Danish Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod has apologized again for having sex with a 15-year-old member of the Danish Social Democrats' youth organization (DSU) in 2008, after which he had resigned from his post as foreign affairs spokesman for the Social Democrats, national media reported on Friday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th September, 2020) Danish Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod has apologized again for having sex with a 15-year-old member of the Danish Social Democrats' youth organization (DSU) in 2008, after which he had resigned from his post as foreign affairs spokesman for the Social Democrats, national media reported on Friday.
The sex scandal emerged in 2008 after the politician participated in an event organized by the DSU during Easter. The party's chairman, Jacob Bjerregaard, said back then that Kofod had violated DSU's rules and that he was no longer welcomed in the organization.
The age of consent in Denmark is 15, although the big age difference is generally frowned upon in the society, as Kofod was 34 at the time.
"I can also only repeat what I said in 2008: an unreserved apology for what happened. I wish I could change what happened. I cannot, but I can learn from it. And I have learned from it," Kofod said, as quoted by the Copenhagen Post newspaper.
Despite the scandal, the politician soon became the lead candidate for the Social Democrats in the 2014 European parliament election. In 2019, Kofod was appointed as the foreign minister.
The politician has come under fire by the #MeToo movement, which is against harassment and sexual abuse, and criticized by Danish parties such as the Alternative and the Social Liberals. The leader of the Alternative, Josephine Fock, has said it was "poor judgment" on the part of Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen to appoint Kofod as foreign minister. The Social Liberals equality spokeswoman Samira Nawa said that Kofod's apology was worthless.
