Lögberg-Heimskringla - 01.12.2019, Page 3

VISIT OUR WEBSITE LH-INC.CA
Lögberg-Heimskringla • 1. desember 2019 • 3
Wishing you and yours a
warm and wonderful season.
Please visit
for a detailed
listing of our
holiday hours.
Social icon
Rounded square
Only use blue and/or white.
For more details check out our
Brand Guidelines.
WWW. LH-INC.CA
•
•
•
YOUR ONE STOP SHOP !
Gimli (204) 642-8585
Hwy #9 & Colville Drive, Gimli, MB
www.thehomestoregimli.com
window coverings
•floor coverings
cabinetry
countertops & more!
by
gleðileg jól
og farsælt komandi ár
Various Media – “It was very sad to watch
this,” Minster of Fisheries and Agriculture Kristján
Þór Júlíússon told Frettablaðið in commenting on
RÚV Kveikur’s report on the fisheries company
Samherji’s activities in Namibia. He said it was
important to investigate the matter in depth, for all
parties involved, but it is also clear to the minister
that companies are responsible for the employees
working for them.
The fisheries minister has taken some flak
because of the matter. One reason is his friendship
with Samherji’s CEO Þorsteinn Már Baldvinsson;
another reason is his own work for the company
close to 20 years ago. But most of all, perhaps,
it is because he shook hands with Namibian
individuals at Samherji’s headquarters in August
2014. Kristján Þór said he had neither been called
to a meeting nor attended one that year, but
someone asked him to shake hands with some
individuals when he was in Samherji’s office.
“I was in Samherji’s office on personal business.
Then, after finishing those conversations, someone
asked me to shake hands with African individuals.
It later turned out they were Namibians, just as
Kveikur’s source in Stundin said. This was more
than five years ago. I had a courteous 10-minute
chat about this and that. I just want to underscore
that this meeting did not in any way involve
business or the like. I first heard of this when I got
an email last week from Stundin,” said Kristján
Þór. He was referring to a query he received from
a journalist at Stundin about the meeting. He said
he had absolutely nothing to hide.
“In my mind, the gist of these matters, about
me – and this is undisputed – is that I was neither
involved in nor had any knowledge of this
matter,” said Kristján Þór, adding that it did not
surprise him that people asked questions about his
situation and ties. Bjarni Benediktsson, Minister
of Finance and Economic Affairs, said nothing
in Kveikur’s documents implicated Kristján Þór
in unlawful operations. Bjarni’s view, therefore,
is that Kristján Þór does not have to consider his
position in the government.
Reprinted with permission from Icelandic
News Briefs, published by KOM PR.
Ministry for Foreign Affairs – A resolution on International Equal
Pay Day was adopted by consensus in the Third Committee (Human
Rights) of the United Nation’s General Assembly on November 15.
Iceland, along with Canada and six other countries – all members
of the Equal Pay International Coalition – joined in presenting the
resolution, which received the broad support of 105 countries co-
sponsoring the resolution.
“Iceland is a strong advocate of gender equality and equal pay
internationally, in line with the government’s commitments both
at home and abroad. The fact that member states of the United
Nations decide to raise awareness on the importance of equal pay
is a milestone achievement,” said Foreign Minister Guðlaugur Þór
Þórðarson. “International days like these have proven their worth and
served to highlight important issues amongst the general public and
governments around the world, and we hope this International Equal
Pay day will also be successful in this regard.”
The resolution is new and establishes September 18 as International
Equal Pay Day to be observed each year. The International Equal Pay
Day will highlight progress achieved and further support equal pay
for work of equal value, as outlined in the Sustainable Development
Goals.
“Despite international and national efforts to address this
challenge, progress on narrowing the gender pay gap has been slow,”
said Helen Inga S. von Ernst, second secretary of the Permanent
Mission of Iceland at the UN, in presenting the resolution. “We take
this opportunity to reaffirm once again our strong commitment to equal
pay and we look forward to working with all partners to celebrate the
first International Equal Pay Day on 18 September 2020.”
The resolution follows the resolution on Equal Pay, presented by
the same group of countries, which was adopted by consensus during
the 41st session of the Human Rights Council in July.
ruv.is – Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdóttir
has warned that everyone needs to be aware of
growing inroads all over the world into land and
its resources. She will introduce a parliamentary
bill around New Year’s authorizing the
government to restrict the buying up of farms.
Last month, the national broadcaster RÚV’s
news magazine Kveikur (Fuse) divulged that
tycoon Jim Ratcliff owns 39 farms in Northeast
Iceland. Katrín said that this showed a trend that
had been frequently highlighted in recent public
discussions.
Now, the government is responding,
according to the prime minister. It is revising
laws relating to the buying and selling of farms
and land. This involves amending laws on
the purchase of farms by residents outside the
European Economic Area, regional planning,
tenancy, and conservation. In addition, Alþingi
will pass provisions on municipalities’ pre-
emptive purchase right of land and farm tenancy.
Katrín said that the goal would be to ensure that
the government had a firm grasp on transactions
and ownership, as well as authorization to limit
the buying up of farms.
“However, at the same time, we must of
course ensure that people can sell their property.
Thus, we obviously must proceed cautiously to
ensure balance between healthy transactions
with farms while not seeing, for example, a
large part of the country amassing into the
hands of a few people,” said Katrín. She said
that this could affect populated areas and their
development in Iceland. “Having an overview of
how transactions involving land and its tenancy
occur can likewise impact the states’ right of
sovereignty because land ownership is, of course,
a part of sovereignty,” said the prime minister.
Reprinted with permission from Icelandic
News Briefs, published by KOM PR.
PM warns of inroads into land ownership
SAMHERJI MATTER IS COMPANY’S RESPONSIBILITY
UN adopts Iceland’s proposal to
declare International Equal Pay Day
PHOTO: GOVERNMENT.IS
Helen Inga S. von Ernst, Second Secretary of the Permanent
Mission of Iceland