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Greenland votes for more autonomy | Greenland votes for more autonomy |
(30 minutes later) | |
The people of Greenland have voted decisively in favour of a plan to give it greater autonomy from Denmark. | |
Officials said just over 75% of voters had supported the plan, which would see Greenland take a greater share of its annual oil revenues. | Officials said just over 75% of voters had supported the plan, which would see Greenland take a greater share of its annual oil revenues. |
It will also take control of police and the courts, and have some say in foreign policy. | |
Correspondents say the vote could be a major step towards independence for the Arctic island of 57,000 people. | |
Hans Enoksen, the head of the local government in the Danish self-governing territory, thanked Greenlanders for "this overwhelming result". | |
Final results showed that 75.54% voted in favour, while 23.57% said no - in line with predictions before the vote. Turnout was 71.96%. | |
Regaining rights | |
About 50,000 of the population are native Inuit. | |
Greenland gained self-rule in 1979, after previously being a colony and then a province of Denmark. | |
"It was time for us for to regain our rights and freedoms that were stolen from our ancestors," David Brandt, a former fisherman, told the AFP news agency. | |
Under the new arrangement, due to take effect in June next year, the island will take a greater share of its annual oil revenue, and Greenlanders will be treated as a separate people under international law. | |
If the proposals are enacted, Kalaallisut would become the official language, instead of Danish. | |
The plan would also see Greenland becoming less reliant on subsidies from Copenhagen. Currently these provide 30% of its GDP. | |
In 1985, the island left the European Union to avoid subjecting its fishing grounds to EU rules. |