MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Penguin News update

Headlines: C24: councillors to deliver ?real message' on self-determination; Jailed nurse to appeal sentence; Liberation Monday; Argentine film crew visits.

C24: councillors to deliver ?real message' on self-determination

THE Falklands have a "real message" on self determination to deliver to the United Nations Decolonisation Committee (C24). Councillors Mike Summers and Roger Edwards will fly to New York to attend the annual meeting next week. They plan to address the C24 on Friday, June 18. Councillor Summers said he and his colleague will deliver the message of self determination and, "...the right of small countries to choose their own destiny." An Argentine delegation will also address the meeting. Mr Summers said it is important that Falkland's representatives attend the C24 to deliver the self determination message personally: "Such a message has much more force when delivered by the people themselves (or at least their elected representatives). "The message is understood by many of the delegates on the C24, and there is sympathy for it." The voting tradition in the C24 is to have unanimous adoption of a resolution which calls on the United Kingdom and Argentina to solve the sovereignty dispute through peaceful discussions. Councillor Summers said, "That is hardly objectionable in UN terms; it is unacceptable to us because we have no intention of entering discussions on sovereignty with the Argentines." Despite the tradition, councillors do not believe attending the meeting is a waste of time. Councillor Summers said, "It is a formal body of the United Nations, and therefore, irrespective of the United Kingdom position, it has some gravitas. "In any event the Argentines will petition the C24 every year whether we attend or not, and it would be foolish for us not to attend and in effect let them win by default." Asked if councillors find this voting tradition disheartening, Mr Summers said, "The resolution does not explicitly (or indeed implicitly) support the Argentine claim - it simply calls for resolution of the dispute. "We are not disheartened by the annual outcome since it does us no harm. There is sometimes frustration that we cannot make more progress, but the status quo is better than losing ground, which might be a danger if we did not attend." Earlier this week, Councillor Summers played down the importance of a resolution passed by the Organisation of American Status (OAS) calling on Argentina and Great Britain to resume "without delay" sovereignty negotiations over the Falklands, South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands. He described the OAS as a "regional grouping" with, "...very little political clout in world terms." He added that any resolution the OAS passes is not binding on any of its members and councillors had expected the move, "...in what is effectively a Latin American club. It has no effect on us or on the United Kingdom." Mr Summers said the Argentine delegation is likely to refer to the OAS resolution in New York, "...and the several Latin American countries on the C24 will support them," However he added, "It has no effect on what we might saying the meeting." Councillors Edwards and Summers say they have no plans to meet with the Argentine delegation however Mr Summers explained, "...it is often the case that after the meeting we meet in the chamber. "If we do meet it will not be by design, but is perfectly possible."

Jailed nurse to appeal sentence.

JAILED nurse Denise Schophaus is appealing against her sentence for drugs theft. In April Ms Schophaus received a number of 36 week sentences to run concurrently after pleading guilty to eight charges relating to the theft of pethidine and forgery in the hospital drugs register. At yesterday's meeting of the police committee, His Excellency the Governor Mr Howard Pearce asked why the offences of "theft of a class A drug" and "false accounting" were marked in police statistics as "current" rather than "detected". Chief of Police Dave Morris confirmed that it was because Ms Schophaus was appealing against the sentence handed down by former Senior Magistrate Nick Sanders, so the case was still considered active. FIBS

Liberation Monday

LIBERATION Day will be celebrated island-wide on June 14, a public holiday. Residents will mark the occassion with a Thanksgiving Service in Christ Church Cathedral, followed by a ceremony at the Liberation Monument which involves an Act of Remembrance and the laying of wreaths. The Liberation Monument ceremony will be followed by a civic reception in the Town Hall hosted by His Excellency the Governor, Mr Howard Pearce.

Argentine film crew visits

AN ARGENTINE television crew is due to arrive in the Islands tomorrow to film a documentary relating to the Falklands War. The programme will look at the effects of war and footage of the Liberation Day parade is likely to be filmed on Monday. Also visiting will be two Argentine war veterans who are travelling separately from the film crew. However they are expected to be interviewed by the crew on Mt Longdon and at Darwin/Goose Green.