Faroe Islands a reaction to the growing self-government and independence movements, Denmark finally granted the Faroe Islands home-rule with a high degree of local autonomy on 30 March 1948. In 1973 the Faroe Islands declined to join Denmark in entering the European Economic Community (later absorbed into the European Union). The islands experienced considerable economic difficulties following the collapse of the fishing industry in the early 1990s, but have since made efforts to diversify the economy. Support for independence has grown and is the objective of the Republican Party. The Faroe Islands are an island group consisting of 18 major islands (and
Faroe Islands at the Paralympics bronze. Their most successful appearance was at the 1988 Games, where they won seven medals and Christina Naess won the Faroe Islands' first and only Paralympic gold medal, in the C3 100m backstroke in swimming. The Faroe Islands have only ever sent swimmers to the Paralympics, with the sole exception of Heini Festirstein, who competed in table tennis in 1992. Faroe Islands at the Paralympics The Faroe Islands first competed at the Summer Paralympic Games in 1984, and have competed in every edition of the Summer Paralympics since then. They have never participated in the Winter Paralympic Games. The Faroe