MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Falklands: Update on Humanitarian Project Plan 2 to identify remains of Argentine combatants

The Argentine military cemetery close to Darwin where most of the humanitarian activities took place

On Friday Falkland Islands lawmakers, MLAs John Birmingham and Roger Spink met, via video link, with Laurent Corbaz from the International Committee of the Red Cross and members of his team to discuss the progress made in HPP2 (Humanitarian Project Plan 2) work.

Laurent, together with colleagues from the ICRC, visited the Falkland Islands in August 2021, with the aim of identifying human remains buried in grave C.1.10 in the Argentine Cemetery near Darwin.

Scientific work completed since their visit has led to the DNA identification of six further Argentine soldiers and provided some peace of mind for their families, who have expressed gratitude to the ICRC and all those involved in enabling the program. During the meeting, the ICRC thanked the Falkland Islands authorities for their assistance in progressing with HPP2, despite the challenges presented by Covid-19 restrictions, and which ultimately resulted in a successful outcome.

MLA Roger Spink, said: “It was good to talk to Laurent and his team again, and to express our thanks for the extra work that they carried out as part of the Teal Inlet investigation, as well as for their compassion and the sensitive way in which they have carried out their task to date. At the end of the meeting we all agreed that both HPP and HPP2 have been very good examples of work where humanitarian considerations have been at the heart of everyone concerned.”