Hammond’s victory in lifting the uranium ban was Pyrrhic. It divided the country and cost her the majority in Parliament and the support of many in her own party. And then there’s Denmark’s position that it needs to first grant approval before any radioactive material is moved. In January, Hammond and Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt said they expected to reach an agreement by yearend, but the two sides remain far apart on the issue of jurisdiction. Meanwhile, commodity prices have plunged as economic projections for countries including China, India, and Brazil have dimmed, putting many of Greenland’s mining projects on, or perhaps under, the edge of profitability. In the capital Nuuk, where Hammond’s support is weakest, Greenland’s elite are in open revolt, criticizing her for being overly confrontational. Charges of nepotism after her boyfriend was briefly hired by one of her ministers and a scandal involving an almost 20-year-old fraud conviction for using a credit card without funds have added to her misery. (Hammond denies that she had anything to do with the hiring of her boyfriend.) There’s talk of a leadership challenge when her party meets this summer. “My life is a battle every day, and these were the biggest battles I ever had,” says Hammond. “But they have not seen the best of me yet. They haven’t seen the strongest person in me yet.”
Posted on: Fri, 02 May 2014 16:29:54 +0000
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