MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Falkland Islander plans “Hand of Friendship” concerts in Argentina.
Terry Betts, erstwhile union leader, member of the Falkland Islands Legislative and Executive Councils, prominent local entrepreneur and President of the Falkland Islands Chamber of Commerce has turned author and musician.
Recently he published his autobiography "A Falkland Islander Till I Die" and a CD of his own music, entitled 2WO 5IVE 5IVE. Now back in the Islands on a brief visit from his home in Portugal, he was interviewed on the FIBS ?One to One' programme by Lee Hazell.
Asked what had prompted a visit at this time, Mr. Betts said that he was in the Islands to explore some commercial opportunities, which he was not yet able to talk publicly about, but also to promote sales of his autobiography and the music CD, which he had released at the same time. Ten per cent of the net profit from all sales of both go to the South Atlantic Medal Association and the Falkland Islands Veterans Association.
Mr. Betts said that the first edition of the book had sold out and he was talking to local traders in the Falkland Islands to determine what volumes of a planned second edition might be required. What was especially gratifying was that the book had not yet been on sale during the Falklands Islands tourist season, when extra sales to cruise ship visitors might be anticipated.
Admitting that the book was "not exactly free of controversy" and at times critical of Argentine, British and Falkland Islands governments, Terry Betts said that the response he had received from Falkland Islanders and others was "very positive".
Besides providing a view for his political views, which some people might not agree with, Mr. Betts said that the book was "also a yarn" about his life, including his early days, growing up in the fifties For ordinary Falkland islanders this was a difficult time, significantly lacking in either opportunity or hope for a better future.
Turning to his parallel career as a musician, Terry Betts explained to listeners that the rather strange sounding title of his CD was a reference to the two hundred and fifty five British military and civilian personnel, who died during the 1982 reoccupation of the Islands after the Argentine invasion.
Having always been interested in music making and especially in writing song lyrics, Mr. Betts had lacked the opportunity for formal training in music when at school. Fortunately, as he explained to Lee Hazell, he had teamed up with a man called Trevor Holman, who had a music-recording studio in Portugal and thirty years experience as producer and arranger of hit records for such artistes as Donna Summer. Holman had liked his work and this first CD was the result of their collaboration.
Among current ambitions outlined to FIBS listeners by Mr. Betts, was more live performance of his music, including possibly in Buenos Aires with an Argentine backing group, under the banner "The Hand of Friendship". He said that he liked to deliver a message in all his songs and some of his messages were political, but the aim of such a performance would be non-political. He simply wanted to show ordinary Argentines that Falkland Islanders are a friendly sort of people and "our own people". John Fowler - Stanley
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