Reykjavík Grapevine - 08.04.2016, Page 21

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Summer
PM’s wife acquires
a prepaid inheri-
tance from her
father.
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October 9th
Wintris Inc.
is found°ed.
Shareholders
are Sigmundur
Davíð Gunn-
laugsson (50%
stake) and
Anna Sigurlaug
Pálsdóttir
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Wintris Timeline
By Jón Trausti
Sigurðarson
Peaceful
Protests
By John Rogers
The first protest that took place outside Althingi after the
Panama Papers revelations was one of the biggest in Ice-
land’s history. Counting attendance at such a sprawling
event is always a difficult task, and as usual, the police
estimate of 9,000 was conservative by comparison to the
23,000 quoted by organisers, who employed clickers to liter-
ally count people in the crowd, later posting photos of said
clickers to Facebook to dispel any doubt. But police at the
scene did say anecdotally that it was the biggest protest that
they’ve seen, including during the national outcry at the
2008 financial crash.
Something that was widely noted—particularly by
slightly confused holiday-makers, who found Reykjavík to
be less sleepy than expected—was the tone of the protest.
The teeming crowd was fired up, for sure—chanting, light-
ing flares, waving flags on nearby rooftops and throwing
eggs, bananas and skýr at the parliament building—but
there was no sense of it being out of control or dangerous.
In fact, there were just three arrests, one of which occurred
when some thrown skýr hit a police officer (“the most Ice-
landic thing ever,” said one viral tweet), and two for under-
age drinking. It was, all in all, a family show, with a brass
band, impromptu drum circles, and an atmosphere at once
amped-up and, to be honest, pretty chill.
It’s worth noting that during similar recent bouts of
civil unrest in the UK and US, police have been much more
aggressive, wearing riot gear and actively controlling the
crowd, often with violent results. For all of Iceland’s current
problems, the peaceful nature of the protest is something
the country can be pleased about. SHARE: gpv.is/peacep
The focal point of the current political
scandal involving PM Sigmundur Davíð
Gunnlaugsson is an offshore company
located in an Island called Tortola, a part
of the British Virgin Islands in the Carib-
bean. The company’s name is Wintris Inc.
The company was formed around the PM’s
wife’s family wealth, a prepaid inheri-
tance that she, Anna Sigurlaug Pálsdóttir,
by way of threatening to sue her father in
December 2006, (case was later dropped)
acquired during the summer of 2007.1
The PM owned 50% in the company until
December 31st 2009. According to the PM’s
wife’s Facebook status update of March
15th 2016, the company owns the equiva-
lent of ISK 1.2. billion, half of which in the
form of claims on the three former big
Icelandic banks, Kaupthing, Landsbankinn
and Glitnir, in whom Wintris inc. owned
bonds, and all of which were nationalized
in October 2008.
The PM entered swiftly into Icelandic
politics in 2009, becoming the leader of the
Progressive Party January 18th that year,
and subsequently was elected to Parlia-
ment on April 25th 2009. Though required
of sitting MPs, Sigmundur Davíð never
disclosed his ownership or connection to
said company. Following the PanamaPa-
pers leak on April 3rd, his connection to
Wintris has become headline news all over
the world, the PM sharing column inches
with other current or former heads of state,
such as Vladimir Putin, Bashar Al-Assad,
Muammar Gaddafi and Hosni Mubarak.
Timeline2007 2008 2009 2010 2013 2016
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April 3rd
Account opened
for Wintris Inc.
at Credit Suisse.
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January 18th
Sigmundur Davíð
becomes the
leader of the
Progressive
party.
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January 1st
A new law is
passed in Alth-
ingi, requiring
Icelandic taxpay-
ers to disclose
their ownership
in foreign com-
panies, for tax
purposes.
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March 11th
Sigmundur Davíð
interviewed by
Swedish journalist
Sven Bergman, who
ask him about
Wintris Inc.,
whereupon the
PM subsequently
walks out of the
interview.
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March 15th
Name of Wintris
Inc. disclosed
in a Wikileaks
data leak, as
a claimant on
the estate of
then-bankrupt
Kaupthing bank.
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April 3rd
Aforementioned
interview with PM
aired on RÚV at
18:00 in a massive
hourlong report on
offshore stakes of
both other current
ministers and other
elected officials
in Iceland.
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April 4th
Largest demonstration in
the history of Iceland takes
place outside Parliament,
with up to 22,000 people
showing up, demanding the
resignation of the PM.
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April 5th.
Sigmundur Davíð
announces on Facebook
his intent to dissolve
Parliament, but his
request to do so denied
by the President of
Iceland. Later that day,
Minister of Fisheries
Sigurður Ingi Jóhannsson
announces the Sigmundur
is stepping aside, and
Sigurður will be the
next PM. Rage ensues
amongst the opposition.
Still later, Sigmundur
sends a press release
to foreign media saying
he has not, in fact,
resigned, but is taking
a temporary break from
the PM position.
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April 6th
Full spin mode
in effect at the
Progressive Party.
The future of the
coalition uncertain.
More protests
planned.
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May 23rd
Sigmun-
dur Davíð
elected PM
of Iceland.
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October
Icelandic
banks Glitnir,
Kaupthing and
Landsbankinn
nationalized.
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April 24th
Sigmundur Davíð
becomes MP.
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December 31st
Sigmundur
Davíð sells
his 50% share
in Wintris
Inc., a compa-
ny worth well
over 1 billion
ISK, to his
wife for $1.
SHARE: gpv.is/pmtime
Illustration by HUGLEIKUR DAGSSON