For a Latin America Free from Colonialism – The Malvinas Islands Are Argentinean
LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN, 13 Feb 2012
Socorro Gomes, World Peace Council – TRANSCEND Media Service
The military escalade carried out by the United Kingdom towards the Malvinas Islands is an attack against Argentina’s national sovereignty and against the security of the whole South Atlantic region. As such, it deserves the repudiation of peace-loving forces.
The British government’s stand of ignoring United Nations resolutions regarding the Malvinas Islands and refusing to negotiate was followed by a militarist effort to intimidate Argentina and the other countries in the region.
As the war between Argentina and the United Kingdom for the possession of the Malvinas Islands approaches its 30th anniversary, British colonialists send to the peaceful waters of South Atlantic the Crown Prince to stay in the archipelago for six weeks, wearing a military uniform and joining the crew of modern warships.
The presence of the HMS Dauntless destroyer, one of the most modern and powerful aircraft carriers of the Royal Navy, and of a nuclear submarine armed with potent Tomahawk missiles, constitutes a severe threat to peace in the South Atlantic and is aimed at intimidating the Argentinean government and the other countries in the region as well.
The real objective of the United Kingdom with such a colonialist posture is, apart from deviating attention from the severe economic crisis it is mired in, to explore national resources, such as oil, and deploy its warships in a strategic position.
The United Kingdom makes use of the illegal occupation of the Malvinas Islands to provide a base for NATO operations in the region.
The occupation of the Malvinas is only the most visible part of colonialism in our region. The United Kingdom also possesses three other colonies in the waters of the South Atlantic: Ascension, Saint Helena and Tristan da Cunha, small islands that serve as support for military operations.
Ascension Island is used to support the transportation of American troops from the military base of Palanquero, in Colombia, to the African continent.
Apart from providing logistical support to allies, those colonial enclaves are near Brazilian territorial waters, were important oil deposits have been found.
Under such circumstances, the position adopted by president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner regarding the defense of the Malvinas as an inseparable territory of Argentina gains importance.
Likewise, the decision made in several multilateral forums – such as Mercosur, Unasur and Alba – with a view to support the Argentinean claim so that England returns to negotiations, therefore complying with the United Nations resolutions on the issue, constitutes a significant fact in Latin American solidarity.
We cannot accept the anachronistic existence of colonialism in the 21st century. The Malvinas are an indivisible part of Argentina.
In defense of a peaceful continent, free from colonialism and foreign military bases.
________________________
Socorro Gomes is the president of the World Peace Council.
This article originally appeared on Transcend Media Service (TMS) on 13 Feb 2012.
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