Denmark ex-immigration minister sentenced

Former Danish immigration minister Inger Stojberg has been sentenced to 60 days in prison for misconduct in office after a special court found her guilty.

A clear majority of an impeachment court specially appointed for this trial concluded that Stojberg had acted with intent in a case regarding the separation of an asylum-seeking couple from Syria.

The prosecution had demanded four months in prison, the defence acquittal.

"I am very, very surprised, I must say," Stojberg said in response to the verdict, which she cannot appeal.

A majority of the court concluded that the instruction at the heart of the case had been unlawful, court chairman Thomas Rordam said upon delivering the verdict in Copenhagen.

Twenty-five of the 26 judges were in favour of conviction and one was in favour of acquittal, Rordam said.

Stojberg served as minister for immigration and integration from 2015 to 2019 under then-head of government Lars Lokke Rasmussen.

The conservative politician is accused of having unlawfully ordered the separation of a couple from Syria because the woman was a minor.

Her ministry had said in a memo in February 2016 that all asylum-seeking couples would be housed separately without exception if one of the partners was a minor.

According to the court, this was illegal.

Twenty-three couples were affected.

Stojberg has repeatedly denied giving any illegal order, saying the aim of the action was to stamp out child marriages and protect underage girls.

A majority of Danish MPs voted in early February to try Stojberg in the special court for misconduct in office - a very rare procedure in Denmark.

The system deals with accusations against ministers for unauthorised exercise of office.

This is only the sixth such trial in Danish history and the second in the past 100 years.

with Reuters