This will be interesting. Greenland, one of the biggest separate land masses on Earth, has voted for self rule, which is autonomy, not actual independence. The vote comes at a time when the Arctic is being considered a new frontier for resources.
The self rule move is understandable, given that Greenland is a pretty special place, both in terms of population and demographics. Only 7000 of the population are Danish. The rest are Inuits, aka Eskimos.
Since 1979, in which Greenland first attained an earlier level of self rule, Greenland has been edging towards becoming a separate economic entity.
75.5 percent of the population of 56,000 voted for the added levels of autonomy in the new referendum. The new levels of self rule will take effect next June.
Greenland, which is still technically a Danish territory, will gain the rights to Arctic minerals and oil, as well as a new level of self determination.
This could be a brand new nation in the making.
As the
Times Online points out, there are some big economic backups, if Greenland does become independent:
Experts believe that Greenland is sitting on huge deposits of hydrocarbons and valuable minerals. Exploration is becoming more feasible as offshore waters freeze less and the ice-cap, which covers four fifths of the island, melts. As those revenues begin to rise, Denmark’s subsidies will fall.
They may not need subsidies for long. There’s another point here, which hasn’t quite hit the headlines yet.
The Inuit peoples across the Arctic are a lot less than thrilled about the condition of their homelands. Nor are they too ecstatic about the intrusions of the big oil and gas companies.
If all these resources really are there, they’re now effectively Inuit property. That might completely change the whole basis of Arctic oil and mineral exploration. This could be the Klondike in reverse.
Karma, anyone?
