Politics, constitution and administrative structure of Faroe Islands

The Faroe Islands are an autonomous country of the Kingdom of Denmark. However, since 1948 the islands have received privileges for self-government. The head of the Faroe Islands is the ruling monarch of Denmark, in this case the queen. The official representative of the monarch on the territory of the islands is the so-called High Commissioner. In accordance with the law which was adopted by Denmark in the late 50-ies of the last century, the main legislative body called Faroese Logting should function in the territory of the Faroe Islands. It includes about 30 deputies. Parliament here has a unicameral structure. The deputies get into Parliament by direct secret voting of the local population. Every Faroe islander who has reached the age of eighteen has the right to vote.

The Faroese legislative branch has a lot of rights and freedoms, but international agreements are always signed together with the Danish leadership. The main parties that form the unicameral parliament are the Republican Party and the People’s Party. They share almost 45% of the vote among themselves. The Social-Democratic Party is not lagging behind. In recent times, it has been gaining more adherents among the local population. Also, the parliament includes representatives from the Union Party, the Center Party and the Self-Government Party. The supreme executive body is the government headed by the Chairman. The candidates are nominated personally by the monarch of Denmark.

According to the agreement signed between the leader of Denmark and the Faroe Islands, the executive and legislative branches should work together as a unit, and should be based on direct supervision of the Danish government in matters of defense and foreign policy. The actions of the autonomous self-government of the Faroe Islands must comply with all laws outlined in the Constitution (adopted in 1953). If the government does not have the confidence of the parliament or at least one member of the government does not fulfill its responsibilities, parliament may well raise an official distrust of the government or an individual minister. As a result of this, the latter must immediately resign. Copyright www.orangesmile.com

It should be noted that despite the fact that Denmark is a member of the European Union, this does not apply to the Faroe Islands. In an internal referendum that took place on the islands during the decision on membership in the EU, the local population voted against it and Denmark supported the choice of the citizens of its overseas territorial unit. In addition, the Faroe Islands has not yet settled the issue of territorial waters. Regardless of this, Denmark continues to finance the economy of the islanders and support their foreign policy at the appropriate level. The Faroe archipelago consists of 18 separate islands, of which only one is considered uninhabited. Administratively, the islands are divided into 34 districts. Local self-governing bodies are represented by city councils, which are chosen by citizens of the cities.

There is no judicial authority of its own in the Faroe Islands. Any disputed issue is resolved at the level of the relevant courts of Denmark. The Constitutional Court of the Kingdom of Denmark monitors whether local government activities comply with the Constitution of the country or not. Nevertheless, the Faroe Islands have the right to exist and use their own symbols, which, in part, quite closely interconnect with the state symbols of Denmark itself. A few years ago, the Parliament f the Faroe Islands announced that their territory was a nuclear weapons free zone, but internal troops of the Kingdom of Denmark as well as special radar complexes of NATO are stationed on the islands.