THE Falklands Islands government and parliament have both issued statements calling for action against the Argentina football team over a banner displayed following their World Cup semi-final victory over England.
After their 2-1 victory on Wednesday, Argentina players held a banner which read “Las Malvinas son Argentinas” (which means “The Falklands are Argentinian”) in a political display which is against Fifa’s rules.
Responding, Downing Street said that “the World Cup might not be ours, but the Falkland Islands definitely are” and echoed remarks from Business Secretary Peter Kyle, who said the football governing body should “thoroughly” probe the behaviour of the Argentinian players.
A statement issued by the Falkland Islands government welcomed the intervention from the UK.
It read: “The Falkland Islands Government is disappointed – though regrettably not surprised – that the Argentine football team decided to tarnish the result of last night’s World Cup football semi-final – a game that did not in any case involve the Falkland Islands.
“That said, it is hardly news to anyone that the people of the Islands were victims of an aggressive invasion in 1982, which left many traumatised. The banner displayed by Argentina last night, therefore, was particularly insensitive for many people in the Falklands.
“It is the avowed policy of the Falkland Islands government that we do not wish to see politics being brought into sport. Nor do we wish the Islands and their people to be used as a political football in every conversation about England and Argentina. We welcome the UK Government’s supportive statement this morning.
“As Business Secretary Peter Kyle highlighted, the World Cup has as one of its central tenets that politics is separate from football. We hope Fifa will make good on their promise to keep politics out of sport, and sanction all behaviour of this nature in line with its own rules.”
The Falkland Islands Legislative Assembly, the democratically elected body representing the people of the Falkland Islands, has written to Fifa calling for action and also backing Kyle’s statement.
The letter, signed by the assembly’s chair Jack Ford, states: “Following Argentina's victory, members of the Argentina squad displayed a sign reading ‘Las Malvinas Son Argentinas’ in what was a clear political statement relating to the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands. Videos were also leaked following their Argentina v Egypt fixture in which the Argentinian squad sang chants about the Falkland Islands in their locker rooms.
“We are disappointed, though regrettably not surprised, by this manner of action, as this is not the first such incident: the Argentine Football Association was sanctioned for £20,000 by FIFA in 2014 for comparable conduct.”
The letter goes on to highlight that Fifa’s rules “prohibit the use of football matches and facilities for political, religious, or personal messaging”, adding: “The people affected by this act have a settled, democratic position. The Falkland Islands are a diverse, self-governing, self-funding British Overseas Territory; and engage internationally in sport, science, and humanitarian work as such.
“In the 2013 referendum on our political status, 99.8% of Falkland Islanders voted to remain a British Overseas Territory, on a turnout of approximately 92%, in a vote independently monitored by international observers.
“The Falkland Islands were invaded by Argentina in 1982, resulting in a 74-day hostile occupation. The events of this war left Falkland Islanders traumatised, causing such political acts as those after the game to be particularly insensitive to the people of the Falklands. Fifa should bear this context in mind as they make their decision.
“Football is, first and foremost, a sport, and it is the policy of the Falkland Islands Government to wish to not see politics brought into sport, and we support the statement by UK Minister Peter Kyle to this effect.”
