Greenland's parliamentary election could set the nation on a path towards independence.
Greenland's parliamentary election could set the nation on a path towards independence.
Polling stations have closed in Greenland in a parliamentary election brought into the international spotlight by US President Donald Trump’s pledge to take control of the mineral-rich island, firing up a debate over its independence.
Voting was extended for half an hour after high turnout at several of the 72 polling stations across the Arctic island, where 40,500 people were eligible to cast their ballot.
There were no exit polls. A final tally of the vote could take between three and five hours to complete, Greenland’s election authority said.
Since taking office in January, Trump has vowed to make Greenland – a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark – part of the US, saying it is vital to American security interests.
The vast island, with a population of just 57,000, has been caught up in a geopolitical race for dominance in the Arctic, where melting ice caps are making its resources more accessible and opening new shipping routes. Both Russia and China have intensified military activity in the region.
Greenland is a former Danish colony and a territory since 1953. It gained some autonomy in 1979 when its first parliament was formed, but Copenhagen still controls foreign affairs, defence and monetary policy and provides just under $US1 billion a year to the economy.
In 2009, it won the right to declare full independence through a referendum, even though it has not done so out of concern living standards would drop without Denmark’s economic support.
“I strongly believe that we will very soon start to live a life more based on who we are, based on our culture, based on our own language, and start to make regulations based on us, not based on Denmark,” said Qupanuk Olsen, candidate for the main pro-independence party Naleraq.
But Inge Olsvig Brandt, a candidate for the ruling Inuit Ataqatigiit party, said, the territory didn’t need independence yet.
“We have too many things to work on. I think we have to work with ourselves, our history, and we are going to have a lot of healing work with us before we can take the next step,” she said.
Trump’s vocal interest has shaken up the status quo, and coupled with the growing pride of the Indigenous people in their Inuit culture, put independence front and centre in the election.
In the final debate on Greenland’s state broadcaster KNR late on Monday (local time), all five leaders of the parties in parliament said they did not trust Trump.
“He is trying to influence us. I can understand if citizens feel insecure,” said Erik Jensen, leader of government coalition partner Siumut.
A January poll suggested a majority of Greenland’s inhabitants supported independence, but were divided on timing.
Early on, the election campaign focused on the anger and frustration aimed at historical wrongdoings by former colonial ruler Denmark, according to Julie Rademacher, a consultant and former adviser to Greenland’s government.
“But I think the fear of the US imperialist approach has lately become bigger than the anger towards Denmark,” Rademacher said.
The island holds substantial natural resources, including critical minerals such as rare earths used in high-tech industries, ranging from electric vehicles to missile systems.
-AAP