Falkland Islands emphatic... 'We wish to remain British'

Last night I was interested to read a statement from the Falkland Islands government saying "we wish to remain British"!

Now... where have we heard that before?

The Falkland Islands government statement was in response to last Saturday’s meeting in Chile, of UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Argentine president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner.

The two leaders met in Viña del Mar in the framework of the Progressive Governance conference and according to reports from both sides, 15 of the 35 minutes, on Argentine request, were absorbed by the Falkland Islands dispute.

Mrs Kirchner demanded that the United Kingdom complies with United Nations resolutions calling for talks to find a solution to the sovereignty conflict, while PM Brown stated what he had advanced before reaching Chile, that "there is nothing to discuss on the Falklands from our side" and emphasized the importance of self determination.

"Both sides agreed that they have differences of opinion", said a Foreign Office official following the Saturday meeting.

In their statement, the Falkland Islands government added:

“Whilst Britain and the Falkland Islands have moved on to a new relationship based on democracy and self-determination, our Argentine neighbors remain in a time warp, still pressing their anachronistic claim to territorial sovereignty. In short, they wish to colonize the Falkland Islands.

Falkland Islanders have expressed their views freely and unequivocally over many years. We wish to remain British. Our constitution enshrines the right to determine our own future. Surely no-one who supports democracy and human rights can oppose this?

It is regrettable that 27 years after the Falklands War it is still necessary to spell this out once again to yet another Argentine leader who hasn't realized that the world has changed and countries cannot ride rough-shod over the right to self-determination of free people.

We wish to remain British and the sovereignty issue is not for negotiation!"

Good for them... well said!

In solidarity with our 'brothers in arms', I've sent them my own greeting saying that "remaining in a time warp seems to be a hispanic trait... when it suits them!" I also mentioned that in Gibraltar, we've had to put up with 'anachronistic claims' to territorial sovereignty for over 300 years now!

It's about time both Argentina and Spain matured, came into the 21st century and started to respect and accept the democratically expressed wishes of both the Falklands and Gibraltar in our respective and emphatic expressions of self-determination!

My best wishes to our Falkland brothers in arms!