Malvinas: islanders open the door to a regional fisheries agreement

Barry Elsby is the president of the Malvinas Islands Legislative Assembly. Besides the governor, who is a delegate from Great Britain, Elsby is currently the highest authority of the islands. The legislator of the kelpers agreed to answer by e-mail a series of questions that he asked
THE NATION and opened the door to work on a possible "regional management agreement for sustainable fisheries".

– Can the humanitarian mission of identifying the bodies of Argentine soldiers mark a new period in relations between the islands and Argentina?

– The Government of the Falkland Islands (Malvinas) was responsible for ensuring that the DNA process was carried out. It has been a great success. Today, only 10 bodies of soldiers have disappeared from the Argentine cemetery to be identified. Since the beginning of this work, two official visits of the families of the identified soldiers have been made. The last family visit was organized at the invitation of the Government of the Falkland Islands (Malvinas). These events had to be carefully managed because we have experienced situations where people from outside the islands came here and, unfortunately, have not always appreciated and respected the sensibilities of our community.

– The United Kingdom's Ambbadador to Argentina, Mark Kent, believes that we must move forward in a broader dialogue and cooperate on other issues, such as fisheries. Does it fit?

-We already participate in the exploration of areas of common interest, such as fishing data exchange. A recent and successful fisheries research trip to the Falklands (Malvinas) and Argentina has helped both countries understand the fish stocks. We are ready to work towards a regional management agreement for sustainable fisheries. We are not an island country, but a country that wants to seize and seize the opportunities offered by working with countries like Chile, Brazil and Uruguay in sectors such as agriculture, tourism and tourism. l & # 39; education.

– Do you think that a broader integration framework can be achieved with, for example, a greater number of flights between the mainland and the islands?

-In 2013, the inhabitants of the Falkland Islands (Malvinas) clearly expressed their feelings when 99.8% of voters voted in favor of maintaining British territory abroad. We have the right to determine our future and we can never foresee a situation in which the Malvinas Islands will be "integrated" with Argentina. However, we want to continue to expand our relationship with South America. We are proud to say that 7% of our population comes from Chile and that one of our eight elected MPs (MPs) was born in Chile. The agreement to set up a second weekly commercial flight between the Falkland Islands and South America, this time from Sao Paulo, Brazil, is a sign of this ongoing process

– How do the inhabitants of the islands live the memory of the war at 37 years of the conflict?

Each has his own memories and experiences of the war and we commemorate him every year. It is true that the invasion of our country in 1982 changed the Falkland Islands (Malvinas) forever and many inhabitants of the island still bear these physical and psychological scars. Many British and Argentinian veterans visit the islands and the islanders understand and recognize the need for these visits.

– How do you imagine the future of the islands?

– In the future, we will not be defined by the war and hope that all visitors will take the opportunity to get acquainted with modern Falkland Islands (Malvinas); Our country has grown and developed considerably since 1982 and today we are a progressive, self – managed and self – financing democracy.