Atassut ( en, Cohesion / Link / Togetherness / Solidarity; also referred to as Feeling of Community) is a

liberal-conservative Liberal conservatism is a political ideology combining conservative policies with liberal stances, especially on economic issues but also on social and ethical matters, representing a brand of political conservatism strongly influenced by libe ...

and unionist political party in Greenland. Founded on 29 April 1978, Atassut is an established partner of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

History

Atassut was established in late 1976 as a

political movement A political movement is a collective attempt by a group of people to change government policy or social values. Political movements are usually in opposition to an element of the status quo, and are often associated with a certain ideology. Some t ...

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

and unionist forces in Greenland to oppose

Siumut Siumut (, ) is a political party in Greenland in the social democratic tradition. Since the establishment of home rule in 1979, it has been the dominant party in Greenland. Siumut is led by Erik Jensen, who beat the then-incumbent Prime Ministe ...

with Lars Chemnitz as its leading figure, though it soon became more

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

. Its first programme from January 1977 stated that its purpose was to "promote Greenlandic home rule within the

Unity of the Realm The Danish Realm ( da, Danmarks Rige; fo, Danmarkar Ríki; kl, Danmarkip Naalagaaffik), officially the Kingdom of Denmark (; ; ), is a sovereign state located in Northern Europe and Northern North America. It consists of Denmark, metropolitan ...

" and "work against secession from the Danish realm." Atassut was founded as a

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...

on 29 April 1978. The party's name literally translates as "link" (in the context of being linked with Denmark as part of the Danish realm), but can also refer to a roof which binds a house together. Previously one of the two largest and most influential political parties in Greenland, the Atassut has seen its share of the popular vote consistently decline since the mid-1990s. In the 2001 Folketing election, the party lost its only representative and has never regained a seat in the Danish parliament. In the June 2009 snap election the party dropped to 10.9% of the vote, and lost 3 of its 6 seats. In the following election in 2013 the party was reduced to two seats, which they maintained in the

2014 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2014. * 2014 United Nations Security Council election 16 October 2014 Africa * 2014 Algerian presidential election 17 April 2014 * 2014 Botswana general election 24 October 2014 * 2014 Comorian presi ...

despite fewer votes. Both MPs later defected to Siumut, one of whom was its chairman Knud Kristiansen. From the 2014 parliamentary election to 2016 Atassut was a part of a

coalition A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces. Formation According to ''A Gui ...

government, led by

Kim Kielsen Kim Kielsen (born 30 November 1966) is a Greenlandic politician, who served as leader of the Siumut party and sixth prime minister of Greenland between 2014 and 2021. Careers Past careers Kielsen was originally a mariner, and then a police office ...

from Siumut, that also including the

Inuit Ataqatigiit Inuit Ataqatigiit (, , da, Folkets Samfund) is a democratic socialist, separatist political party in Greenland that aims to make Greenland an independent state. The party, founded as a political organisation in 1976, was born out of the increas ...

. In debate of refugees in Greenland in 2017, Atassut and Atassut Youths have been strong on not accepting refugees in to Greenland, where

and

want to take in refugees. In the 2018 general election, Atassut gained two seats in the Inatsisartut despite having no

incumbent The incumbent is the current holder of an official, office or position, usually in relation to an election. In an election for president, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the office of president before the election, whether seek ...

s after both their MPs had defected to

. In the 2021 election Atassut retained its two seats. Following the election, Atassut offered external support to the

governing coalition A coalition government is a form of government in which political parties cooperate to form a government. The usual reason for such an arrangement is that no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an election, an atypical outcome in ...

formed by the

and

Naleraq Naleraq (, ), previously known as Partii Naleraq, is a centrist-populist pro-independence political party in Greenland. History In January 2014 Hans Enoksen announced that he was forming a new political party after leaving Siumut. In the Novem ...

parties.

Ideology

Atassut has been referred to as

, and

. The party supports

privatisation Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...

of public industries, a form of

citizen's income Citizen's dividend is a proposed policy based upon the Georgist principle that the natural world is the common property of all people. It is proposed that all citizens receive regular payments (dividends) from revenue raised by leasing or taxin ...

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

co-operation, and Greenlandic affiliation with the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

. The party was previously opposed to Greenlandic home rule; Atassut later shifted to supporting home rule and autonomy, but without leaving

the unity of the Realm The Danish Realm ( da, Danmarks Rige; fo, Danmarkar Ríki; kl, Danmarkip Naalagaaffik), officially the Kingdom of Denmark (; ; ), is a sovereign state located in Northern Europe and Northern North America. It consists of metropolitan Denma ...

. The party has moved from a traditional right-wing position towards later supporting the subsidisation of primary-sector business, alongside the centre-left

party.

Election results

Parliament of Greenland (''
Inatsisartut The Inatsisartut ( kl, Inatsisartut; '' da, Landstinget, lit=''the land's-thing'' of Greenland''), also known as the Parliament of Greenland in English, is the unicameral parliament (legislative branch) of Greenland, an autonomous territory* * ...
'')

Parliament of the Kingdom of Denmark (''
Folketinget The Folketing ( da, Folketinget, ; ), also known as the Parliament of Denmark or the Danish Parliament in English, is the unicameral national legislature (parliament) of the Kingdom of Denmark—Denmark proper together with the Faroe Islands a ...
'')

Atassut was already established as a political movement at the time of the Folketing election on 15 February 1977, and the three Atassut founders Arqalo Abelsen, Ole Berglund and Otto Steenholdt ran as an association of candidates, which got 8,391 votes and Otto Steenholdt elected.

Leaders

*2019– Aqqalu Jerimiassen *2017–2019 Siverth K. Heilmann *2017 Qulutannguaq Inuk Berthelsen (acting; after Knud Kristiansen left the party) *2014–2017 Knud Kristiansen *2009–2014 Gerhardt Petersen *2005–2009 Finn Karlsen *2002–2005

Augusta Salling Augusta Salling (born 1954) is a former finance minister of Greenland. She began as a teacher. Her political roles before finance minister included being a member of a Parliament and mayor of Qeqertarsuaq Qeqertarsuaq () is a port and town in ...

*1993–2002 Daniel Skifte *1989–1993 Konrad Steenholdt *1985–1989 Otto Steenholdt *1979–1984 Lars Chemnitz

References

External links

Atassut official site (archive)
{{Danish political parties Greenlandic unionism Nordic agrarian parties Conservative liberal parties Liberal parties in Greenland Political parties in Greenland 1976 establishments in Greenland Political parties established in 1976 Conservative parties in Greenland