valid popular needs and desires, and where the balance lies between the needs of all society and the freedom and rights of the individual. ”

“ Only a few groups prefer that their interests not be entrusted to a particular party. One outstanding example, the Danish Women Citizens' Society, was founded in 1871 to gain through its own pressure activity "social and legal equality for the Danish women." Having secured voting, employment, education, and marital rights over the years with relative ease, the society continues to function principally as a watchdog pressure group to see that the law is observed. In 1964 the society rejected a proposal that it transform itself into a political party. ”

“ Thus, the civil servant tends to share with the Monarch the continuous and permanent political tradition and provides a steady hand for the exercise of long-established policy, a condition highly agreeable to the relatively smooth running Danish welfare state but one occasionally disagreeable to a Cabinet minister with new ideas.
The higher echelons of the civil service are occupied almost invariably by those with a university education. ”

“ With the revival of the economy, the government turned its attention to the improvement of the quality of life. The modern social welfare era dates from 1933, when a series of four acts known as the Social Reform overhauled and rationalized the various programs which had been introduced almost haphazardly from the turn of the century to the mid-1920s. In the post-World War II era the government promoted considerable legislation to further modernize and broaden the already comprehensive system. ”

“ While the Danish legislators may feel confident of their ability to keep the executive branch in line, they also are aware that they and their works are subject to the judgement of the electorate, which at least once every 4 years has the right to deprive them of their highly prized political position and power. By means of the popular referendum, another innovation of the 1953 Constitution, most categories of the national legislation may be subjected to the review of the electorate and may on occasion be defeated, as were the government land laws in June 1963. ”

“ The Danish society tends to be stable; the populace, law-abiding. The small police force is efficient, impartial, and generally adequate in numbers. The courts dispense equal justice. Both the courts and the police enjoy broad public respect and support. Over the years the police system has been modernized in structure and operating procedure.
Although Denmark enjoys considerable local self-government, the Danish police are organized as a state force, with control from the national rather than the local level. Until 1911 the police operated strictly at the local level. ”

“ To the extent that the United Nations failed to live up to its original promise as the guarantor of international security, the Danes have been disappointed, but they have shown a readiness to work for a strengthening of its practical programs and for an enhancement of its prestige. Within the UN framework, Denmark seeks the role of a conciliator, though not at the expense of principle. ”

“ There is general across-the-board agreement among the many parties that the government must on occasion intervene to control the economy - the only recent dissenter being the now defunct Independent Party of the far right, which advocated virtually an unadulterated laissez-faire system. ”

“ One-third of the members of the Folketing may demand a referendum, and if both a majority of those voting in the referendum and not less than 30% of all eligible say "no," then the bill is defeated. Thus the referendum may take the initiative from the representatives of the people squarely to the people, providing a further popular check on governmental processes. Perhaps only among the Danes, and their similarly pragmatic, homogenous Scandinavian neighbors, can so popularly responsive a political system continue to work effectively. ”

“ The Danish parties, large or small, share many of the same attitudes and objectives, differing more in their views as to how the goals should be attained. Seven of the 10 parties shown - all except the pivotal Socialist People's Party, and the insignificant Left Socialist and Communist Parties - are democratically oriented in the Western sense. Notwithstanding the national sensitivity to political freedom, some citizens would give the Socialist People's Party and the Left Socialist Party the benefit of the doubt. ”

“ The Danish Government restricts itself to asking for similar cultural guarantees for the minority Danes living on the West German side of the border; self-determination through a plebiscite is no longer being pressed. Such guarantees, on the whole, have been forthcoming from Bonn. Nonetheless, until Denmark's accession to the EC in January 1973, which could have a bearing on the relationship, the status and the future of the Danish minority in West Germany have sporadically have been an issue in Danish politics. ”