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A referendum on continued membership of the European Communities (EC) was held in Greenland on 23 February 1982.
Greenland had joined the EC in 1973 when Denmark joined, even though a majority of 70% of the Greenlandic votes in the Danish EC referendum held in 1972 had been against membership. In the spring of 1981, after Greenlandic home rule had been established in 1979 and the eurosceptic party Siumut won the 1979 election, the Parliament of Greenland agreed to hold a referendum on its continued membership.[1] The result of the referendum was a majority in favour of leaving the EC, and this was enacted by the Greenland Treaty, which allowed the EC to keep its fishing rights.[2] Greenland continues to be considered one of the Overseas Countries and Territories of the EU, giving it a special relationship with the Union.