While there are very clear rules for drink-driving in Greenland, things are more nebulous when it comes to drug driving. And it is a serious problem for road safety and the police's ability to intervene.
This is the opinion of former member of the Parliament for Inuit Ataqatigiit, Aaja Chemnitz, who back in January tabled a motion in the Parliament to amend the Greenlandic Traffic Act to introduce separate limit values for euphoric substances, authorization to take saliva samples, the acquisition of drug meters and other necessary adjustments to the Traffic Act.
Lack of legislation and tools
The desire to introduce drug testing in Greenland is far from new.
For years, the police have pointed to a lack of legislation and a lack of tools – what is called a narcometer – which in practice limits their ability to carry out their work.
According to Aaja Chemnitz, the Greenland Government and the Department of Housing, Infrastructure and Outlying Areas have also repeatedly approached the Ministry of Transport to get the Danish government to take the police and Greenland Government's concerns seriously.
Support from the entire Danish Parliament
But perhaps something will happen now. In any case, there was support for the proposal from all parties in the Parliament and from Transport Minister Thomas Danielsen (V) when the issue was discussed in January, which suggests that there will also be support after the general election, when a new Minister of Transport will probably be in office.
Thomas Danielsen stated during the debate that Naalakkersuisoq for Infrastructure, Aqqaluaq B. Egede had also expressed his support for the proposal, and that this meant that they were now faced with work with discussions in the self-government on the actual design of the law.
New questions arise
"For example, should one be disqualified from driving for 3 years for violations of the legislation on euphoric substances in Greenland? Should one go to prison in repeated cases? Should one attend an Alcohol-Drugs-and-Traffic-like course in Greenland? How should we design the legislation in relation to driving ATVs?"
"How do you want the legislation to be structured for snowmobile driving, that is, in cases where you have been denied your driving license unconditionally? There are many questions that we will of course have to discuss with the Greenlandic self-government," said Thomas Danielsen, who pointed out that some elements fell under the Ministry of Justice, others under the Ministry of Transport, but regardless of where they fell under, it was important that the matter was raised to the highest political level.
