The karaoke marathon Voice Of The People, organised by artist Björk Guðmundsdóttir and others to raise signatures for a petition calling for a stop of the sale of HS Orka and for natural resources to be in public ownership, has begun to tour the rest of the country. Minister of Industry Katrín Júlíusdóttir assures the public that “resources are not for sale”.
Last weekend’s karaoke marathon, which ran for nine hours on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, far exceeded its goal of 35,000 signatures to hit nearly 48,000 at the time of this writing – over 15% of the population.
The organisers have announced that they are not resting on their laurels, but taking the show on the road. They will be in Stykkishólmur at the Vatnasafn today at 20:00, in Egilsstaðir at Sláturhús on Saturday from 13:00 to 16:00, and in Höfn at Sindrabær the same day at 17:00. If you happen to be in these places at these times, we encourage you to check out these venues and take part.
In related news, Minister of Industry Katrín Júlíusdóttir told RÚV that she has assembled a work group to craft a clearer government policy on Iceland’s natural resources. The work group’s recommendations – and what the minister claims is the official government position – is that all Icelandic natural resources remain in public ownership, and that profits from their use go directly to the people in a transparent fashion.
The prime minister said much the same thing earlier this week, when she wrote on her Facebook that, “One of the most important projects of this government is to secure the ownership of the people over its natural resources and that the dividends go to the people.”
The government still has yet to make any statement with regards to the other part of the petition, which calls for the government to stop the sale of HS Orka to Magma Energy.
Related articles:
Prime Minister Supports Natural Resources In Public Ownership
Karaoke Marathon For Nature Exceeds Expectations
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