ABSTRACT
In recent years, European borders have changed character. We have witnessed an opening of borders in the Schengen area, where national borders seem less important than they were previously, something, which creates new opportunities for mobility across borders. The status of EU internal borders stems from the Schengen Agreement, designed to serve the free movement of persons within the territory it applies to and secure the territory by means of harmonized visa, asylum, and migration policies and a broad cooperation between police, immigration and judicial authorities (Fairhurst, 2010). Interaction across the open Schengen borders increases and people get used to crossing borders without the traditional passport control. When Denmark announced the reintroduction of regular customs control at her borders with Germany and Sweden in June 2011, this resulted in a public outcry especially in Germany, including calls for boycott of Denmark as a holiday destination by German politicians. Apparently, free travel is treasured by many Europeans even if open borders awaken anxiety with regard to security.
