No matter what happened to it in the past, UN law says that a Dependency's people must decide what country they wish to belong to.
And the fact that the people of the Falkland Islands overwhemingly wish their islands to be British demonstrates that the British, not the Argentines, are right to claim the islands. The islanders have several times made it known, democratically, that they have no wish to be Argentine. And the fact that Britain owned the island before Argentina came into existence further strengthens her claim.
Argentina claims the islands as they are off its coast, but if everyone thought the same way the French would be claiming the British Isles.
Britain came to the islanders' rescue in 1982 when Argentina, then a brutal military dictatorship, invaded the islands.
Now Argentina's President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner (or ‘old plastic face’ as Falkland Islanders refer to her following reports in Buenos Aires that her looks are surgically enhanced) has decreed that ‘prior approval’ will be required for ships sailing between the coast of Argentina and waters claimed by it, and the Falkland Islands.
But this news didn't come as a surprise to the Falkland Islanders, because Argentina (the "neighbour from hell") has been trying to destroy the islands' economy for years.
Now, writing exclusively for the Daily Mail, Lisa Watson, a Falkland Islander, says the Falkland Islands will not be bullied by "Old Plastic Face."
FALKLANDS WAR II?
'We will not be bullied by you, Old Plastic Face', says a sixth generation Falkland Islander
By Lisa Watson, Former Editor Of Penguin News, Port Stanley
21st February 2010
Daily Mail
Stalking the islands: Argentina's President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, or "Old Plastic Face" as the Falkland islanders call her.
At a meeting of Falkland sheep farmers, held in a Stanley business boardroom last week, a burly chap wearing a check shirt and pair of well-worn sheep shearing strides grumbled to colleagues.
Fellow farmers were ‘swanning off’ in pursuit of extra cash by offering tours to visiting cruise ship tourists ‘when they should be bloody well staying on their own farms and fattening lambs for the abattoir’.
His amiable colleague leaned across, patted him comfortingly on the shoulder and wryly assured him: ‘Cruise ships won’t be a problem now mate – the Argies have sorted that one for yer.’
The handsome but craggy faces of the group of weather-beaten young farmers lit up with amusement at the positive spin on Argentina’s latest attempt to hinder the Falklands’ economy. But underneath, no one was underestimating the potential seriousness of the situation.
At about the same time, President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner (or ‘old plastic face’ as Falkland Islanders refer to her following reports in Buenos Aires that her looks are surgically enhanced) decreed that ‘prior approval’ will be required for ships sailing between the coast of Argentina and waters claimed by it, and the Falkland Islands.
Cruise ship tourism is the second-largest contributor to the Falklands’ economy and, worryingly, many ships begin their Falklands/Antarctic adventure in the Argentine port of Ushuaia.
If Argentina insists on permits for ships en route to the Falklands, the opportunity exists for them to refuse or delay the vessels.
Surprisingly, Ushuaia is just as perturbed by the announcement. The Argentinian newspaper based in that region, El Diario del Fin del Mundo, ran an article on Friday expressing concern that their commercial interests could be damaged by the requirements.
With eight cruise liners due to sail between Ushuaia and the Falklands before the season closes at the end of March, the article’s author asked: ‘Who will be issuing licences?’
For Falkland Islanders in general, the decree wasn’t a particularly startling piece of news, for Argentina has been attempting to tear down the Falklands’ economy for many years. Thus it was comforting to read some of the rather pugnacious responses to the situation by the British Press this week.
'Argentina is its own worst enemy as well as ours'
Their patriotic and custodial stance was everything a small and vulnerable overseas territory might hope for and Tony Curran, the editor of our newspaper (The Penguin News, what else would we call it?) wrote: ‘Perhaps one of the better outcomes of recent days has been renewed interest from the UK media in Falklands’ affairs.’
At the same time, the shock/horror reaction also emphasised how little the British public understands our current situation, that such victimisation from our much larger neighbour is an everyday occurrence.
The Falkland Islands have been in several hands over the years. Here's the timeline (remember that Argentina didn't even come into existence until 1810).
