Nunatta Qitornai

Nunatta Qitornai (English: Descendants of our Country; Danish: Vort lands efterkommere) is a separatist political party[1] in Greenland advocating independence. It was founded in September 2017 by former Minister of Business, Labour, Trade and Foreign Affairs Vittus Qujaukitsoq, who had previously been in Siumut[4] and who was subsequently elected in the 2018 Greenlandic parliamentary elections.

Descendants of Our Land

Nunatta Qitornai
ChairmanVittus Qujaukitsoq
FoundedSeptember 2017 (2017-09)
Split fromSiumut
IdeologyGreenlandic independence[1]
Decentralization[2][3]
Social democracy
Populism
Political positionCentre-left
Inatsisartut
1 / 31
Folketing
(Greenland seats)
0 / 2

Background

In April 2017 Vittus Qujaukitsoq was relieved from the Foreign Affairs portfolio in the Greenlandic government by Premier Kim Kielsen due to harsh criticism of the Danish handling and filed formal complaint to United Nations with demands of the environmental clean-up of former U.S. military installations across Greenland. He stepped down as Minister of Industry, Trade, Labour and Energy in May 2017. He subsequently challenged Kielsen for the chairmanship at Siumut's party conference in July 2017, and left the party after he lost the vote 19–48.[5]

Vittus Qujaukitsoq advocates a speedy transition to Greenlandic independence, whereas Kim Kielsen and the majority in Siumut are in favour of a gradualist approach.

The party stood in the 2018 parliamentary elections with former Prime Minister Aleqa Hammond as one of its candidates, but only chairman Vittus Qujaukitsoq was elected.

Policies

Apart from the speedy establishment of a Greenlandic state the party advocates decentralization of the administration and the establishment of 17 municipalities based on the current population distribution.[2]

Name

Nunavta Qitornai (pre-1973 spelling) was the name of a patriotic and educational youth organisation founded in 1941 by the politician and poet Augo Lynge, who was a prominent advocate for close cooperation between Greenland and Denmark and the incorporation of Greenland into the Danish state; his grandchild has criticized the use of the name for a separatist party as disrespectful to the memory of Augo Lynge.[6]

Election results

Parliament of Greenland
Election Votes % Seats ±
2018 1,002 3.4 (#7)
1 / 31
 New

References
  1. Nordsieck, Wolfram (2018). "Greenland/Denmark". Retrieved 27 September 2018.
  2. "Nunatta Qitornai: Vi arbejder på at etablere 17 kommuner". sermitsiaq.ag (in Danish). 29 March 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  3. Elkjær, Kenneth (29 March 2018). "Nunatta Qitornai vil have delt landet op i 17 kommuner". knr.gl (in Danish). Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  4. "Grønlandske partier kæmper for at blive opstillet". 6 March 2018.
  5. "Kim Kielsen vinder suverænt formandsopgør". Sermitsiaq.AG.
  6. "Augo Lynges barnebarn om Nunatta Qitornai: Respektløst over for bedstefars eftermæle". Sermitsiaq.AG.


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