Its first programme from January 1977 stated that its purpose was to "promote Greenlandic home rule within the Unity of the Realm" and "work against secession from the Danish realm."
Atassut was founded as a political party on 29 April 1978.[7] The party's name literally translates as "link" (in the context of being linked with Denmark as part of the Danish realm), but can also refer to a roof which binds a house together.
Previously one of the two largest and most influential political parties in Greenland, the Atassut has seen its share of the popular vote consistently decline since the mid-1990s.
In the 2001 Folketing election, the party lost its only representative and has never regained a seat in the Danish parliament.
In the June 2009 snap election, the party dropped to 10.9% of the vote, and lost three of its six seats. In the following election in 2013 the party was reduced to two seats, which they maintained in the 2014 elections despite fewer votes. Both MPs later defected to Siumut, one of whom was its chairman Knud Kristiansen.[8]
In debate of refugees in Greenland in 2017, Atassut and Atassut Youths have been strong on not accepting refugees in to Greenland, where Inuit Ataqatigiit and Siumut want to take in refugees.[9][10]
The party was previously opposed to Greenlandic home rule;[17] Atassut later shifted to supporting home rule and autonomy, but without leaving the unity of the Realm.[18] The party has moved from a traditional right-wing position towards later supporting the subsidisation of primary-sector business, alongside the centre-left Siumut party.[17]
Atassut was already established as a political movement at the time of the Folketing election on 15 February 1977, and the three Atassut founders Arqalo Abelsen, Ole Berglund and Otto Steenholdt ran as an association of candidates, which got 8,391 votes and Otto Steenholdt elected.[19]
^ abcChristina Bergqvist, ed. (1999). "Appendix II". Equal Democracies?: Gender and Politics in the Nordic Countries. Nordic Council of Ministers. p. 319. ISBN978-82-00-12799-4.
^Oplysning, Folketingets (2005). "Folketingsvalgene i Grønland 1977-2019" [The Parliamentary Elections in Greenland 1977-2019] (PDF). www.ft.dk. Archived from the original on 2017-06-24. Retrieved 2021-04-06.
^Sommer, Karsten Sommer (2005-01-19). "Atassut klar med kandidatlisten" [Atassut ready with the candidate list]. KNR. Archived from the original on 2014-12-09. Retrieved 2021-04-06.