FALKLAND ISLANDS: SELF-DETERMINATION
This page: Flagged vehicles convoy though Stanley; Right: Observers Alisha Todd, Mission Leader Brad Smith and Deputy Juan Henao
agreement that Argentina has not reneged on under the various Kirchner regimes is the once weekly flight to Chile. Even that flight has seen a series of both overt and implicit threats made by the Argentine administration.
The Kirchner regime has tried to harm us in a number of ways:
• Threatening and harassing fishing companies which operate in Argentina and the Falklands with legal action under new laws; • Threatening and violence to cruise vessel operators; • Threatening legal action against any company involved in hydrocar- bons exploration in the Falklands; • Attempting (illegally) to block South American ports to any vessel with the Falklands flag; • Denying the right of innocent pas- sage to vessels transiting Argentine territorial waters through Argentine
Decree 256 which is contrary to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea; • Refusing to co-operate with our scientists regarding the conservation and management of international fish stocks; • Attempting to block our presence at international events; • Placing their claim in any inter- national forum at which we have no presence; • Prohibiting the over-flight of char- ter aircraft heading to the Falklands, and • Threatening any companies that wish to do business with us.
Giving Falklanders a voice These actions are not those of a friendly neighbour and of course are seldom reported in the media outside of the Falklands. It was against this background of continual aggression and harassment that we, the Falkland
124 | The Parliamentarian | 2013: Issue Two
Islands government, decided to hold a referendum. It was time for the people to be allowed to freely, fairly and democratically express which political system they wish to live under. We discussed the idea within our government about three years ago. Initially it is fair to say that there was not a great deal of enthusiasm for the idea. Why ask a question to which you already know the answer? Elected Members are elected to represent the people, and there was no sign whatsoever that the people wished for a change to the current status of the Falklands.
But over time and under ever increasing pressure from Argentine actions, the idea grew in strength. We, the elected Members, wanted to be able to tell the world that the Falkland Islanders are in charge of their own destiny. We wanted to give our people the right to speak out on their own behalf and we wanted to be given a
clear mandate. We wanted to send the clearest of all possible messages out to the world and its leaders and we wanted it to come from the heart of our country – its people.
Rewriting history
This is not about what happened over 180 years ago in 1833. What happened then was simply that a military force that was in our Islands illegally was expelled by the British. They had been here for less than three months.
The often-voiced comment from Argentina is that the British expelled either an Argentine population or a native population. This is untrue and the facts are out there for whoever wishes to research them. The civilians who were here (about 30 in total) were persuaded by Captain Onslow of HMS Clio to remain and all but two did exactly that. Argentina claims the Falklands form part of the province
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76