Independence for Greenland: fiction or reality?

Abstract

Greenland has a political will to become independent, and most of the political parties are in favor of independence. The issue of independence is not a new idea, but it has become more topical in recent decades. The nationalistic movements started already in the 1960s as well-educated Greenlanders in Denmark established protest movements against the Danish state and the way Denmark was treating its former colony. The article sheds light on the political dimension from the start of the first nationalistic movements up to the present. How has the political dimension changed over time? What are the alternatives to full independence, and how are these played out in the Greenlandic debate? The article only takes the political dimension into consideration and disregards economic conditions or other potential circumstances.