February 1764 – April 1767: France
January 1765 – July 1770: Great Britain
April 1767 – February 1811: Spain
September 1771 – May 1776: Great Britain
February 1811 – August 1829: None
August 1829 – December 1831: Argentina
December 1831 – January 1832: United States
January 1832 – December 1832: None
December 1832 – January 1833: Argentina
January 1833 – August 1833: United Kingdom
August 1833 – January 1834: None
January 1834 – April 1982: United Kingdom
April 1982 – June 1982: Argentina
June 1982 – present: United Kingdom
Since the 1982 war, a time I remember well as a frightened 12-year-old farmer’s daughter, the Falklands’ economy has grown hearty from the sale of squid fishing licences to a plethora of calamari-loving countries such as Korea, Spain, China and Taiwan.
The fishery income has transformed Stanley from an increasingly rickety little community, with a rapidly reducing population into an attractive town that boasts a modern school, a tourist visitor centre, hundreds of recently constructed brightly painted houses, and groups of trendy iPod-clutching teenagers on every corner.
But how does our neighbour from hell harass us?
All ships sailing between the Argentine coast and the Falklands must hold a permit
Just for starters, while the country’s authorities currently ‘allow’ a weekly commercial flight between Chile and the islands (one that has no option but to travel through Argentine air-space), they have banned charter flights to the Falklands. These were invaluable and most often used for cruise ship passenger exchanges and the carriage of freight.
We Falkland Islanders are particularly fond of our relationship with our benign neighbour Chile (Chile is also a great ally of Britain) – and we don’t want to lose it.
In 1982, the British successfully retook the Falkland Islands from Argentina's murderous dictator General Galtieri
A substantial Chilean community has grown in the Falklands; we work and socialise together and there’s no better ending to a night out than attending a lively Chilean party, dancing to reggaeton [Latin hip-hop] or grinding to salsa.
Unfortunately, interrupting the link between our countries is just as much of a priority for Argentina. Purely for a bit of sport the Argentine authorities insist that if a scheduled flight is delayed for any reason – bad weather, perhaps – then a permit must be issued for the aircraft to travel another day through their airspace.
The Argentine decree is likely to deepen a row over conflicting claims to oil beds lying inside the Falkland Islands' territorial waters
Of course the Falklands’ biggest industry has less to do with visitors and everything to do with the unlovely but highly lucrative squid. Not surprisingly the Argentine government is perfectly aware of this, and has spent recent years doing all it can to damage the Falklands’ primary money-spinner – the sale of the fishing licences.
In recent years Argentina informed the international fishing industry that if they insisted on purchasing Falklands’ licences they would not be welcome in Argentina’s substantially larger fishing zone.
As far as I am aware this hasn’t actually turned out to be a massive problem in itself.
Business is business after all, and if Korean, Chinese and Spanish fishing vessels hear rumours (or perhaps it involves technology; cephalopod chasing isn’t my area of expertise) insisting the squid is in the Falklands’ zone then they seem to follow them regardless.
Port Stanley, the Falklands' capital
And we’ve heard if they fancy an Argentine licence the following year, they simply reflag the ship, change a few letters in its name and paint it pink instead of purple. Again I can’t swear to it but they’re a canny lot.
Argentina's authorities currently 'allow' a weekly commercial flight between Chile and the islands but they have banned charter flights to the Falklands
Sadly the problem doesn’t end there. If it were in fact possible to build a nice big wall all the way around the Falklands and its fishing zone, life would be just fine. But sharing the sea with Argentina means suffering their unashamed and irresponsible attitude towards the fish stocks.
While we pay out a fortune in equipment and personnel to monitor fish stocks, and end the fishing season early if things are looking bad, Argentina refuses to co-operate and play the sustainability game.
It is its own worst enemy, as well as ours. Argentina has cruise ship visitors and we have cruise ship visitors, they have squid and we have squid, and yet they seem willing to upset things for themselves in order that the Falklands suffer the consequences.
A great deal of their time seems to be spent demanding that our representatives be expelled from international conferences on everything from oil and agriculture to tourism and fisheries.
