STANLEY, March 9 (Xinhua)-- Inhabitants of British origin on the Malvinas Islands, known to the British as the Falklands, will vote on Sunday and Monday to decide whether to keep the islands as a "British Overseas Territory."
There will be six polling stations for 1,649 registered residents and a small airplane will carry people in remote areas to vote, sources told Xinhua.
Polling stations will open on Sunday and Monday from 10:00 a.m.(1300 GMT) to 18:00 p.m.(2100 GMT), and the result will be announced on Monday between 21:30 (0030GMT) and 22:30 (0130 GMT), said local Public Relations Coordinator Darren Christie.
The voting, labeled "illegal" by the Argentine government, comes as relations between Argentina and Britain have worsened over the territory, after Britain started hydrocarbon exploration operation in waters off the archipelago two years ago, a move condemned by Buenos Aires.
Argentina has so far garnered wide international support to its promotion of diplomatic settlement on the territorial sovereignty, according to United Nations resolutions.
Argentine Foreign Ministry criticized the referendum, which "has no legal grounds" and "will not be recognized by the United Nations or the international community."
However, the governor of the islands, Nigel Haywood, told Xinhua that the referendum will be "an answer" to the statement made days ago by Argentine Foreign Minister Hector Timerman, who said that "the Malvinas will again be under Argentina's control in less than 20 years."
On Saturday evening, some locals held a demonstration, where they formed a motorcade spelling the word "yes" to voice their support for the referendum.
Buenos Aires tried to retake the islands by force in 1982, sparking a 74-day Malvinas War, but only to find its forces expelled in the end, with deaths of 649 Argentine and 255 British soldiers, and three islanders.
STANLEY, Falkland Islands, March 9 (Xinhua) -- Residents of the Malvinas Islands, known as the Falklands to the British, will vote Sunday and Monday on whether to remain Britain's overseas territory.
However, Argentina has called the referendum "illegal" as most of the inhabitants of the islands off the southern coast of Argentina are not indigenous but of British descent. Full story
STANLEY, March 10 (Xinhua) -- This Sunday's sovereignty referendum in the Malvinas Islands, known to the British as the Falklands, will allow the local community to "say what they think and manifest their voice" to the world, a local legislator said on Saturday.
Gavin Short, one of the eight local legislative body members, said at a local exhibition center in Stanley, capital of the islets, that the purpose of the voting, held by British-origin residents, is "to know the opinion of the people on this issue" and inform the international community of their willingness. Full story
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