Our woman at the UN sticks her neck out
In this case, Karen Pierce - about whom I can discover nothing - rather than the Ambassador, Sir John Sawers.
Anyway, one to file away for future reference:
"...said her country’s policy towards its Overseas Territories was founded on the basis that the citizens of each Territory determined whether they wished to stay linked to the United Kingdom...The representative of the United Kingdom, addressed her comments to the representatives of Cuba and Indonesia on the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands, said that the United Kingdom’s position on that issue was well-known. It had been set out by the Permanent Representative to the United Nations in a written right of reply to the President of Argentina at the high-level plenary meeting of the General Assembly. The United Kingdom had no doubts about its sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, and there could be no negotiations on the sovereignty of the Islands unless and until such time as the islanders so wished". Source
Shame the government does not extend the same courtesy to Ulster.
Meanwhile, New Zealand-administered Tokelau might opt for independence in a referendum to be held on the 20th-24th of October. Given that it has a population of 1,449 (down 15 on last year), a GDP of $1.5m and "The government is almost entirely dependent on subsidies from New Zealand. It has annual revenues of about less than US$500,000 (€410,000) against expenditures of some US$2.8 million (€2.3 million)" independence without Auckland's bounty is going to be something of a trial....
And its prospective state flag is *horrible*:
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Anyway, one to file away for future reference:
"...said her country’s policy towards its Overseas Territories was founded on the basis that the citizens of each Territory determined whether they wished to stay linked to the United Kingdom...The representative of the United Kingdom, addressed her comments to the representatives of Cuba and Indonesia on the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands, said that the United Kingdom’s position on that issue was well-known. It had been set out by the Permanent Representative to the United Nations in a written right of reply to the President of Argentina at the high-level plenary meeting of the General Assembly. The United Kingdom had no doubts about its sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, and there could be no negotiations on the sovereignty of the Islands unless and until such time as the islanders so wished". Source
Shame the government does not extend the same courtesy to Ulster.
Meanwhile, New Zealand-administered Tokelau might opt for independence in a referendum to be held on the 20th-24th of October. Given that it has a population of 1,449 (down 15 on last year), a GDP of $1.5m and "The government is almost entirely dependent on subsidies from New Zealand. It has annual revenues of about less than US$500,000 (€410,000) against expenditures of some US$2.8 million (€2.3 million)" independence without Auckland's bounty is going to be something of a trial....
And its prospective state flag is *horrible*:
.svg.png)
Labels: United Nations
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on Friday, October 12, 2007 at 9:09 am.
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"Auckland's bounty": wot, as well as Wellington's?
Whoops. I nearly posted on a Mayoral election in part of Auckland, and must have got befuddled.
(Hangs head in shame).
Ha ha! Not that it matters, Tokelau being the carbon atom on the RNA strand named Wellington in the bacterium called New Zealand in a pimple on the elephant that is earth.
Commentators advise us not to read anything into a lurch to the right at local body level (at least a lurch in Auckland). But with a taxpayer funded surplus of 8.5 billion kiwidollars and little promise of a tax cut (but many a hint of an election year spend up) I think that NZ voters may be getting a bit sick of this Labour government...
Ooops: forgot to mention that there are only a little over 4 million kiwis, so that surplus would be in the order of $2125 each, just enough for a largish wide screen plasma or LCD TV for every man woman and child. And THAT is the rationale on which the govt hesitates to give us our money back: we'd only spend it...
Control freaks everywhere...
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