Country Foundations

Denmark

Constitution in force since 1953, 6,221 words. Rights measured for 2023.

Declared
49%
mean across compared rights
Practiced
92%
mean across compared rights
Gap
+43%
delivers more than promised
Executive respects constitution
85%
V-Dem, measured directly

The rights ledger

Each row compares what the constitution declares against what is measured in practice. The two values are always shown together — a gap on its own is easy to misread.

Declared in the constitutionPracticed (measured)Falls short / exceeds
0255075100Right to life — declared 0%, practiced 97%, gap +97%Right to life0%97%+97%Freedom from torture — declared 0%, practiced 81%, gap +81%Freedom from torture0%81%+81%Freedom from slavery and forced labour — declared 0%, practiced 86%, gap +86%Freedom from slavery and forced labour0%86%+86%Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) — declared 100%, practiced 100%, gap ±0%Freedom from arbitrary detention (ha…100%100%±0%Right to a fair and public trial — declared 33%, practiced 97%, gap +64%Right to a fair and public trial33%97%+64%Presumption of innocence — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Presumption of innocenceno practice measure0%——Right to legal counsel — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to legal counselno practice measure0%——Protection from self-incrimination — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from self-incriminationno practice measure0%——Protection from double jeopardy — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from double jeopardyno practice measure0%——Due process of law — declared 0%, practiced 92%, gap +92%Due process of law0%92%+92%Trial by jury or lay participation — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Trial by jury or lay participationno practice measure100%——Freedom of expression — declared 100%, practiced 97%, gap −3%Freedom of expression100%97%−3%Freedom of the press — declared 100%, practiced 96%, gap −4%Freedom of the press100%96%−4%Freedom of thought and conscience — declared 100%, practiced 93%, gap −7%Freedom of thought and conscience100%93%−7%Freedom of religion — declared 100%, practiced 90%, gap −10%Freedom of religion100%90%−10%Separation of religion and state — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Separation of religion and stateno practice measure0%——Academic freedom — declared 0%, practiced 86%, gap +86%Academic freedom0%86%+86%Freedom of assembly — declared 100%, practiced 87%, gap −13%Freedom of assembly100%87%−13%Freedom of association — declared 100%, practiced 92%, gap −8%Freedom of association100%92%−8%Right to petition government — declared 50%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to petition governmentno practice measure50%——Right to form and join trade unions — declared 0%, practiced 88%, gap +88%Right to form and join trade unions0%88%+88%Right to vote and universal suffrage — declared 0%, practiced 92%, gap +92%Right to vote and universal suffrage0%92%+92%Right to privacy — declared 0%, practiced 97%, gap +97%Right to privacy0%97%+97%Freedom of movement — declared 0%, practiced 91%, gap +91%Freedom of movement0%91%+91%Right to asylum — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to asylumno practice measure0%——Right to own property — declared 88%, practiced 94%, gap +7%Right to own property88%94%+7%Equality before the law — declared 100%, practiced 92%, gap −8%Equality before the law100%92%−8%Right to education — declared 100%, practiced 93%, gap −7%Right to education100%93%−7%Right to health care — declared 0%, practiced 100%, gap +100%Right to health care0%100%+100%Right to shelter or housing — declared 0%, practiced 82%, gap +82%Right to shelter or housing0%82%+82%Independent judiciary — declared 100%, practiced 96%, gap −4%Independent judiciary100%96%−4%Right to bear arms — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to bear armsno practice measure0%——decl.prac.gap

· marks a right with no provision in that country’s constitution. Scores run 0–100; practiced values are V-Dem indicators normalized across all country-years.

Promise and practice over time

The declared line steps when the constitution changes. The practiced line moves when behaviour does. The distance between those two moments is the part worth looking at.

Declared (the text)Practiced (measured)The text changed
0501001863: constitutional text changed (−48 pts declared)1866: constitutional text changed (+27 pts declared)1915: constitutional text changed (+11 pts declared)1953: constitutional text changed (+7 pts declared)1850190019502000

Mean across the 23 rights measured on both sides, 1849–2023. Vertical marks show years when the constitutional text changed enough to move the declared score.

Delivered, though never promised

  • Right to life +97%
  • Freedom from torture +81%
  • Freedom from slavery and forced labour +86%
  • Due process of law +92%

Declared internationally

A constitution is only one place a country makes promises. These are the nine core UN human rights treaties.

Civil & Political Rights (ICCPR)ratified 1972
Economic, Social & Cultural Rights (ICESCR)ratified 1972
Racial Discrimination (ICERD)ratified 1971
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)ratified 1983
Convention against Torture (CAT)ratified 1987
Rights of the Child (CRC)ratified 1991
Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)ratified 2009
Enforced Disappearance (CPED)ratified 2022
Migrant Workers (ICMW)no action

Compare with

AfghanistanAlbaniaAlgeriaAngolaArgentinaArmeniaAustraliaAzerbaijanBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBeninBhutanBoliviaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBrazilBulgariaBurkina FasoBurma/MyanmarBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaColombiaComorosCosta RicaCroatiaCubaCyprusDemocratic Republic of the CongoDjiboutiDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEswatiniEthiopiaFijiFinlandFranceGabonGeorgiaGhanaGreeceGuatemalaGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyanaHaiti

Data generated 2026-08-08.