Who has the Legal Title, the Rightful Claim to the Islands?
Political Geography
51o42’S, 57o51’W;
12,173 km2, 4,700 sq miles;
300 miles (480)km east of Argentina in South Atlantic
Political Nomenclature
Falkland Islands or Falklands, Las Islas Malvinas or Malvinas, Falklands / Malvinas, Falklands (Malvinas)
Discovery: Sightings and Landings
Indigenous Discovery and Settlement? The Yaghan people?
European Sightings
of the Islands
Amerigo Vespucci, Estaban Gomez of Ferdinand Magellan Simon de Alcazaba,
Francisco de Camargo
John Davis, Richard Hawkins
Sebald van Weerdt
John Strong
Discovery and
Possession
Papal Grant
Pope Alexander VI, 1493
Treaty of Tordesillas, 1494
England and the
Spanish Empire
Search for naval base from which to penetrate Spanish Empire in South America, support the independence of Spanish American colonies
French attempt to
restore its empire
Antoine Louis de Bougainville founds Port St. Louis in Les Malouines in January 31, 1764France pays Bougainville for the settlement, Port St. Louis ceeded to Spain in 1767
British Settlement
– John Byron, January 4, 1765 founds Port Egmont, after the French settlement was founded.
– Spanish forcibly evict the British settlement in 1769
– Some British, such as Lord Chatham, favor forcible response to restore British control of Port Egmont if necessary
– Did Lord North think that Falklands were in fact not valuable enough to warrant conflict with Spanish, but was unable to publicly back down to Spanish for domestic political reasons? Was there a Secret Agreement between North and the Spanish that if the Spanish returned Port Egmont to the British now, Britain would leave these unimportant islands within a brief time after the dust settled?
– Britain does vacate Falklands in 1774, but leaves a plaque asserting British claim to the islands.
– Nootka Sound Convention of 1790
Political
Independence of Argentina
1810 establishment by Cabildo of the Primera Junta in support of Ferdinand VII
Britain still interested in penetrating Spanish empire
Lord Beresford’s old style military approach to colonialism
Encouragement of Latin American political independence, economic neo-colonialism
Spain preoccupied by independence movements on mainland, in 1811 the Spanish abandon Las Islas Malvinas
Principle of Uti Possidetus vs. post-independence political fragmentation: which territories of old vice-royalties will become parts of newly independent nations?
Sealers, fisherman of various nationalities informally use the Falklands
– Argentina attempts to establish de facto and de jure control over Las Malvinas.Louis Vernet.– 1825 Treaty of Amity, Commerce, and Navigation between Great Britain and Argentina.
– June 10, 1829: Argentina gives Vernet exclusive grant of fisheries.
– November 19, 1829, British protests the grant, renew claim to Falklands.
– Vernet seizes two U.S. ships that were violating his exclusive grant.
– U.S. sends U.S.S. Lexington, which declared islands res nullius.
– Argentina appoints new governor.
– Britain sends two warships, the Clio and the Tyne, take Port Louis on January 2, 1833. British occupation from then until now.
Summary:
Discovery, Settlement, Abandonments, Plaques, Fishing, and Conquest
Superiority of Argentine Historical Claims before 1833
Self-Determination, Decolonization, and a New Just War?
The Principle of
Self Determination: Who is the Self? What may it determine?
– The Falkland Islanders (kelpers) who live on a well defined piece of territory should be permitted to decide their political affiliation.- Is the self an individual who makes personal choices?– Is the self an entire nation, a people who together or as represented by a democratic government may decide what territory is to be included under its sovereignty. In this case, all of Britain is the self, with Falklanders a small percentage.
Decolonization and
the Use of Force
– To prevent future first uses of force in the drawing of boundaries, should borders previously drawn through the use of force be accepted?- Anti-colonialists argue that what the imperialists after WWII called the first use of force in opposition to established colonies will not lead to WWIII; instead anti-colonial use of force is in self-defense against aggression of previous centuries.– Colonized peoples seek to gain independence: Unification of self-determination and decolonization: justifies the (defensive) use of force of anti-colonialists.
– A new just war doctrine accepts anti-colonial aggression.1960 U.N. General Assembly Resolution of 1960, “Declaration on the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples.”
– 1961 Indian invasion of Portuguese Goa, which had been there for 450 years: supported by – General Assembly. Historical colonial aggression justifies contemporary, anti-colonial aggression (now called self-defense).
– U.N. General Assembly Resolution 2065: apply 1514 to Malvinas. Argentines are the self that should decide to decolonize the Falklands.
– African and Asian independence movements largely complete by mid 1970s, their attention moves from decolonization to stability.
– By 1982, many former anti-colonists who had supported Indian attack in Goa look askance at Argentine invasion of the Falklands.
Lowell Gustafson 
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