Argentina’s ambassador to London Alicia Castro dismissed the referendum held by Malvinas Islanders saying it is “a ploy that has no legal value.”
Furthermore, the diplomatic insisted that the referendum is a media maneuver that shows how weak the United Kingdom’s position on the matter is”
“It’s a referendum organized by the British and for the British with the only purpose of having them saying that the territory must be British. It was neither organized nor approved by the United Nations”, Castro told FM Millenium.
Likewise, the Ambassador considered that the outcome “only represents the opinion of some 1,600 British citizens against the millions and millions of people that recognizes Argentina’s sovereignty over the Malvinas.”
Asked about the right of self-determination the Islanders claim as Argentina maintains that the islanders have no voice in a dispute that must be settled bilaterally, with Britain alone, Castro explained:
“We totally understand the Islanders trying to ratify their identity: They are British and so the British law recognizes them. Argentina is not trying to change their identity or their life style, but the territory they live on is not theirs. And there is one right they do not have, and it is the right to decide over the destiny of Argentina’s territory or resolve a sovereignty issue.”
Self-determination is a fundamental principle contemplated by the international law that’s not granted to any settlers of a certain territory, but only to the original natives that were or currently are being subjugated to a certain colonial power, and this is not the case of the Malvinas Islanders.”
“The Islanders are not a colonized people, but inhabitants of a colonized territory. Plus, Islanders are not part of the sovereignty dispute since the sovereignty claims are over the territory and not them.”
Source: Buenos Aires Herald