Residents of the Falkland Islands voted
almost unanimously to stay under British rule in a referendum held on 10-11
March 2013. The official figure showed that 99.8 percent of islanders voted in
favor of remaining a British Overseas Territory in the two-day poll. The
referendum was rejected by Argentina. The voters’ turnout was 92 percent among
the 1694 Falklands-born and long term resident. The islands lie off the
tip of Patagonia, at the southern end of South America.
Argentina had
mounted pressure on Britain to negotiate the sovereignty of the islands. It has
increased its pressure since UK companies started drilling for oil and natural
gas off the Falkland’s coastline. Many Latin American nations support
Argentina.
Argentina has claimed the Falkland Islands since 1833. Argentina and Britain had fought a war in 1982 for rights over the islands.
ISSUE
The Falkland
Islands are an archipelago located in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf.
The principal islands are about 310 miles (500 kilometres) east of the Patagonian coast at a latitude of about 52°S. The
archipelago which has an area of 4,700 square miles (12,173 square
kilometres) comprises East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 smaller islands. As a British Overseas Territory, the islands
enjoy a large degree of internal
self-governance with
the United Kingdom guaranteeing good government and
taking responsibility for their defence and foreign affairs. The islands'
capital is Stanley on
East Falkland.
Controversy exists
over the Falklands' original discovery and subsequent colonisation by Europeans. At various
times, the islands have had French, British, Spanish,
and Argentine settlements. Britain re-established
its rule in 1833, though the islands continue to be claimed by Argentina. In 1982,
following Argentina's invasion of the islands, the
two-month-long undeclared Falklands War between both countries resulted in the
surrender of all Argentine forces and the return of the islands to British
administration.
The population,
estimated at 2,932 in 2012, primarily consists of native Falkland Islanders, the vast majority
being of British descent. Other ethnicities include French, Gibraltarian, and Scandinavian.
Immigration from the United Kingdom, Saint Helena,
and Chile has reversed a former population
decline. The predominant and official language is English. Under the British Nationality Act of 1983,
Falkland Islanders are legally British citizens.
