Iceland review - 2016, Page 84

82 ICELAND REVIEW
significantly—interest payments are the
state’s third largest expense! Economic
stability is key—if debts aren’t paid down
and inflation kept low, society won’t
thrive,” she says.
THE CONTENDERS
Opinion polls suggest that the
Independence Party-Progressive Party
coalition government will have been
voted out of power by the time this issue
is published. Both parties have been
subject to inner struggle. Some of the
Independence Party’s key female mem-
bers quit in protest after women lost
out in the primaries. The Progressive
Party has not recovered after the Panama
Papers scandal in the spring, when it was
revealed that, along with his wife, for-
mer Prime Minister Sigmundur Davíð
Gunnlaugsson held offshore accounts.
Current PM Sigurður Ingi Jóhannsson,
replacing him as party chair, did little to
improve the ratings. If they want to stay
in office, Sigurður and Finance Minister
and chair of the Independence Party
Bjarni Benediktsson must convince a
third party to join their coalition, but it
doesn’t seem like anyone is interested.
Given the predicted scenario, no major-
ity coalition can be forged by only two
parties. Shortly before the election, the
Pirate Party invited the other opposition
parties and the Reform Party to create
a political alliance; Bright Future, the
Left-Greens and the Social Democrats
accepted the invitation.
Support for the parties has fluctuated
intensely. According to polls a few days
before the election, the Independence
Party might just maintain its position
as the largest party. It will be a tight
race with the Pirate Party—which has
topped most polls for the past two years
despite only receiving 5 percent of the
vote in the 2013 election—and the
Left-Greens, which took a 6-8 percent
jump in the polls shortly before the
election. The Reform Party is giving
the Social Democrats and Progressive
Party a run for their money. Bright
Future, which looked like it would lose
its seats in parliament, is now suddenly
back in the game, just above the bench-
mark 5 percent needed to get members
into parliament. The other contenders:
the People’s Front (Alþýðufylkingin),
the People’s Party (Flokkur fólksins),
Dawn (Dögun) and the Humanist Party
(Húmanistaflokkurinn), which are all on
the left, and the nationalistic Icelandic
National Front (Íslenska þjóðfylkingin),
have ratings below 5 percent.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES
When asked about the most pressing
issues for the upcoming term, all inter-
viewees mention healthcare. Through
lack of funding, staff and facilities, the
healthcare system is in turmoil and—
albeit by different means—they want to
help restore it. Many mention increased
support for the elderly and people with
disabilities, and some take inspiration
from their own personal experiences.
“I’m a young woman in a wheelchair
and a representative for people in my
situation is needed,” says 23-year old
Inga Björk Bjarnadóttir, who is running
for the Social Democrats. “I’m on disa-
bility benefits and I’m a university stu-
dent. I understand the common citizen’s
struggle. My generation is the first since
World War II to be worse off than their
parents.” Other candidates also mention
the financial problems young people are
facing, especially concerning high prices
on the rental market. Making ends meet
is tough and saving for an apartment
nearly impossible, Inga Björk says; add-
ing that the system discriminates against
those who cannot rely on the support of
wealthy parents. “We are dealt different
cards when we start this life. We should
work together instead of race against
each other. I want to live in a country
where everyone has equal opportunities.”
According to a report by the gov-
ernment’s Welfare Watch, published in
October, 1.3 percent of the population,
or 4,300 people, live in severe poverty
in Iceland. The majority of those who
receive food donations from charities
are people on disability benefits, while
30 percent are foreign citizens, asylum
seekers included. “I have experienced
severe poverty. As a boy, I had to sleep on
the floor, fully dressed, because my mom
couldn’t afford [beds,] heat or electricity.
No one deserves to live like that,” says
19-year-old student Páll Marís Pálsson,
who is running for the Progressive Party
and leads SUF, the party’s youth associ-
ation. “My mother is from Thailand and
my father is Icelandic. I was bullied at
school [because of my background]. The
immigrant community in Iceland needs
a representative. It’s popular among pol-
iticians to talk about eradicating poverty
and improving the situation of immi-
grants, but nothing is being done.” To
help Icelanders of foreign background
integrate, Páll suggests funding for spe-
cial Icelandic language classes for second
and third generation immigrants, which
is being included in the Progressive
Party’s agenda. “We must eliminate hos-
tility towards immigrants and refugees.
Society as a whole must build a bridge to
their communities with increased com-
munication. Language is key.”
HEATED DEBATES
Heiða Guðný Ásgeirsdóttir, a 38-year-
old sheep farmer in rural South Iceland,
is running for the Left-Greens. “I
was given this opportunity following
my fight against [hydropower plants]
Búlandsvirkjun and Hólmsárvirkjun.”
Heiða maintains that the dams necessary
to power these two plants will destroy
pastures and bring an end to farming
in the area. “I’m very dissatisfied with
how people are treated regarding energy
affairs and would like a chance to influ-
ence that.” Heiða mentions environmen-
tal protection as one of the most press-
ing issues of the upcoming term. “We
will hopefully see a new policy on the
environment and large-scale industry.”
To her, tourism is also environment-re-
lated: a record 1.73 million people are
expected to visit Iceland this year, which
P O L I T I C S