MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Argentine architects advance War Memorial in Falklands.
Plans to erect a permanent Memorial in the Falkland Islands to Argentines who died in the 1982 War has taken another step forward with the arrival in the Islands of two Argentine architects and their ?minder' from Buenos Aires. However Falklands Councillors have warned the Argentines that there will be no ?short-cut' to obtaining approval for the Memorial at Darwin, some 60 miles from the capital Port Stanley, where 244 Argentines, victims of the 10 weeks War, are buried.
Councillor Michael Summers gave a clear and unequivocal response to suggestions that a direct approach to the British Foreign Office, by the Argentine Ministry of Foreign Affairs, could ensure an early siting of the Memorial at the Argentine War Cemetery. ?As far as I and many of my colleagues are concerned there will be no deal by the Argentines with Her Majesty's Government, which is what we know they would like. If they want the Memorial then they will have to go through the normal procedures of applying to the Planning & Building Committee which has Councillor representation', he insisted.
A previous proposal from Buenos Aires to have a 10 meters high Memorial erected in the Cemetery was rejected ?out of hand' by Falklands Councillors. They have also rejected suggestions that a statue of the Virgin Mary, which will accompany the Memorial, would be painted blue and white, the Argentine national colours.
In Stanley itself the architects Monica Berraz and Carlos D Aprile have angered residents by refusing to talk about their new Memorial plans. One Falklands official said candidly, ?It is very strange that the present Argentine Government refuse to recognize the existence of the Falklands Government and its elected Councillors, but yet they send an official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to accompany the architects to act as their "minder", which rather contradicts their stance'.
It is believed that the new plans involve a massive reduction in size of the original Memorial, and will be only about 3-4 meters high, and NOT 10 meters as first envisaged by the Argentine architects. However any Argentine proposal, even one of a Memorial of 1 meter high will, according to Councillor Norma Edwards, the Chairman of the Planning and Building Committee, ?need to be treated like every other application and debated by the entire Falklands population'.
The two Argentine architects and their ?minder' apparently have no plans to meet Falklands Councillors although they will meet with ex-patriate Thomas Eggeling, the Government's Environmental and Planning Officer. According to Deputy Governor Russ Jarvis?they may also meet with Governor Donald Lamont at some stage of their visit, but I
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