Direct Democracy in the Faroe Islands. A comparative study of referendums in a Faroese context. / Beinleiðis fólkaræði í Føroyum. Ein samanberandi rannsókn av fólkaatkvøðum í einum føroyskum høpi

There have been 14 referendums in the Faroe Islands about very different issues. In this paper these referendums will be analysed in relation to the use of referendums in the Faroe Islands – from the perspective of the political system as well as from the view of the voter. A comparison will be made with similar referendums in Denmark, Iceland and Australia. An attempt to classify Faroese referendums in accordance with international research will also be done. The conclusion in the article is 1) that historical and cultural conditions, especially the Danish Faroese relations, have influenced several of these referendums, even referendums that are not about these issues, 2) that referendums in the Faroe Islands haven’t always been well prepared by the political authorities, 3) that party politics usually have significant influence and 4) that the majority of the voters usually have used the vote to demonstrate against the more or less party politically biased intentions of the political majority that often have been underlying Faroese referendums. Generally speaking, this article concludes that if referendums are to be a real successful alternative to representative democratic decision-making then they have to be preceded by negotiations where both – all – relevant opposing sides agree on the referendum terms. This is especially very important when it comes to definitive referendums on secession. Urtak: Tað hava verið 14 folkaatkvoður um nogv ymisk viðurskifti i Foroyum. I greinini verður hugt eftir hesum folkaatkvoðunum við atliti at hvussu folkaatkvoður hava verið bruktar i Foroyum, baeði ta tað snýr seg um politisku skipanina og veljararnar. Samanborið verður eisini við liknandi folkaatkvoður i Danmark, Islandi og Avstralia. Eisini verður roynt at flokka taer foroysku folkaatkvoðurnar við stoði i altjoða gransking. Niðurstoðan i greinini er, 1) at sogulig og mentanarlig viðurskifti, serstakliga viðurskiftini millum Danmark og Foroyar, hava havt týdning fyri fleiri av hesum folkaatkvoðum, eisini fyri summar, ið ikki snugva seg um hesi viðurskifti, 2) at folkaatkvoður i Foroyum ikki altið hava verið so vael fyriskipaðar av politisku skipanini, 3) at ofta hevur partapolitikkur havt nogv at siga og 4) at meirilutin av veljarunum hevur ofta brukt sina atkvoðu til at atkvoða i moti teimum meira ella minni partapolitisku aetlanunum, sum hava ligið aftanfyri hesar folkaatkvoður. Almenna niðurstoðan er, at skulu folkaatkvoður vera eitt veruligt alternativ til umboðandi demokratiska stoðutakan, so mugu taer grundast a frammanundan fordar samraðingar, har baðir – allar – viðkomandi striðandi partar goðtaka sjalvar treytirnar undir folkaatkvoðuni. Hetta er serliga av storum týdningi, ta talan er um avgerandi folkaatkvoður um fullveldi.