Falklands referendum: David Cameron calls on Argentina to respect the wishes of islanders after 99.8 per cent vote to stay British

 

Port Stanley

David Cameron today called on Argentina to respect the wishes of Falkland Islanders, who have overwhelmingly voted to stay British.

After two days of voting the inhabitants of the South Atlantic archipelago decided by 99.8 per cent in favour of retaining their status as a United Kingdom overseas territory. Turnout from the electorate of 1,649, some of whom had queued in wind and rain yesterday to cast their ballots in Stanley, was 92 per cent.

The Prime Minister said this was "the clearest possible results there could be" and that he would always be there to defend the islands.

Speaking at 10 Downing Street just hours after the result of the referendum was announced, Mr Cameron said it sent a clear message to Argentina.

"They should take careful note of this result," said the Prime Minister.

"The Falkland islanders couldn't have spoken more clearly. They want to remain British and that view should be respected by everybody, including by Argentina."

The emphatic approval of the status quo of British sovereignty, which saw just three "no" votes cast out of 1,517,  is no surprise in a community which still bears the memory of Argentina's 1982 invasion and Britain's subsequent liberation in a brutal three-week land war.

As the result was announced in Port Stanley's town hall there was gasps at the scale of the yes vote. One spectator shouted: "Listen to us."

A few hundred metres at the street part beneath the Whalebone Arch, erected 80 years to commemorate a century of British rule of the Falklands, a fully party was in swing with islanders singing from printed sheets carrying the words to "God Save the Queen" and Rod Stewart's "I Am Sailing".

Port Stanley resident Alice Clarke said: "It's a brilliant, brilliant result. We hoped it would be convincing but the turn out and the percentage in favour is a very powerful statement."

It will be held up by islanders as proof of their right to self-determination and a counter-blast to the ongoing campaign by Argentina to corral Britain to the negotiating table for talks - rejected out of hand by London - in which Buenos Aires insists the Falklanders would have no right to participate.

The Argentine government of President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has made clear it does not recognise the referendum, insisting it has no legal validity.

However Mr Cameron insisted that the islanders were entitled to the right to self-determination.

"It is the clearest possible result there could be," he said.

"The Falkland Islands may be thousands of miles away but they are British through and through and that is how they want to stay. People should know we will always be there to defend them.

"We believe in self-determination. The Falkland Islanders have spoken so clearly about their future and now other countries right across the world, I hope, will respect and revere this very, very clear result."

The vote was greeted with jubilation in Port Stanley, where hundreds of residents braved squally snow showers to hold a street party on a green decked in the Falklands flags and red, white and blue bunting.

Members of the Falklands' legislative assembly will later today use the results from the plebiscite to lobby foreign governments. Meetings are due to be held in America, which has been criticised on the islands and in Britain for sticking rigidly to its longstanding formula of recognising the UK's de facto administration of the islands but stopping short of accepting the right of its inhabitants to self-determination. In London, there is an expectation that diplomats and ministers will use the referendum result to counter Argentine complaints.

Barry Elsby, one of the islands' elected legislators, told The Independent: "The point of this referendum was not for islanders to know what they feel. The message here is for the outside world. Argentina has told the world we don't exist but we have tonight made our views clear in the most emphatic manner possible.

"Argentina is afraid of this referendum because it shows that we have a voice on the international stage."

Mr Elsby hit back at criticism from Buenos Aires that the referendum amounted to nothing more than a publicity stunt.

He said: "This is not a stunt. It is publicity for the watching world because on behalf of our 3,000 people, the islanders have gone to the ballot boxes and made a statement about their future. That is not a stunt."

The high turnout for the vote will be seen as an indication of the determination of the islanders to make their views known as well as a signal of success for the complex logistical operation for the referendum put in place by the Falklands' government, which involved mobile polling stations touring the Camp or countryside beyond Port Stanley and the use of an aircraft to gather ballot boxes as well as visit voters in outlying islands.

