MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Six Nobel Peace Prize winners call on UK to open talks on Falklands’ sovereignty

South Africa’s Desmond Tutu is one of the signatories

Six Nobel Peace Prize winners called for Britain to open talks with Argentina over the sovereignty of the Aflklands/Malvinas Islands, ahead of the 30th anniversary of the war between the two nations. The call came in the form of a letter directed to the UK's Prime Minister David Cameron.

“We, the undersigned citizens from different countries around the world, committed to world peace, wish to convey our concerns regarding the territorial dispute between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Republic of Argentina over the Falklands/Malvinas Islands, South Georgia, and South Sandwich Islands”, the document read.

Argentine artist and 1980 Nobel Peace Prize winner for his protests against the military dictatorship Adolfo Pérez Esquivel along with five other laureates appeal to the British leader to comply with UN resolutions summoning the two nations to the negotiation table.

“Since 1982, the UN General Assembly has continuously renewed the call through the adoption of resolutions requesting that the two countries sit down and talk” the statement said.

“Also, the UN Special Committee on Decolonization annually adopts a resolution which calls on both governments to consolidate the current process of dialogue and cooperation through the resumption of negotiations, in order to find, as soon as possible, a peaceful solution to the sovereignty dispute,” it added.

The other Nobel winners signing the letter include 1992 peace prize winner Rigoberta Menchu of Guatemala, Mairead Maguire of Ireland (1976), South African Desmond Tutu (1984), US national Jody Williams (1997) and Iran's Shirin Ebadi (2003).

The letter ends calling the British government to revise its policies and resume the negotiations in compliance with international resolutions.

“We therefore request that you review the British government’s position of refusing to dialogue on this matter, and that your government comply with United Nations Resolutions calling for the initiation of talks with the Republic of Argentina”.