I might say that I would rather our neighbour causes us to live in fear of our livelihoods than our lives. But for all our determination to live life serenely in spite of this insistent persecution, it can be a wearying existence when every brave step towards self-sufficiency is dogged by the stalker in the shadows.
dailymail.co.uk
And the fact that the people of the Falkland Islands overwhemingly wish their islands to be British demonstrates that the British, not the Argentines, are right to claim the islands. The islanders have several times made it known, democratically, that they have no wish to be Argentine. And the fact that Britain owned the island before Argentina came into existence further strengthens her claim.
Argentina claims the islands as they are off its coast, but if everyone thought the same way the French would be claiming the British Isles.
Britain came to the islanders' rescue in 1982 when Argentina, then a brutal military dictatorship, invaded the islands.
Now Argentina's President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner (or ‘old plastic face’ as Falkland Islanders refer to her following reports in Buenos Aires that her looks are surgically enhanced) has decreed that ‘prior approval’ will be required for ships sailing between the coast of Argentina and waters claimed by it, and the Falkland Islands.
But this news didn't come as a surprise to the Falkland Islanders, because Argentina (the "neighbour from hell") has been trying to destroy the islands' economy for years.
Now, writing exclusively for the Daily Mail, Lisa Watson, a Falkland Islander, says the Falkland Islands will not be bullied by "Old Plastic Face."
FALKLANDS WAR II?
'We will not be bullied by you, Old Plastic Face', says a sixth generation Falkland Islander
By Lisa Watson, Former Editor Of Penguin News, Port Stanley
21st February 2010
Daily Mail
Stalking the islands: Argentina's President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, or "Old Plastic Face" as the Falkland islanders call her.
At a meeting of Falkland sheep farmers, held in a Stanley business boardroom last week, a burly chap wearing a check shirt and pair of well-worn sheep shearing strides grumbled to colleagues.
Fellow farmers were ‘swanning off’ in pursuit of extra cash by offering tours to visiting cruise ship tourists ‘when they should be bloody well staying on their own farms and fattening lambs for the abattoir’.
His amiable colleague leaned across, patted him comfortingly on the shoulder and wryly assured him: ‘Cruise ships won’t be a problem now mate – the Argies have sorted that one for yer.’
The handsome but craggy faces of the group of weather-beaten young farmers lit up with amusement at the positive spin on Argentina’s latest attempt to hinder the Falklands’ economy. But underneath, no one was underestimating the potential seriousness of the situation.
At about the same time, President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner (or ‘old plastic face’ as Falkland Islanders refer to her following reports in Buenos Aires that her looks are surgically enhanced) decreed that ‘prior approval’ will be required for ships sailing between the coast of Argentina and waters claimed by it, and the Falkland Islands.
Cruise ship tourism is the second-largest contributor to the Falklands’ economy and, worryingly, many ships begin their Falklands/Antarctic adventure in the Argentine port of Ushuaia.
If Argentina insists on permits for ships en route to the Falklands, the opportunity exists for them to refuse or delay the vessels.
Surprisingly, Ushuaia is just as perturbed by the announcement. The Argentinian newspaper based in that region, El Diario del Fin del Mundo, ran an article on Friday expressing concern that their commercial interests could be damaged by the requirements.
With eight cruise liners due to sail between Ushuaia and the Falklands before the season closes at the end of March, the article’s author asked: ‘Who will be issuing licences?’
For Falkland Islanders in general, the decree wasn’t a particularly startling piece of news, for Argentina has been attempting to tear down the Falklands’ economy for many years. Thus it was comforting to read some of the rather pugnacious responses to the situation by the British Press this week.
'Argentina is its own worst enemy as well as ours'
Their patriotic and custodial stance was everything a small and vulnerable overseas territory might hope for and Tony Curran, the editor of our newspaper (The Penguin News, what else would we call it?) wrote: ‘Perhaps one of the better outcomes of recent days has been renewed interest from the UK media in Falklands’ affairs.’
At the same time, the shock/horror reaction also emphasised how little the British public understands our current situation, that such victimisation from our much larger neighbour is an everyday occurrence.
The Falkland Islands have been in several hands over the years. Here's the timeline (remember that Argentina didn't even come into existence until 1810).
