Geopolitical Conflict in the Atlantic ocean:

Malvinas or Falklands?

Lili MonkWalter Johnson High School

National Council For Geography Education (NCGE)Denver, Colorado

August 3, 2013

Presentation outline

“Location, location, location”: does geography have a role to play in the conflict?

Background and history of islands; toponyms

More than one conflict: Beagle Channel, Malvinas

1982 War between Argentina and Great Britain

Outcome for both countries

Role of UN, UNCLOS

Referendum and self -determination; reaction of MERCOSUR countries

Impact of conflict on Argentine education

“Landscapes of Memory”

Malvinas/Falklands Activities

Geographic Hotspots Assignment

key concepts, vocabulary and

Questions:

SovereigntyTerritoriality

Self-determinationIrredentismNationalismReferendum

Boycott

Remember these words.... uttered by a

former president in

1982?“I cannot understand why two allies...were

arguing over that little ice cold bunch of land down there.”

President Ronald Reagan

The little ice cold land Down there!

The Geographic Perspective

A bit of history

The Age of Exploration

Amerigo Vespucci (1501)

Ferdinand Magellan (1520)

Alonso Camargo (1540)

John Davis (1592)

Richard Hawkins (1594)

Sebald de Weert (1600)

Competing claims

Treaty of Tordesillas (1494)

French claims/ bought by Spain

Argentine Independence (1816)

British independently set up colony in western island

1833: in British control

Falklands: named after Anthony Cary, the 5th Count of Falkland

Malvinas: derived from the French settlers from Saint-Malo who named the islands Iles Malouines ,and then Malvinas.

Toponyms: or what is in a name?

WHAT ARE THE FALKLANDS?

Located in the South Atlantic Ocean some 298 miles east of the tip of South America

Total land area is approximately 4,700 miles, close to size of the state of Connecticut.

Much of the land is used for sheep farming, and the islands’ leading export is wool, with an extensive fishing and tourism industries.

Oil Reserves

Around 3,000 people now live on the Falkland Islands, and about 70 percent of them are of British descent.

A Restless military: conflict over beagle channel

1881: Chile-Argentina border dispute over islands, Beagle Channel; both countries share a 5.300 km border

1980: Argentina almost goes to war against Chile over territory

Papal intervention: rejected by Argentina in 1980

Shift of attention:Military begins planning on take over of Malvinas

Beagle island conflict later settled

during Democratic government of Raúl Alfonsín (1984)

War Stats:Timeline: 2 April  – 14 June 1982:47 days

Argentine Losses:•649 killed•1,657 wounded•11,313 taken prisonerBritish Losses:•255 killed•775 wounded•115 taken prisoner

Argentina: Wag the dog!

Argentine motivation for invading the islands

National “reorganization” and economic chaos

Elicited patriotism before the war

Led to the ouster of the military regime and return to democracy

To 'wag the dog' means to purposely divert attention from what would otherwise be of greater importance, to something else of lesser significance. By doing so, the lesser-significant event is catapulted into the limelight, drowning proper attention to what was originally the more important issue.The expression comes from the saying that 'a dog is smarter than its tail', but if the tail were smarter, then the tail would 'wag the dog'. Using English.com

Argentina: Nationalism and irredentism

Argentine Constitution Changed

The Argentine Nation ratifies its legitimate and non-prescribing sovereignty over the Malvinas, South Georgia

and South Sandwich Islands and the corresponding maritime and insular areas, being part of the national territory.The

recovery of said territories and the full exercise of sovereignty, respecting the way of life of their inhabitants and according to the principles of international law, are a permanent and unwavering goal of the Argentine people.

Britain: Conservative victory

Interpreted the invasion as an attack on British dependent territory

Increased popularity of Margaret Thatcher and the Conservative party

The Empire still stands!

Patriotism increased during and after the war

A major change in how a country sees itself

UNCLOS and UN role

Both countries have signed and ratified the United Nations Convention on Law of the Seas (UNCLOS), which defines ownership and legal rights for the waters surrounding coastal countries. According to the UNCLOS, each country is entitled to three basic zones of control in its surrounding seas:

*Internal Waters

*Territorial Sea

*Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)

unclos and the case of

Argentina

Resolution III of the Final Act provides that in the case of disputes between States concerning sovereignty over a territory

over which the United Nations has recommended certain means of settlement,

the parties shall consult and take into consideration the same INTERESTS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE TERRITORY AND

ATTEMPT TO COME TO A FUNDAMENTAL CONSIDERATION.

