859A.00/107: Telegram
The Chargé in Iceland ( Warner ) to the Secretary of State
[Received 8:42 p.m.]
463. Legation’s 429, August 20, 4 p.m.20 Yesterday the Government introduced a bill to amend the constitution to provide that when Parliament approves the severance of the Union with Denmark and the creation of a republic such parliamentary action with subsequent approval by popular referendum shall take effect as fundamental law, namely as a constitutional amendment. The text of the bill as introduced is quoted in the Legation’s telegram 464 of September 8, 4 p.m.20 The bill immediately passed all three readings in the lower house and was sent to the upper house with an amendment specifying that this exceptional method of effecting a constitutional amendment shall be limited to questions connected with the severance of the Union and the resultant change from a monarchy to a republic.
The bill was passed by a majority approved before Parliament dissolves within the next few days and must be passed again, as required [Page 19] by the constitutional, by the requirement resulting from the general elections now tentatively set for October 18 which will be held under the new electoral law.21 The procedure provided for in the bill will make it unnecessary to dissolve Parliament and to [apparent omission] modifications later whenever Parliament should decided to sever the Union (legation’s 398, August 1, 2 p.m.22) but does require a referendum in place thereof.
The result of the Government’s action is that no concrete steps will be taken toward the severance of relations at this session as promised but all action is now deferred until such time as the new Parliament may deem the matter expedient.
The Prime Minister is [in?] introducing the bill referred to the Parliamentary gentleman named last spring to draft amendments for the establishment of a republic which proposal was to have been acted upon at the present session saying that the work of the committee had collapsed because “a new and unexpected turn was given to the course of the independence aspirations of the nation”. The Government’s bill received the support not only of the Conservative Party (with the exception of the member Petur Ottesen) but also of the Social Democrats and Communists both of whom spoke in its behalf. The Progressives took the opportunity to attack Government and its supporting parties alleging that it had used the independence question to gain advantage in the July 5 election and had now broken its promises to settle the question. The Progressives and Ottesen, however, did not vote against it but merely voted present. Ottesen in disapproving a postponement of the independence question declared openly “The military [apparent omission] to which we have entrusted the defence of the country has requested that the matter be deferred”.
Despatch follows.