A team of international observers monitoring the ballot gave the process a clean bill of health in an initial assessment of the conduct of the referendum. Brad Smith, the head of the ten-strong Referendum International Observer Mission, said: "We believe that this referendum represented the will and the spirt of the voters of the Falkland Islands."

Argentina and its president, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, who has led a voluble campaign against the islanders while asserting the case from Buenos Aires that London must negotiate over the Falklands' status, is likely to respond with indignation to the result and could expand its strategy of applying economic pressure on the islands.

Argentina's ambassador to London, Alicia Castro, last week refused rule out the imposition of new measures against the Falklands, which already include an attempt to squeeze the islands' tourist industry by banning cruise ships which call at Port Stanley from visiting Argentine ports and threats to restrict the lucrative squid catch which has funded much of the islands' development in recent years by expanding fishing in its own waters.

Mrs Castro said: "Let's wait and see."

Independent Comment
blog comments powered by Disqus
Top stories
News in pictures
World news in pictures
UK news in pictures
UK news in pictures
More stories
       
Independent
Travel Shop
India and Shimla
14 nights from only £1899pp Find out more
Prague city break
Three nights from £199pp Find out more
4* Soreda hotel break, Malta
Seven nights all-inclusive from £399pp Find out more
Independent Dating
and  

By clicking 'Search' you
are agreeing to our
Terms of Use.

Day In a Page

James Pembroke: The man who's eaten everywhere

The man who's eaten everywhere

Few people know more about restaurants than James Pembroke, who only spent five mealtimes at home during his entire childhood.
A Berliner in 1963 – but did John F Kennedy once admire Adolf Hitler?

A Berliner in 1963 – but did John F Kennedy once admire Adolf Hitler?

The young JFK praised 'superior' Nordic races during visits to Germany
Banned Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof to attend Cannes Film Festival 2013, his first public appearance since prison

Banned Iranian director to attend Cannes Film Festival

Mohammad Rasoulof to make his first public appearance since being imprisoned three years ago
Seeing the larger picture: Inspiring images of space

Seeing the larger picture: Inspiring images of space

An exhibition explores images how photography has shaped astronomy
Eat Spam and carry on: Wartime pamphlets could teach us a thing or two about healthy, thrifty eating

Eat Spam and carry on

Wartime pamphlets could teach us a thing or two about healthy, thrifty eating
Facial hair: Cat beards and the purrrsuit of excellence

Facial hair

Cat beards and the purrrsuit of excellence
The 10 Best salt and pepper sets

The 10 Best salt and pepper sets

Whether they're for everyday use or to make your dining table look just right, it's worth getting a stylish shaker...
Thomas Müller: We couldn't handle losing a Champions League Final again

Thomas Müller: We couldn't handle losing a Champions League Final again

The Bayern Munich forward tells Tim Rich his side have to shed chokers' tag after two recent final defeats
Giro d'Italia: The Stelvio Pass - cycling's killer climb

The Stelvio Pass - cycling's killer climb

As the Giro d'Italia tackles the brutal climb, Simon Usborne takes on the snow and switchbacks – and soon realises what the fuss is about
National archives: Edward VIII’s phone calls - and how MI5 bugged them

Edward VIII’s phone calls - and how MI5 bugged them

Newly unearthed papers reveal a shocking extra dimension to the constitutional crisis over monarch’s abdication
Sent down at the Old Bailey: A tour of the world's most famous court

Sent down at the Old Bailey

A tour of the world's most famous court
Hollywood's random acts of red-carpet kindness

Hollywood's random acts of red-carpet kindness

The Hangover actor Zach Galifianakis’s date for his movie premieres isn’t arm candy  – it’s his 87-year-old friend who he saved from homelessness
British football scores an own goal

British football scores an own goal

Many managers barely survive a year in post. Martin Baker talks to experts who make a case for clubs using forensic business skills to find the best staff
James Lawton: Sergio Garcia cracks as major fault line opens up again

James Lawton

Sergio Garcia cracks as major fault line opens up again
Dylan Hartley: Northampton have spent the season proving all our critics wrong

Dylan Hartley talks tough

Northampton have spent the season proving all our critics wrong