Respect democracy, Icelandic president says

Thursday 07 January 2010

Dutch finance minister Wouter Bos should respect the democratic process in Iceland, the island's president Olafur Ragnar Grimsson is reported as telling tv show Nova on Wednesday night.

The president was commenting on his refusal on Tuesday to sign legislation paving the way for the repayment of loans made following the collapse of online bank Icesave. The Netherlands lent €1.3bn to Iceland and Britain €2.5bn so it could repay Icesave clients who lost their savings following the bankruptcy.

Bos said he was 'very disappointed' by Grimsson's move but did suggest Iceland be given more time, according to Nos tv. But he did hint that Iceland's efforts to join the EU may run into trouble because of the repayment problems.

Opposition

Last week the Icelandic parliament voted narrowly in favour of the new legislation but a large majority of the population is opposed. They argue that they should not be held responsible for the failings of a financial institution operating under official supervision.

During the Nova programme, Grimsson also warned that angry reactions from the Netherlands and Britain could play into the hands of opponents of the repayment scheme. 'If the leaders of other countries are too negative about Iceland, this will boost opposition to the law,' he was quoted as saying.

In August, a poll showed that 70% of the Icelandic population oppose the bill.

However, the president told BBC the belief that Iceland would not return the debt was completely wrong. 'The only thing that I have decided is to allow the Icelandic people to have the final say in a referendum which is in accordance with our fundamental democratic principles,' he told Newsnight.

© DutchNews.nl

Readers' comments

Comments have been closed for this article.