MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Falklands Governor criticizes Argentina ignoring 'self-determination'
Gov. Huckle: British and FIG do want to have, “...good, stable relations with Argentina.” THE Governor of the Falkland Islands has criticized the Argentine government for pressing its claim to the Falklands saying, “... it ignores the principle of self-determination enshrined in the UN Charter and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.”
In his annual speech to Legislative Council Governor Alan Huckle said Argentina seeks to, "...get round this by arguing, wrongly, that the principle of self-determination should apply only in cases where there is no dispute about sovereignty and it speaks about taking the interests (but not the wishes) of Falkland Islanders into account. "In contrast, the British Government stands firm in upholding the right of the Islanders to determine their own future. And Islanders have consistently made clear, through their freely and fairly elected representatives, their wish to remain under British sovereignty. Self-determination does not necessarily mean independence." The Governor emphasized, however, that the British and Falkland Islands Governments do want to have, "...good, stable relations with Argentina." He said "We regularly make constructive suggestions on ways to advance practical co-operation with Argentina, for example in the conservation of fisheries. But instead of wanting to discuss practical co-operation, the Argentine Government repeatedly accuses us of "unilateral acts" and wants to talk about something else. Too often the something else is more political or somehow implying an Argentine right to be involved in decision-making over the Falklands. Yet that was not the purpose of the various co-operation agreements under the so-called 'sovereignty umbrella' where sovereignty issues were specifically set aside. And the Argentine Government consistently refuses to acknowledge the role of the Falkland Islands Government in the government of the Territory, preferring instead to portray the Falklands' relationship with Britain, again wrongly, as a colonial relationship, with the Islanders under British Government administration. Well, we have progressed a long way from that as the new Constitution, if agreed, will show." He noted that there were things that all three governments should want such as better air and maritime links between South America and the Falklands to allow more economic opportunity; closer co-operation on fisheries conservation, both bilaterally and internationally in the south-west Atlantic; and greater mutual understanding between the Falklands and Argentina. He said, "And all three governments want the special service(s) for Argentine next-of-kin at the Argentine cemetery near Darwin to go ahead. We need to find acceptable ways of making progress on these, so long as sovereignty issues do not intrude." FisheriesThe Falkland Islands Governor praised the management of their fishery saying, "We can all take pride in the fact that the Falkland Islands fishery is one of the best managed in the world. The loligofishery remains the powerhouse of local industry development; with catches of 42-58 thousand tonnes over the last three years. Sustainable exploitation of this reserve depends on effective management." He said, "The introduction this year of an enhanced programme of safety inspections on all fishing vessels, together with the introduction of the Overseas Masters fishing licence should help to improve conditions on fishing vessels where these fall short of our expectations. Tragic incidents this year have reminded us that this is a tough business, and we must seek to improve safety standards on board vessels fishing in our waters." Falklands' economy.On a less optimistic note the Governor noted that balancing the revenue and expenditure budgets was getting ever more difficult. He added, "With government revenues flat and increasing cost pressures through inflation and increased expectations, the forecast shows no sign of improvement. We need to act now to increase revenue and decrease expenditure, since eating into reserves is not an option." By Lisa Johnston – SeAled PR - Stanley
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