An Icelander living in the UK has been the victim of vandals at his home – apparently based on the Icesave debacle still causing friction between the two nations.
When the family woke up on Christmas Eve, it soon became clear that the house and the family car had been vandalised.
Tomas Marteinsson is an estate agent who lives in a little village near to London and when the family went out to shop for Christmas food, they saw that a large cross had been spray painted on the front door of their home and other crosses painted on their car, in addition to the words “pay people back”.
Marteinsson told Visir.is that he is quite angry about the attack on his family home and the vandals’ attempt to link him directly to the political process in his homeland. He says he immediately linked the attack to the Icesave issue but has no idea who the perpetrators are. He says he has always been fairly open and proud of his nationality.
“But I don’t talk about it any more unfortunately. When I’m asked where I’m from, I just say Scandinavia but not that I’m Icelandic,” he says.
He added that he has noticed a lot of anger towards Iceland and Icelanders in the UK – although not from his close friends or anyone who has studied the issue in detail.
Marteinsson says he wants the Icelandic government to resolve the Icesave issue as soon as possible.
It’s bad enough being an estate agent…
Hooligans like to have an excuse for their behavior.
It is shame to see this kind of thing happen in a small town as where they live. But every town in every country does have its idiots and vandals.
Let us hope that the neigbours do help them track down this people.
>He added that he has noticed a lot of anger towards Iceland and Icelanders in
>the UK – although not from his close friends or anyone who has studied the
>issue in detail.
That is because Brown spin doctors did do a good job using the good name of UK government to make the keeping on smears against Iceland and this keeps on going because they know that they did not have good reason to take Kaupthing Singer Friedlander using Northern Rock Act ( or to use the 2001 anti-terrorist act against Landsbanki and government of Iceland ).
Not a single Icelandic person I know (and I know many) has had any reaction other than sympathy, or empathy given that the UK is in a not too disimilar position…
Maybe the fact that he’s an estate agent is more likely the reason – they are down there with the bankers in the popularity stakes and are often seen as ‘thieving gits’!
Don’t make assumptions did write :
>[ in UK ] Not a single Icelandic person I know (and I know many) has
>has had any reaction other than sympathy, or empathy given that the UK is in
>a not too disimilar position…
Of course Icelander understand that individual British people are still as fair minded as they ever have been.
It is political class governing UK that is the problem.
It is sad to read this page because it reminds me of a different time and men and just how far the Brown government ( and Blair before ) has take the UK away in direction they have — and instead use what used to be called war powers ( anti terrorism act ) against a friendly nation just because they needed political poll boost at home :
http://www.merstham.co.uk/merstham/Gallery%20Pages/mw45.htm
Don’t make assumptions did write :
>[ in UK ] Not a single Icelandic person I know (and I know many) has
>has had any reaction other than sympathy, or empathy given that the UK is in
>a not too disimilar position…
Of course Icelander understand that individual British people are still as fair minded as they ever have been.
It is political class governing UK that is the problem.
It is sad to read this page because it reminds me of a different time and men and just how far the Brown government ( and Blair before ) has take the UK away in direction they have — and instead use what used to be called war powers ( anti terrorism act ) against a friendly nation just because they needed political poll boost at home :
+http://www.merstham.co.uk/merstham/Gallery%20Pages/mw45.htm
>they know that they did not have good reason to take Kaupthing Singer Friedlander using Northern Rock Act
But, as you know, that’s not what the High Court said.
““But I don’t talk about it any more unfortunately. When I’m asked where I’m from, I just say Scandinavia but not that I’m Icelandic,” he says.”
this guy could easily end up getting sprayed here in Iceland.
“But, as you know, that’s not what the High Court said.”
Icelandic companies and state will always loose against the British state in British high court,
if some one thought courts are always about fairness and justice they are wrong, busyness and politics affect the justice system too, just like every other aspect of our lives.
@Axel,
You said:
“Icelandic companies and state will always loose against the British state in British high court”
Iceland/Kaupthing did not lose this case because of corruption of the British Court, as you are implying, but because its case was very weak .
If you take on responsibilties in business which you are unable to meet in the end no judge will have sympathy for you.
It merely shows that the British court applied justice correctly.
““But I don’t talk about it any more unfortunately. When I’m asked where I’m from, I just say Scandinavia but not that I’m Icelandic,” he says.”
LOL!! talk about shame!!
Niels. I have enough samples to show that “justice” is not very best feature of British courts. But this is irrelevant as you missed the main principle of court process. A court is supposed to be independent, neutral third party to resolve the dispute between two (or more) parties involved.
In our case this means the “dispute” between Iceland and UK can NOT be “resolved” by British court. This is the fundamental rule! Neutral third party!
What’s this idea of painting a cross?
too lazy to do the construction work for the real thing and hammer it into the front garden before setting it alight?
Don’t make assumptions did write :
>[ in UK ] Not a single Icelandic person I know (and I know many) has
>has had any reaction other than sympathy, or empathy given that the UK is in
>a not too disimilar position…
I live in England as well and have done for 13 years without any problems until the banking crisis. But since then i have been subjected to constant verbal abuse from colleagues at work and even from my English wifes own family. But i still am proud to be from Iceland and if asked i will gladly tell anyone where i am from. There is no shame in coming from such a proud nation. The only shame is that the people responsible for all this hardship are looking like they will get away with all this.
