Scandinavian politics has sparked a strange controversy because of its tone, its arguments and, above all, its focus: marriages between cousins. He doesn’t want them anymore. This is exactly why he activated the regional administrative mechanism to put an end to these. After a long debate, Norway amended its law to veto it. They opened the same melon with the aim of banning such connections in Sweden from July 2026. In Denmark, the Government admits that it wants to move towards the same goal.

What matters most is the why.

Marriages between cousins? That’s it. It may be a taboo subject, and of course it is not as common as marriages between unrelated couples, but cross-cousin marriages do occur in Europe. Sweden opened the debate on this incident and confirmed that 140 to 150 citizens married to their cousins ​​lived there, but voices have already emerged warning that the figures are unreliable and the real figure may be higher. Moreover, there are organizations in the country that claim that this is a “fairly common” practice in certain areas.

A 2014 study on the subject in the United Kingdom estimated that such connections were more or less frequent among 38% to 49% of the country’s Pakistani community. The data becomes even more interesting if we consider that Pakistan is one of the countries that receive the highest number of immigrants to the UK. In Norway, the NRK network claims that between 2013 and 2017, between 340 and 380 children were born each year in the country as a result of couples formed by cousins.

nordic movement. Whether they had little or no social weight, they decided that the best option in Scandinavia was to restrict such connections. And do so officially by stating it in its legislation as black on white. The biggest reference is Norway, where the issue has been on the table for some time. In fact, four years ago the Progress Party (FrP) proposed banning such links, and just a year ago there was talk of the Government proposing to restrict them.

The decision was finally passed in early summer, when Norway’s legislature, the Storting, approved a series of amendments to the Marriage Act that explicitly banned marriages between cousins. Also with any family member who has a higher degree of relationship.

While Parliament has acknowledged that in some cases the Government may grant exemptions for “compelling reasons”, it warns there will be no benefit in couples leaving the country to get married. The law does not recognize relationships carried out under foreign legislation if the protagonists are cousins ​​and at least one of them is a Norwegian citizen or permanently resident in the country.

Sweden and Denmark took action. Norway was not the only country to bloom the melon. Local Similar movements have been reported in two neighboring countries, Sweden and Denmark, in recent days. The first of these was in Sweden, where an investigation was conducted at the request of the Government in order to better understand the phenomenon of inter-cousin unions and to recommend that it be vetoed from 2026.

The country already bans weddings between direct relatives such as children or siblings, and there are also restrictions on “half-siblings” who need special permission to say “I do”; But now Stockholm wants to go further and veto any unions between cousins, nephews and uncles. Moreover, this ban will be officially reflected in the Marriage Law.

The proposal will also affect international connections. The goal of its supporters is for the measure to be implemented in the medium term, that is, in the summer of 2026. Firstly, both the Government and the Sweden Democrats will support this proposal. The ban was actually included in the coalition pact known as the “Tidö Agreement”.

A resounding decision. In this context, Denmark was quick to follow the example of its neighbours. Recently, many government representatives have acknowledged that the country also wants to end relations between cousins, but it will still take some time to give this legal form and translate it into legislation. Beyond the underlying issues and debates, Copenhagen does not want to see itself become a “paradise” for connections between cousins ​​in the region.

But… Why? The next question is: Why did Norway, Sweden and Denmark decide to end cousin marriages? What is the reason if the statistics show that they are far from being the majority in society and that in Denmark, for example, they do not even have official data that gives an accurate idea of ​​\u200b\u200btheir real scope? Advocates have put forward various arguments.

First, children born from these unions have a higher risk of developing congenital diseases. However, the real reason is different: To put an end to forced marriages in which women participate under pressure. Norwegian police honor crimes expert Jasmina Holten noted a worrying relationship between the two in an interview with NRK a few days ago.

A “clear” connection. Claiming that he was aware of cases of women who married their relatives and eventually faced violence, Holten warned, “We see a clear relationship between forced marriage and their marriage to their cousins.” “Children and young people in these situations have little opportunity to choose a partner other than the default partner without exposing themselves to reprisals. Pressure may be part of their upbringing.”

The same Norwegian network cites a 2007 report by the country’s Institute of Public Health that focuses squarely on arranged marriages; This report warns that there is a higher incidence of fetal and infant death and congenital malformations in pregnancies originating from first-cousin pairs. .

“Arranged marriages”. The report prepared at the request of the Swedish Government is also critical. “The collected materials show that marriages between cousins ​​were mostly arranged and the decision on marriage was made primarily by the family or clan rather than an individual choice,” explains Judge Anne Kuttenkeuler. Swedish Herald.

The country’s Minister of Justice, Gunnar Strömmer, warned that “honor-related violence and oppression is a serious social problem.” “Too many people have their living spaces and freedoms restricted by oppressive codes of honor. Part of this has to do with marriages between cousins.”

Is everyone in favour? No. The issue is very sensitive and of course it has sparked controversy. Country Note that there are Swedish and Norwegian politicians who oppose the veto, remembering that not all connections between family members are actually carried out by force or duress. In this case, could the rule be limiting the rights and freedoms of couples? Disrespecting the traditions of minority groups? There are many studies on the frequency of cross-cousin weddings in the Arab League countries or Turkey, Pakistan and Iran.

There are also those who see the measure as positive and suggest that it be transferred to other countries. This is the case of columnist Matthew Syed, who insisted on the pages of the magazine a few days ago. Times That the decision of the Scandinavian authorities should be taken into account. According to him, this would, among other benefits, help “reduce bloodshed and criminality fueled by tribalism”.

Pictures | Alvin Mahmudov (Unsplash), Bart van der Lugt (Unsplash) and Artsy Vibes (Unsplash)

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