Falklands fury: Argentina accused of 'twisting history' with provocative flag ceremony

And a Falkland Islands Government spokesman said coincidentally this month also marked another anniversary – one which effectively drew a line under the South American country’s sovereignty claim. President Alberto Fernandez has ordered the event as part of a concerted strategy aimed at advancing his country’s claim on the remote archipelago.

November 6 marks the anniversary of the day on which David Jewett, the sailor whom Argentina claims was the commander of its navy at the time, first raised the flag on the islands.

However, the spokesman said Mr Fernandez was simply using the occasion for political purposes.

They said: “The Falkland Islands Government notes the Government of Argentina’s latest attempt to twist history in favour of their claim over our sovereignty.

“By marking the raising of their flag in the Falkland Islands, they only highlight the flaws in their interpretation of the history of our home.”

They added: “Our own flag commemorates the first sighting of the Falkland Islands by the crew of the English ship Desire, commanded by Captain John Davis, in 1592.

“This ship is also referenced in our Islands’ motto ‘Desire the Right’ which reflects the spirit of our culture, which is founded on democracy and fairness.”

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“The next time it was mentioned was by Juan Peron in 1941, prior to first becoming President in 1946, and almost 100 years after the dispute was settled.”

The spokesman added: “Whichever parliamentary bills the current Government of Argentina chooses to pass in an attempt to advance their claim over the Falkland Islands, none can rewrite or overwrite the evidence of history.

“We remain a diverse, resilient and peaceful community that has prospered over time, thanks to the pioneering efforts of the people who travelled here from across the globe to make this special place their home.

“We are not a supplanted population, but one built on the hard work of the migrants who came to our shores.

“We are not an isolated enclave at the tip of South America.

“But a strong, self-determined democracy unequivocally clear about our identity and the flag that represents us.”

The Falkland Islands were the subject of a brief but bloody war after Argentina invaded in 1982.

Speaking earlier this week, Daniel Filmus, Argentina’s Secretary for Matters Relating to the Falkland Islands, told reporters: “Two hundred years after our country’s takeover of the Malvinas, the National Council will meet for the first time that same day in the afternoon.

“Friday is going to be a historic day in which the Council will begin to debate state policies and medium and long-term strategies on the Malvinas issue, not tied to electoral calendars.”

source: express.co.uk