Grim news
I am indebted to reader Geoff for telling me about trouble in store for his home patch of Gibraltar and our other 'colonies' including the Falklands territories and the Caymans:
"He is one of the last people Gibraltar – less still the Falklands – would have hoped to have seen nominated. Jorge Argüello, Permanent Representative of Argentina to the United Nations, is the new chairman of the Fourth Committee, the Special Political and Decolonization Committee. He is set to be addressed in a fortnight’s time by both Chief Minister Peter Caruana and Opposition Leader Joe Bossano".
Further detail at the Gibraltar Chronicle, also picked up by Mercopress, the South Atlantic News Agency.
Before looking further at Arguello and Argentina's role as less than honest would be honest broker, note how the UN introduces its page on decolonization:
"...more than 80 nations whose peoples were formerly under colonial rule have joined the United Nations as sovereign independent states since 1945".
Note emphasis on people, not on land.
The 'decolonization' committe 21 vice presidents, inclusing those bastions of stability, Everest leve high moral ground, liberal democracy, human and property rights Afghanistan, the 'People's Republic' of China, Myanmar, and Egypt. We are on the committee too, along with our Uncle Sam, presumably to play the role of Aunt Sallies while picking up the tab for this.
New head honcho Argüello has a biography at the UN, salient points noted below:
"He is one of the last people Gibraltar – less still the Falklands – would have hoped to have seen nominated. Jorge Argüello, Permanent Representative of Argentina to the United Nations, is the new chairman of the Fourth Committee, the Special Political and Decolonization Committee. He is set to be addressed in a fortnight’s time by both Chief Minister Peter Caruana and Opposition Leader Joe Bossano".
Further detail at the Gibraltar Chronicle, also picked up by Mercopress, the South Atlantic News Agency.
Before looking further at Arguello and Argentina's role as less than honest would be honest broker, note how the UN introduces its page on decolonization:
"...more than 80 nations whose peoples were formerly under colonial rule have joined the United Nations as sovereign independent states since 1945".
Note emphasis on people, not on land.
The 'decolonization' committe 21 vice presidents, inclusing those bastions of stability, Everest leve high moral ground, liberal democracy, human and property rights Afghanistan, the 'People's Republic' of China, Myanmar, and Egypt. We are on the committee too, along with our Uncle Sam, presumably to play the role of Aunt Sallies while picking up the tab for this.
New head honcho Argüello has a biography at the UN, salient points noted below:
"Mr. Argüello was appointed as his country’s Permanent Representative in June 2007. Prior to that, he was a National Congressman from 2003, during which time he served as President of the Foreign Relations Committee and President of the Parliamentary Observatory of the Malvinas Question. He was also Vice-President of the Permanent Commission on International Peace and Security with the Inter-Parliamentary Union".
It seems less than likely that Argüello is going to put much emphasis on the will of the peoples of Gibraltar or the Falklands, as both have emphatically rejected any change in sovereignty status. While the current administration would doubtless love to sell Gib and Port Stanley down the river, they will find it difficult to do so with a spotlight on them, so perhaps we will be looking at irritation, wasted time and anxiety for those involved, but don't say I didn't warn you.
Anyway, I will re-quote Rupert Davies of Sierra Leone, "Rupert Davies ( Sierra Leone) said it was in the spirit of General Assembly resolution 637 -- which reaffirmed its recognition of self-determination as a prerequisite for the realization of all fundamental human rights -- that his delegation had repeatedly maintained that the rights of the islanders who had lived on the Territory for 175 years should be paramount in any negotiated settlement. Subjecting people to alien domination constituted a violation of their right to freely determine their political status and pursue development. There was no dispute that the people were the holders of the right to self-determination".
It seems less than likely that Argüello is going to put much emphasis on the will of the peoples of Gibraltar or the Falklands, as both have emphatically rejected any change in sovereignty status. While the current administration would doubtless love to sell Gib and Port Stanley down the river, they will find it difficult to do so with a spotlight on them, so perhaps we will be looking at irritation, wasted time and anxiety for those involved, but don't say I didn't warn you.
Anyway, I will re-quote Rupert Davies of Sierra Leone, "Rupert Davies ( Sierra Leone) said it was in the spirit of General Assembly resolution 637 -- which reaffirmed its recognition of self-determination as a prerequisite for the realization of all fundamental human rights -- that his delegation had repeatedly maintained that the rights of the islanders who had lived on the Territory for 175 years should be paramount in any negotiated settlement. Subjecting people to alien domination constituted a violation of their right to freely determine their political status and pursue development. There was no dispute that the people were the holders of the right to self-determination".
Labels: Falklands, Gibraltar, United Nations
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on Monday, September 22, 2008 at 6:18 am.
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