MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Falkland Islands: Weekly Penguin News update

Headlines: Co-op to shut up shop after 50 years; Queen's birthday honours; Mid-winter madness; No plan to move Ocean 8 or the oil Stanley Sports Association

Co-op to shut up shop after 50 yearsAFTER more than 50 years of trading, the Stanley Co-op is to shut-up shop for the final time at the end of this month. Spokesperson for the committee, Malcolm Ashworth said the business has reached a point where it is unable to meet its liabilities, which include the member's investments. The Co-op has almost 400 members each with a £30 share but many have a much larger investment. "It is the Committee's aim that members will recover as much of their investment as possible," said Mr. Ashworth. The decision was made at a General Meeting held last week that the Co-op cannot continue to trade and members have agreed to the Committee starting the process of liquidation. An investigation into the Co-op's current financial position is to be undertaken under the Co-operative Societies Ordinance by the Registrar General, John Rowland and depending on the outcome of the enquiry, a decision will made as to whether to go into liquidation and an independent liquidator appointed. Concerns expressed locally that the land and buildings on John Street are not the legal property of the Co-op are unfounded, assured Mr. Ashworth. "No major scandals have been unearthed, but management decisions taken in the past and questions over the professional advice given to the previous management committees seem to have caused a slow hemorrhaging of finances. "The ultimate responsibility rests with the members who have not involved themselves enough in the operation of their business," he concluded. Queen's birthday honoursTHE annual Queen's Birthday Honours List, announced on June 14, contained three recipients with obvious Falkland Islands connections. Robin Woods, a frequent visitor to the Islands, was awarded an MBE for services to the conservation of wildlife in the Falklands. Robin, who is a trustee and former chair of Falklands Conservation, is recognised as perhaps the leading authority on the birds of the Falkland Islands. With his wife Anne, Robin is the author of a number of guides to Falklands wildlife, including: An Atlas of Breeding Birds of the Falklands, Birds of the Falkland Islands, Birds and Mammals of the Falklands, (the latter with photographs by Alan Henry) and Also honoured was Hilary Bradt, Chairwoman of Bradt Travel Guides, which was the first company to produce a guide book exclusively on the Falklands. Hilary was awarded an MBE for services to the tourist industry and to charity, while Rear Admiral Richard Ibbotson, who was Commander British Forces Falkland Islands from 2002 to 2003, received the CBE. No plan to move Ocean 8 or the oil THE Falkland Islands Government (FIG) has no definitive plan at the moment, either for the removal of the sunken trawler, Ocean 8, or for the removal of the oil it contained, said Councillor John Birmingham on Tuesday. Following on from the visit to the Falklands last week of a representative of the vessel's principal insurers, the Protection and Indemnity Club (P&I Club), Councillor Birmingham said that a process had been started; the representative of the P&I Club had returned to Montevideo and from there would report to the vessel's owners in Korea. Meanwhile, the Director of Fisheries would be writing to the ship's owners to press for action and to seek a way forward. FIG was taking the view that as the wreck belonged to its Korean owners and was insured, it was really up to them to resolve the situation. "They can probably do things in the commercial world rather more readily and possibly more cheaply" said John Barton. Environmental Planning Officer, Tom Eggeling, said that the preferred options for FIG would be either that all the oil be removed from the wreck or that the wreck itself should be removed, together with the oil it contained. Mr. Birmingham, who holds the portfolio for Public Services, which includes the environment, said that FIG had not been sitting back and doing nothing, but might have been guilty of, "...not being as proactive as we could have been with the media". The final leaks from the vessel had been plugged by last Friday, said Director of Fisheries, John Barton, who showed a recently taken aerial photograph to indicate that only a small oil slick was now remaining over the wreck site. With the vessel lying on its side in 30m of water, there had been some oil trapped by bulwarks and other objects, but this had now largely been blown out, Mr. Barton added. The effort to plug the four or five places from which oil appeared to be leaking had been somewhat delayed, he said, due to faulty information received initially regarding the nature of the oil on board, which was distributed among eleven separate tanks. Continued on page 3. Mid-winter madness WHILE it must be said that sanity prevails throughout most of the year in the Falklands, on the Saturday nearest mid-winters day madness prevails and hundreds take to the freezing cold waters of the South Atlantic for local charities. This Saturday the masses will again gather at Surf Bay to take the plunge and gain the coveted certificate to prove that they have taken part in the South West Atlantic Mid-winter Swim (SWAMS) Organiser Sian Ferguson asked that all those wishing to register arrive no later than 11am so that everyone is ready for the 11.30am plunge. She added, "All are welcome to watch the lunacy," even if you don't have the courage to get wet. Sponsor forms to raise money for the Sea Cadets and the Lighthouse Seamen's Mission are available around the shops and donations will be gratefully received on the day. Anyone requiring further information can contact Sian on 55399 or 21977. Stanley Sports AssociationCelebrating 100 years of sporting events Racing commentator Patrick Watts reviews the Association's early days on pages 9-12