Independence Dilemma For Greenland Voters

Greenland's tiny electorate went to the polls Tuesday with independence the key issue for the vast self-ruled Danish territory now threatened by global warming and struggling with youth suicides and sex abuse among its indigenous people.

Copenhagen, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 24th Apr, 2018 ) :Greenland's tiny electorate went to the polls Tuesday with independence the key issue for the vast self-ruled Danish territory now threatened by global warming and struggling with youth suicides and sex abuse among its indigenous people.

Rich in natural resources, Greenland gained autonomy from Denmark in 1979 and was granted self-rule in 2009, although Copenhagen retains control of foreign and defence affairs. The giant ice-covered island between the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans is home to just 55,000 people.

Denmark provides some 3.6 billion kroner (483 million Euros, $591 million) in subsidies each year, equivalent to 60 percent of the budget and which would be cut if Greenland opted for full independence.

So the main issue is when and how to break the Danish link without impoverishing the island. A gross domestic product of $2.2 billion, according to figures for 2015, puts Greenland in the same economic league as San Marino.

Of the seven political parties, six favour independence. Some are keen to declare independence by 2021 to coincide with the 300th anniversary of Denmark's occupation though most have not set a timeline.

Opinion polls suggest the left-green Inuit Ataqatigiit (IA) party will win Tuesday's election, where 31 seats in the local parliament are up for grabs. A poll published Friday gave IA with 31 percent of votes, ahead of its main rival, the social democratic Siumut party which has dominated Greenland politics since 1979 and is currently in power.