February 1764 – April 1767: France
January 1765 – July 1770: Great Britain
April 1767 – February 1811: Spain
September 1771 – May 1776: Great Britain
February 1811 – August 1829: None
August 1829 – December 1831: Argentina
December 1831 – January 1832: United States
January 1832 – December 1832: None
December 1832 – January 1833: Argentina
January 1833 – August 1833: United Kingdom
August 1833 – January 1834: None
January 1834 – April 1982: United Kingdom
April 1982 – June 1982: Argentina
June 1982 – present: United Kingdom
Since the 1982 war, a time I remember well as a frightened 12-year-old farmer’s daughter, the Falklands’ economy has grown hearty from the sale of squid fishing licences to a plethora of calamari-loving countries such as Korea, Spain, China and Taiwan.
The fishery income has transformed Stanley from an increasingly rickety little community, with a rapidly reducing population into an attractive town that boasts a modern school, a tourist visitor centre, hundreds of recently constructed brightly painted houses, and groups of trendy iPod-clutching teenagers on every corner.
But how does our neighbour from hell harass us?
All ships sailing between the Argentine coast and the Falklands must hold a permit
Just for starters, while the country’s authorities currently ‘allow’ a weekly commercial flight between Chile and the islands (one that has no option but to travel through Argentine air-space), they have banned charter flights to the Falklands. These were invaluable and most often used for cruise ship passenger exchanges and the carriage of freight.
We Falkland Islanders are particularly fond of our relationship with our benign neighbour Chile (Chile is also a great ally of Britain) – and we don’t want to lose it.
In 1982, the British successfully retook the Falkland Islands from Argentina's murderous dictator General Galtieri
A substantial Chilean community has grown in the Falklands; we work and socialise together and there’s no better ending to a night out than attending a lively Chilean party, dancing to reggaeton [Latin hip-hop] or grinding to salsa.
Unfortunately, interrupting the link between our countries is just as much of a priority for Argentina. Purely for a bit of sport the Argentine authorities insist that if a scheduled flight is delayed for any reason – bad weather, perhaps – then a permit must be issued for the aircraft to travel another day through their airspace.
The Argentine decree is likely to deepen a row over conflicting claims to oil beds lying inside the Falkland Islands' territorial waters
Of course the Falklands’ biggest industry has less to do with visitors and everything to do with the unlovely but highly lucrative squid. Not surprisingly the Argentine government is perfectly aware of this, and has spent recent years doing all it can to damage the Falklands’ primary money-spinner – the sale of the fishing licences.
In recent years Argentina informed the international fishing industry that if they insisted on purchasing Falklands’ licences they would not be welcome in Argentina’s substantially larger fishing zone.
As far as I am aware this hasn’t actually turned out to be a massive problem in itself.
Business is business after all, and if Korean, Chinese and Spanish fishing vessels hear rumours (or perhaps it involves technology; cephalopod chasing isn’t my area of expertise) insisting the squid is in the Falklands’ zone then they seem to follow them regardless.
Port Stanley, the Falklands' capital
And we’ve heard if they fancy an Argentine licence the following year, they simply reflag the ship, change a few letters in its name and paint it pink instead of purple. Again I can’t swear to it but they’re a canny lot.
Sadly the problem doesn’t end there. If it were in fact possible to build a nice big wall all the way around the Falklands and its fishing zone, life would be just fine. But sharing the sea with Argentina means suffering their unashamed and irresponsible attitude towards the fish stocks.
While we pay out a fortune in equipment and personnel to monitor fish stocks, and end the fishing season early if things are looking bad, Argentina refuses to co-operate and play the sustainability game.
It is its own worst enemy, as well as ours. Argentina has cruise ship visitors and we have cruise ship visitors, they have squid and we have squid, and yet they seem willing to upset things for themselves in order that the Falklands suffer the consequences.
A great deal of their time seems to be spent demanding that our representatives be expelled from international conferences on everything from oil and agriculture to tourism and fisheries.
I might say that I would rather our neighbour causes us to live in fear of our livelihoods than our lives. But for all our determination to live life serenely in spite of this insistent persecution, it can be a wearying existence when every brave step towards self-sufficiency is dogged by the stalker in the shadows.
dailymail.co.uk
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