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harry potter - Why is the usage of a Portkey controlled while apparition is free?


At the end of Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix Fudge says following:



'Now see here, Dumbledore!' said Fudge, as Dumbledore picked up the head and walked back to Harry carrying it. 'You haven't got authorisation for that Portkey! You can't do things like that right in front of the Minister for Magic, you - you - '



This means that the creation of Portkeys is controlled by the ministry and creating one is if not a crime, at least a violation of some rule.



On the other side apparition is free - practically every adult wizard is allowed (and is able) to do it. There seems to be no restrictions for it. While it is not part of the standard classes in Hogwarts, the ministry does not do anything else to discourage people from learning it.


Why is that? Apparition seems to have shorter range than Portkeys but one can just repeat it and achieve more or less the same effect (unless you have a huge body of water to cross).



Answer



Because they can be.


Apparition is actually restricted, and Goblet mentions people being fined for doing it without a license.


Enforcement though is more difficult, and laws against things that can't be prevented or monitored tend to either not be passed or not enforced in the real world, so we can expect this to be the case when it comes to this fiction.


Unenforceable laws aren't just pointless (they can have symbolic value, so they aren't entirely without value) but are contrary to the ruling powers' goals; if people realise they are continually breaking the law, they become less worried about breaking the law, and more inclined to disregard other laws.


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