Justice minister wants tougher punishment for those who violate their tolerated-stay permits

Ankle monitors brought into mix

The justice minister, Mette Frederiksen, wants more stringent consequences for foreigners on tolerated-stay permits who don't register with the police as they are supposed to.

Frederiksen said that she had no qualms about handing down tougher punishments or using ankle monitors to crack down on the thousands on tolerated-stay permits who fail to adhere to their registry requirements.

“I don't have any problems using that tool [ankle monitor],” Frederiksen said according to Jyllands-Posten newspaper. “If it is correct that it has never been used, then it should be included in that report that I will receive from the authorities.”

The option to use an ankle monitor already exists in Danish legislation, but it has yet to be used in practice. The issue has become part of the Justice Ministry's agenda after a significant increase in people on tolerated-stay permits not registering with the police.

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Can't be sent home
People on tolerated-stay permits are people whose residence permits have been rejected by the Danish state, but who can't be sent back to their home countries as they risk being killed, tortured or otherwise persecuted.

In 2014, 33 people on tolerated-stay permits violated their registry duties 3,515 times, and then ten of them have disappeared.

Of the 66 persons currently on tolerated-stay permits in Denmark, five are suspected of committing war crimes, crimes against humanity or crimes against peace, while 17 are suspected of other serious, non-political crimes and actions that go against UN principles.