(After 1984, Argentina revised its position to the following:

unclos and the case of

Argentina

In 1984, Argentina clarified its position and noted that its signature of UNCLOS III did NOT apply to its position regarding the

Falklands/Malvinas, the South Atlantic, Antarctica, Georgia and Sandwich Islands.

NOTE: In its statement to UNCLOS III,Argentina also reiterated the “duplicity”

of the British government in advocating the position of self-determination for the

inhabitants of the islands.

Argentina also emphasized that the present inhabitants of the islands (the

"Kelpers") do not fall within the category of " indigenous peoples" or citizens prior to

the British conquest, but rather a population injected by the colonial country

after “usurping” the territory.

competing for a slice of

Antarctica1959 treaty signed in Washington,

D.C.

* Ends claims of sovereignty over Antarctica

*Prohibits use for military purposes

* Countries must exchange vital scientific information conducted

there

*No nuclear testing

*Argentina signed agreement in 1961

Other countries which signed agreement include Chile, Great

Britain, Norway, France, Australia and New Zealand

The 2013 Referendum

March 11, 2013

Votes to remain one of Great Britain’s 14 Overseas Territories

Self-Determination?

Reject Argentina’s claims that the population was “injected” by the British

Maritime Boycott

Confederation of Transportation Workers in Argentina vote to boycott any ship carrying the British or any “territorial” flag

Other MERCOSUR countries supported the boycott

Landscapes of Memory

Argentina: Nationalism and irredentism

Teaching on the issue of sovereignty in the Malvinas is now mandated by law in Argentine schools

Summary of Law: Law 3761

What are some of the significant aspects of the law?

Geopolitical hotspots

Ms. L. Monk Name: ____________

AP Human Geography A Date: _____________

Geographical Hot Spots!

Our recent study of culture has underscored the fact that many conflicts around the world are based on religious, political, ethnic, linguistic or territorial disputes among people in one country or one region. In preparation of our political geography unit, you will conduct research and produce a one pager to help your classmates understand the underlying issues behind the conflict. Keep in mind the following:

•You will have three days in the Media Center to research and gather materials

•You can only use sources provided in the Pathfinder by Mrs. Way in the Media Center

•You need to incorporate vocabulary as appropriate from our previous units (especially from Chapters 5, 6, 7 and 8) and from the vocabulary lists we have provided

•You will include two maps: one at the world scale/ and one at the regional scale of your conflict

•You will also attach to this project 5 comprehensive articles on the crisis that you have analyzed using the OPTIC technique. These should be articles that you found particularly helpful: they can show different points of view/they should be scholarly articles, yet easy to read

o A reminder when analyzing OPTIC is

♣O- overview of the article

♣P- parts of the article that connect to what we are studying in APHUG or parts of the article that talk about concepts that we have already studied in APHUG

♣T- TITLE (include the author and source too please)

♣I- Implications (Inferences) that can be made from the article

♣C- Conclusion- so what is this important? What is the big deal? How does this connect to the bigger picture of our study of Human Geography.

•This will be due………………….FRIDAY DECEMBER 23rd or EARLIER

Please follow the following format to complete the project. You can even type your information into the template.

Side One

Where is the Conflict?

Who isInvolved?

Origin of Crisis

Resolution or

Current Status

PoliticalGeo.

Vocabulary

PoliticalGeo.

Vocabulary

O = Overview of Article

P = parts of the article that connect to what we are studying in APHUG or concepts that we have already studied in APHuG

T= Title

I = Implications (Inferences) that can be made from the article

C =Conclusion. So why is this important? What is the big deal? How does this connect to the bigger picture of our study of Human Geography?

Creating an “Optic”

Sharing Hotspots

Prezi

Powerpoint

VoiceThread

Picture Gallery

Meograph

Online!

Go visit the islands!

...or to learn more about the conflict, please contact me:

Liliana_B_Monk@mcpsmd.org

monk.lili@gmail.com

Please don’t forget to complete the evaluations!

Thanks so much!