A prominent member of the Danish People's Party apologizes to Syrian high school student Luna Arab and sends her a bouquet of roses.
Mikkel Bjørn, a prominent member of the Danish People's Party (DF), a right-wing blue party, criticized a high school student over her surname, and is now sending her flowers, according to TV2 Fyn.
The story began when Mikkel Bjørn sent a question under Article 20 to the Minister for Foreigners and Integration, Rasmus Stoklund, in November of last year, mentioning the name Luna Arab and stating that in his opinion, her surname “Arab” could not be reconciled with her being “Danish.”.
In addition, politician Mikkel Björn urged the 18-year-old Luna Arab to return to her home country, “where this name is more appropriate.”.
But after Luna Arab spoke to Danish media, Mikkel Bjørn, the elected member of parliament for the city of Fyn, is now significantly backing down in the face of Luna Arab, the Syrian girl from Middelfart.
Mikkel Bjørn’s question in paragraph 20 about Luna Arab arose from the fact that the newspaper Ekstrabladet wrote an article last autumn stating that Luna Arab was upset about not being able to obtain Danish citizenship because of Denmark’s presidency of the European Union. The Danish government postponed the sessions discussing Danish citizenship, which affected a large number of young people who lost the opportunity to obtain Danish citizenship before they turned 18. Because of the postponement of the parliamentary sessions, they will now have to wait and meet the complex conditions to apply for Danish citizenship after several years.
As for the young woman Luna Arab, she came to Denmark from Syria at the age of five, and according to her, that does not justify at all Mikkel Bjørn's questions about her, as she told the source: “One should not judge a person by their name, but rather look at their essence. This particular politician from the Danish People's Party stated that I do not deserve to be in the country, and that I should be expelled because of my family name.”
A statement Mikkel Björn now regrets. An hour after TV2 Fyn's interview with Luna Arab, Björn backtracked on his remarks and offered a sincere apology, stating: “It was a hopeless question, a terrible mistake. So, as a small gesture to ease her pain, we sent Luna Arab a bouquet of flowers, although it hardly does her any good.” He acknowledged that he ultimately bore responsibility for sending the question, stating that the party constantly receives questions from citizens and others, but this particular question should not have been sent, and he takes full responsibility.
Luna Arab told the source that she has lived in the country since she was a child and dreams of a university education. When asked about her family name, she was shocked: “I was stunned. It was the first time I’d ever heard of someone using my family name to say such vile things. It’s shocking that someone who doesn’t know me would say such awful things about me. It’s shocking and upsetting, and I don’t want any of this at all. All I want is Danish citizenship and to stay here. I haven’t even chosen my family name yet.”.
