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Af Af?Poul?Krarup 19-07 2007 - 15:21

Siumut, Greenland’s ruling party couldn’t have asked for a much better birthday present than the one about to be handed to it by the joint Danish-Greenlandic Self-rule Commission.

Celebrating the 30th anniversary of his party’s founding, Prime Minister Hans Enoksen said he expects celebrations of Greenland’s national day on 21 June 2009 to include the official implementation of an autonomous Greenland government.

According to Siumut vice-president Jonathan Motzfeldt, who also chairs the Self-rule Commission, the details of Greenland’s self-rule are expected to be presented in September, when the commission concludes its work.

‘The people of Greenland will be given ownership of the land - including the underground and its natural resources,’ Motzfeldt said. ‘What’s more, Greenlanders will be recognised as a people in international law. All the things we didn’t get when we were granted home rule will be granted with our autonomy.’

Greenland, however, he said, should not force independence upon itself.

‘That process is something that takes time. We shouldn’t force something through if people don’t really understand what it is. Time and our development will dictate when we can become independent.’

Motzfelt’s cautious approach is at odds with other attitudes about the nation’s independence. Lars-Emil Johansen, a member of the Greenland and the Danish parliaments, has proposed several appropriate dates for Greenland’s independence, including 3 July 2021, which is the 300th anniversary of the arrival of missionary Hans Egede in Greenland.

Johansen has toned down his demands for full independence. Instead, he proposes that Greenland maintain a close association with Denmark, and that it continued to have Danish monarch as its head of state. He suggests that ‘free association’ is the most appropriate form of independence.

‘It surprises me that there are no politicians in Denmark or Greenland who support the idea of "free association", such an arrangement is tailor-made for the future relationship between Greenland and Denmark.’