Top 10 circumpolar news stories

Pope John Paul II mourned
In April, circumpolar leaders hailed the late Pope John Paul II as a powerful proponent of peace and unity.

Josef Motzfeldt from Greenland’s home rule cabinet said even though religion and politics often are separated, John Paul II never stopped protesting against social, ethnic and political unfairness. Motzfeldt said the late pope would be remembered for his fight to promote for tolerance between religions.

“On behalf of Greenland government, it’s my inner hope, that the Vatican maintains this spirit under the new Pope’s leadership,” Motzfeldt said.

The death of John Paul II prompted grief among Finland’s small, 9,000-strong Roman Catholic community. A special series of services was held in St. Henry’s Roman Catholic Cathedral in Helsinki, and books of condolence were opened to the public for signing. In Norway, thousands of the country’s Catholics attended special services and flags waved at half-mast at Catholic churches and organizations.

Greenland-U.S. agreement bears fruit
The Igaliku Agreement signed in August 2004 between the United States, Denmark and Greenland started showing results.

The U.S.-Denmark-Greenland Joint Committee, formed after the deal was signed to promote cooperation, met May 18 to 20 in Washington, D.C.

A State Department fact sheet issued after the meeting says cooperation has advanced considerably. Some examples include:

* Bringing Greenland’s culture to the U.S.: The National Museum of Natural History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. hosts the largest Greenland cultural program ever held in the U.S.;
* Science/Energy: An agreement between the U.S. Geological Survey, Greenland’s Home Rule Government, and the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland concerning energy and scientific cooperation is being finalized;
* Education: Youth exchange programs are being promoted and expanded;
* English Language Programs: The visit of an English language specialist to Greenland laid the foundation for cooperation on English language programs; and,
* Telemedicine: Alaskan experts are sharing their telemedicine expertise to help Greenland address medical needs in remote areas.

Finnmark Act gives Saami a say
Norwegian Saami saw results from a 30-year-old fight for control of an area comparable in size to Denmark when Norway’s justice minister, Odd Einar Dørum, and the president of the Saami parliament, Sven-Roald Nystø, signed the Finnmark Act this summer in Karasjok, Norway.

The new Norwegian Finnmark Law gives up Norway’s ownership over the area. The area, which is now 96 per cent owned by the state, will be transferred to a new co-managed institution in 2007.

No unity at climate change meeting in Greenland
“Global warming is a clear and present threat to nature and human communities in the Arctic,” Greenland’s premier, Hans Enoksen, told ministers from the United States, India, China, and 22 other countries, at an August meeting in Ilulissat, Greenland.

“Climate change is a ‘hot’ issue in Greenland,” Enoksen said. “We see many changes in our environment, and it affects our traditional way of life. Glaciers are melting and retreating, permafrost is thawing, the ice is thinning, it arrives late and thaws early, the winter offers warm periods, while summers are becoming dry, with deluges of rain. You don’t need to be a scientist to notice these changes.”

The setting, in Disco Bay, which was recently added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List, was intended to improve the international dialogue on future climate cooperation. But the talks ended with a plea from the host to stop arguing and start acting on climate changes.

“The blaming game has to stop,” Denmark’s environment minister, Connie Hedegaard, said in a statement after the four-day meeting ended. “Instead of blaming other countries for the lack of action, all governments should present credible visions on how they could make their own fair contribution to combating global climate change.”

Canada-Denmark agree over Hans Island
After Canada and Denmark butted heads over Hans Island this spring, the two nations agreed to disagree over who owns the small rocky outcrop between Ellesmere and Greenland.

Canada’s foreign affairs minister Pierre Pettigrew and his Danish counterpart, Per Stig Møller, drafted a protocol for managing the island.

According to their agreement, bureaucrats will develop a set of rules dealing with such issues as notification before any official visits to the island. Neither will give up sovereignty over Hans Island.

Greenland sets polar bear quotas
Greenland partly mollified Nunavut hunters when the home rule government finally passed formal rules on polar bear hunting, which came into force Oct. 15.

The new order:

* provides year-round protection to cubs, regardless of sex, and mothers of cubs;
* prohibits the export of cubs;
* prohibits the export of polar bear gall bladders and sets new export rules and regulations;
* puts time limits on the hunt, banning any hunting during July, August and September, depending on the region;
* introduces quotas as of Jan. 1, 2006; and,
* outlines permissible hunting methods.

Quotas will be “fixed in consideration of international agreements, biological advice, user knowledge and after consultation with the Hunting Council.” Part of the quota may be set aside for a trophy sports hunt.

The new order also sets a number of new administrative measures to regulate the polar bear hunt.

Saami elect woman leader in Norway
Ali Keskitalo was the first woman elected to head the Norway’s Saami parliament, or Sametinget in September.

Keskitalo, age 36, prevailed after voting left both the Saami’s national party and the Labour Party’s Saami parliamentary group with 18 representatives each.

The two groups need support from four representatives from other parties to win the Saami parliament’s presidential position.

“I’m satisfied that we reached agreement,” Keskitalo said. “I’m also pleased that I’ll be the first woman to be the Sametinget’s president.”

Icelandic women take to the streets
On Oct. 22, tens of thousands of Icelandic women went on strike to protest the differences in wages between men and women.

Women marched down the streets of Reykjavík under the slogan “Women, let’s be loud!” Women were encouraged to bring kitchen utensils to the march, including pots and iron spoons, to make noise.

Thirty years ago, Icelandic women staged a similar protest, which drew Iceland to a standstill.

November election sees new coalition in Greenland

Following a general election in Greenland on Nov. 15, three of the newly-elected leading parties announced they would form a coalition to lead the Home Rule government, called the “Northern Lights Coalition.”

This is the first time since Home Rule was established in 1978 that Greenland had three parties of differing political tendencies deciding to share the power in one government — the middle-of-the-road Siumut, left-wing Inuit Ataqatigiit and the right-of-centre Atassut.

The coalition is intended to last until the next election in four years.

Nordic outrage over CIA transports
The controversy over alleged European stopovers by planes chartered by the United States Central Intelligence Agency to carry suspected terrorists and prisoners-of-war to jail continues.

The transports are thought to have refueled in Nunavut, Greenland, Iceland, Norway and Finland.

No drilling for now in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
The controversy over drilling in the oil-rich Arctic National Wildlife Refuge continued throughout 2005.

In December, United States Senate Democrats succeeded in blocking oil drilling in the oil-rich Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, which Republican senators attached to a $453 billion military spending bill.

But the Republican majority failed to get the required 60 votes in the 100-member chamber needed to cut off debate. The vote of 56-44 keeps drilling in limbo.