Niels, Im not saying British courts are any worse than courts in other countries, icelandic courts are certainly not better, what Alexander is saying points out the basic reason why this does not work,
no one can be the judge in his own trial.
this is one of many reasons why the icelandic nation will not guarantee the icesave loan deal,
if an legal argument would come up the UK/NL can decide where this argument would be settled,
no one knows how or where that would end, but if you read the icesave deal its not hard too see that the people who are behind this will do what they can to attack iceland,
no one should expect any justice or fairness from courts in corrupt countries,
and like iceland, UK and the EU are extreamly corrupt.
Alexander,
You said:
“I have enough samples to show that “justice” is not very best feature of British courts.”
You are entitled to your opinion off course but I would be glad if you could share some of these examples with us.
You are supposing that British courts are not impartial and will never rule against their own government isn’t it?
Well, the fundamental principle of judges is that they should be impartial, regardless their own nationality.
If you look at the British ruling against Kaupthing regarding the transfer to ING Direct of the assets of Kaupthing Singer Friedlanders’s Kaupthing Edge Internet account you will see that Kaupthing was strongly criticized for irregularities and chaotic management.
That is why the ruling was against them, not because they are icelanders.
I have not seen much criticism from icelanders on the content of this ruling so I think it can be considered impartial.
You also said:
“In our case this means the “dispute” between Iceland and UK can NOT be “resolved” by British court. This is the fundamental rule! Neutral third party!”
Fine, what impartial court do you have in mind?
British and dutch courts will be partial in your mind, so will be icelandic and EU courts.
Perhaps the international court in The Hague?
Oops, it’s in NL, so partial too.
Not much left I am affraid :-)
I disagreem with this comment about quality of UK courts ( and Netherlands courts ) Alexander.
What is important in IceSave matter is that it gets in front of a court and not that EU commission ” kangeroo arbitration ” process.
UK court seeing this would be fine for me or Dutch one ( prior to appeal upwards ) but it makes most sense ( as Davið Oddsson did point out ) that this is sued in Icelandic court first.
Then it will move quickly up to EFTA Court and appeals etc.
This is what happened with the case from Dutch and other debt holders over the emergency law that did get passed end October 2008 that did save our banking system domestically.
The issue is that a fair impartial process where both sides of case are put forward and impartial judge (s) does rule based on facts and also they own knowledge of the background intends of the laws / regualtions, etc.
This is what the EU commission fears most ( and to lesser degreees the Uk and Dutch governenments ).
As Davið has pointed out many months ago the IceSave settlement with UK and Holland is a political and practical one. Not that any actual legal liability exists.
A moral obligation exists on behalf of Icelander to pay they debts, but we want it that an impartial 3rd party does rule on it. Despite the amusing but unfair characterising postings of Mike UK Nordic analyst in his humor mode, we dont want to define ‘debt’, define ‘pay’, define ‘our’, and of course define ‘always’ etc etc. :
http://www.icenews.is/index.php/2009/07/13/the-icelandic-government-is-not-responsible-for-icesave/#comment-85522
..we want impartial thirds party to decide on that. This is the basis of coming to a political settlement that will be agreed by Icelandic people.
It has to be on terms that won’t destroy our country completely in coming years which the current IceSave ” deal ” does pretty much guarantee.
Icelanders do pay they debts. But it has to be a reasonable process to get to that.
How is crushing us completely to help if the aim is to get the debts paid back ? Unless the purpose is to punish us for our banks competing with the EU member state banks and us being competitive, etc. and to show that look what happens if you are not part of EU political block ?
EU burecrats do hate the concept of Iceland as it has been since early 1990s as it shows exactly the opposite of what the EU as a political entity is all about.
>I disagreem with this comment about quality of UK courts ( and Netherlands courts ) Alexander.
Just to be clear I mean that I think that the courts in UK and Holland are fine enough and that the only thing is that in Iceland which follow the same principles as them, decision will come more quickly as there are less cases backing up the court justices here.
Whole point of fair justice system is transparency and that fair process and procedures of justice are done and seen to be done.
A reasonable person should be able to read the decisions and understand clearly why decisions were made. Judges are expert in the process of justice and ensuring fair out come.
This is some thing you will never see inside any so called justice process of the EU commission or other executve bodies of EU machinery.
Or even the EU parliament for that matter, because of the way it has been setup.
But I have a good faith in the justice system of member state such as UK and Holland and their judges and appeal judges, because although they have all that EU regulations pressing down on justice still they overall procedures are fair.
Niels wrote :
>I have not seen much criticism from icelanders on the content of this [ Kaupthing UK High Court ] ruling so I think it can be considered impartial.
I find that ruling impartial. But the facts that did come out are damning for the UK FSA. More as I say later — once I have done respect to Mike UK Nordic anylst and others by doing proper digging into specific financials based on what he did post in that other thread.
As to lack of criticism — we can then assume the same from Dutch about the ruling by EFTA Suirvellance authority on the emergency law ?
http://www.icelandreview.com/icelandreview/search/news/Default.asp?ew_0_a_id=355202
*evaluation by EFTA Suirvellance authority on the emergency law
Hi Fisy,
The EFTA ruling you are refering to has to do with the people who had deposited more than 100.000 euro in Icesave, I suppose?
In NL there is not much sympathy for these people who are regarded as rich complainers.
Ordinary people who had deposited some of their savings have been compensated while these rich people ‘got what they deserved’, according to public opinion .
I am quite neutral on this matter.
I checked the website of these weathy depositors , icesaving.nl (there are nearly 500 of them) and I saw thay have launched a complaint at the european court for human rights against Iceland because of ‘discrimination’(of foreign depositors).
So this matter has not been settled yet.