GIBRALTAR TAKES ON ARGENTINA AND STANDS UP FOR THE
FALKLANDS AT THE UNITED NATIONS
June 2005
Gibraltar's Opposition Leader has spoken out in defence of the Falkland
Islands at a United Nations seminar on decolonisation. Before addressing
the meeting on issues relating to Gibraltar, Joe Bossano made a
"robust rebuttal" of a call from the Argentine delegation for
the seminar to adopt a recommendation that Falkland Islanders do not have
the right of self-determination.
Argentina's argument was that decolonisation of the Falklands was a
matter of territorial integrity and its people had been transplanted to
the Islands illegally by the "occupying power". Mr Bossano, who
visited the Islands in 1992, called this "utter rubbish".
He said Argentina was trying, "no less than to alter the Charter
of the UN….which says that all peoples have a right to
self-determination and, by virtue of that right, they freely determine
their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and
cultural development."
Mr Bossano picked holes in Argentina's argument about the
"occupying power". "What I would like to know is which was
the occupying power that provided the honourable gentleman with his
genetic code because he does not look like an Aztec or an Inca to me. What
we have in South America, in Argentina where he comes from, are the people
of the occupying power eventually rebelling against their mother country,
Spain, and decolonising. By his criteria they would not be entitled to
that right."
He continued, "As if that were not enough, the honourable member
presents himself before this seminar and produces self serving arguments
by deliberately selectively quoting from the UN established documents
list. The UN has never said that the people of Gibraltar or the people of
the Falkland Islands don't have the right to self-determination because
there is somebody that want the place in which they live, and they have
been living there in the case of the Falkland Islands only since 1833 and
in the case of Gibraltar only since 1704. That is utter and complete
nonsense."
The Falkland Islands were not represented at the seminar and Mr Bossano
told the meeting it would be a "travesty and indeed a democratic
deficit" to consider Argentina's argument "when the Falkland
Islanders are not here to put the contrary case for themselves." He
urged the gathering to "totally ignore the suggestions and
recommendations from the distinguished delegate from Argentina." The
motion proposed by Argentina was not carried and the resolution was not
included, only 'noted'.
Falklands councillors wrote to Mr Bossano to thank him for his
"robust rebuttal" and for his support. Councillor Roger Edwards
said he thought Mr Bossano's speech was "excellent". "The
Argentine delegate was trying to put an amendment in, Joe stood up and
gave a very firm rebuttal and they didn't even vote on it." He said
the move by Argentina was "not totally unexpected - its what they are
always likely to do."
He added, "It was a shame that the Foreign and Commonwealth Office
or ourselves didn't have someone there looking out for us. We must in
future make a marker to try harder to get to that meeting."
Councillor Edwards said that councillors do not often attend the UN
seminar - a precursor to the New York Committee of 24 meeting in June - as
it clashes with the annual budget session. However he added, "I think
the future council should revisit that decision." He said this
episode "highlights once again" the need for the Falklands to
have representation overseas "… or you can lose out by
default". "We are lucky to have strong support from
Gibraltar."
First published in the Penguin
News on 3 June 2005, and reproduced by kind permission of the Editor
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