Falklands votes to stay British
The people of the Falkland Islands have voted overwhelmingly to remain a British overseas territory, with 99.8 per cent declaring themselves in favour during a two-day referendum in the capital Port Stanley.
A total of 1,517 valid votes were cast, a turnout of 92 per cent of the islanders eligible to vote.
In a clear message of defiance to the Argentine government, 1,513 voted to remain under British rule, with just three – 0.2 per cent – voting against the referendum question 'Do you wish the Falkland Islands to retain their current political status as an Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom?'
Prime Minister David Cameron today called on Argentina to respect the wishes of the Falklands people in light of the result.
And Foreign Secretary William Hague welcomed today's outcome, saying it 'demonstrates more clearly than ever' the islanders wish to remain as an overseas territory.
The poll, which was ratified as 'free and fair' by international observers, came against a backdrop of heightened Argentine pressure for negotiations over the sovereignty of the islands they know as Las Malvinas.
Argentina maintained that the vote was illegal and 'pointless' and that the2,563 islanders have no voice in a dispute that must be settled bilaterally.
But Nigel Haywood, governor of the Falkland Islands, said the referendum was a 'massive demonstration of the way the islanders feel and of the way they see their future'.