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Greetings from the Falkland Islands

In 1876 the Chilean corvette Chacabuco with Governor of Magallanes Diego Dublé Almeyda visited the Falklands, returning with an amount of sheep, thus initiating the Patagonian sheep farming

By MLA Gavin Short for Infogate  - We have passed nearly through spring and are but a few days away from summer which has proved to be cooler and wetter than in previous years, which is a blessing after the dry seasons experienced over the last few years and I believe that despite the lower temperatures, grass growth is good which will be welcomed by our rural sector.

Spring and summer, apart from bringing better weather is also the visiting season as our tourist season gets underway. So far we have had the normal amount of expedition cruise vessels who are better placed to deal with variable weather conditions but the first large cruise vessel that was scheduled to visit the Falklands called the visits off two days before they were due to arrive as there was a gale of wind predicted, a forecast that proved to be true and the wind speeds on the day that it should have had a port visit were of a strength that would have made safe operations impossible. These large vessels are much more prone to weather, especially high winds which is something that we have a lot of in the Southern Cone but hopefully the remainder of the scheduled visits by these floating cities go ahead as their cancelation does have an economic impact for those involved in the tour industry.

Land based tourism is also ramping up, although there is the looming threat from avian influenza which is present here but at fairly low levels but should it sweep through a penguin colony at one of the Falklands more popular tourist destinations, this could lead to the closure of the area with the economic impacts that would follow.

It is also the time in the Falklands where we get a steady stream of visits from politicians, influencers, journalists and now business people.

One such group was 21 Chileans from business and other sectors in that country who have spent a week here in the Falklands at their own expense and who have had a very packed program which ranged from site visits through to formal meetings and receptions which has seen them meeting everyone from the Falklands business sector through to Government Officials and ended on Friday night with a gathering with our Chilean community who make up about 8 to 10% of our population. The visit was coordinated jointly the Falklands Development Corporation and the Chamber of Commerce.

I met with them in a formal setting and I have to say that they were to a person, all extremely charming and interested in all aspects of life here, as well as possibilities that may exists now or in the future to expand on the levels of business between our two countries which sadly have lessened over the years as the vessel that used to run between Punta Arenas and the Falklands switched routes and now uses Uruguay. This change was, I believe, caused by economics.

At the meeting there was certainly people there (on both sides and including me) who had fond memories of the days when we had those closer links with Chile and I still miss the Chilean products that used to grace our supermarkets and it would be wonderful if some way could be found to help their return.

The Falklands and Chile have had a long history of links both through trade and on a personal level going back nearly 150 years that I am aware of.

For example, in 1876 the Chilean corvette Chacabuco transported the Governor of Magallanes Diego Dublé Almeyda to the Falklands, returning with an amount of sheep, thus initiating the Patagonian sheep farming boom of the late 19th century.  Interestingly the Chacabuco was also commanded by Oscar Viel between 1876 and 1881 which of course is the name given to Chile’s new Antarctic research vessel and it would be wonderful if she was able to visit the Falklands in the future.

There was also the Rippling Wave, whose bow section could be seen outside of an office, just along from the Dreams Hotel in Punta Arenas who made a good many trips from Punta Arenas to the Falklands in the 1890s through to 1909 transporting people and goods as well as taking sheep from the Falklands back to Chile.

In 1877 we even had a Chilean Consul in the Islands, something that would be beneficial for our Chilean population today and it would be nice were the Chilean Government able to withstand the Agentine pressure that would surely come, and re-instate the position in the interests of their people.

In modern times, one of the things that have made a huge difference in the Falklands is our once weekly connection to Punta Arenas and Santiago which is run now by LATAM but was initiated from Punta Arenas by Aerovia DAP. This has allowed us to grow our land-based tourist sector, take holidays in Chile, bring in airfreight and DHL and also send patients to Chile for medical diagnostic procedures. In the three months July to August, 25 persons from the Falklands were sent to Chile. Some were for diagnostic work whilst others would have been a medical evacuation.

Here in the Falklands we have a good medical service which is free (apart from cosmetic dental work) and has recently been independently inspected and described as being on par with a level of private healthcare in the UK but we are only a small population (3500 of us at the last census) and cannot cater for all specialties and in the case of a medical emergency which can be stabilized but that we do not have the capability to deal with, we use Chilean companies Aerocardal and Los Cedros Aviación who transport the person from the Falklands to Santiago for treatment in the Clinica Alemana (all costs covered by the Government of the Falklands) and I have a lot to be grateful for from this link as I had a heart attack about a year and a half ago and was stabilized in our hospital before being whisked over to Chile for a procedure which means that I am now fighting fit again. I cannot speak highly enough about the efficiency of the air ambulance and the first-rate treatment and friendliness shown to me by the staff on the cardiac unit at the Clinica Alemana.

People from the Falklands also take their holidays in Chile which involved not just sightseeing and a lot of eating but also a lot of shopping. It is not unusual for people (myself included) to travel with little in the suitcase and use the break to fill the suitcases with purchases made whilst in Chile.

Also, over the years we have had a great many people from Chile who have come to work in the Falklands and stayed. Some came to work on farms whilst others brought much needed skills with them such as carpenters. For example, in the 1960s among the Chileans who came to the Falklands and whom I got to know extremely well and who stayed to work and raise families were Mr Almonacid (shipwright) Mr Miranda (carpenter) and Mr Molkenbuhr who started as a farm worker and went on to own his own farm. Now we have people from Chile working in many sectors in the Falklands from a farm manager, farm workers, hotel owner, police officers, bank workers, pub operators, owners of fast food outlets, beauty treatment and the wonderful people who run Groovy’s which is as close to a Chilean pub/eatery as you can find, and many of those raise their families here and go on to take Falkland Islands citizenship. We also have many marriages between Islanders and Chileans (myself included) and these marriages strengthen the links and closeness to Chile.

Returning to the visiting Chilean trade delegation, some have visited before but most have not. What will come of this visit remains to be seen but at the very least, we now have 21 people who have seen the Falklands for themselves and can now speak with some authority about our country, economy our wishes and way of life.

May I end this column by asking you, the reader, to contact Infogate if there is anything that you are curious about so that I can tailor my occasional pieces to be not just about life in general in the Falklands but subjects that are of interest to you.

Saludos. Nos vemos.

Infogate points out that opinions from columnists and guests are of exclusive responsibility of its authors, and no do not necessarily represent the editorial line of the agency.