Everything went as planned by the Commission of Relatives of the Victims Fallen in Malvinas and the South Atlantic Islands. The first group of 170 people had the chance to visit the graves of their beloved ones and participate in the formal opening of the Cenotaph built in such location.
They landed on board LAN flight in Mount Pleasant, the British military base some minutes after 9 AM. They were seen out by Cristina de Kirchner in Río Gallegos. There she greeted all the relatives. Immigration formalities were speeded up as to have every passenger on the bus that would take them to the Argentine Cemetery in Darwin in just fifteen minutes.
To reach the cemetery, they had to take a 40-kilometers ride along a ragged gravel road. British Police officers could be seen twice on the roadside.
The request of the families, the press included, was to observe what had been agreed during the bilateral meetings, and that meant not interfering with such an intimate ceremony.
The delegation made by 170 people mainly comprised the relatives of the victims of General Belgrano wreckage, nearly 110 people. It is worth pointing out that most of them were visiting Malvinas Islands for the first time.
Unfortunately, the British Authorities did not give them the required permission to visit the islands before arguing that the soldiers had not died in the territory. Time went by and their behavior changed. It could be said that the weather helped everyone yesterday. It had snowed early in the morning but later on the temperature climbed to approximately 5 degrees and the wind was 35 kilometers per hour. British officials offered the families an additional coat to those who wanted them before entering the cemetery, provided they promised to give them back upon leaving the place.
The cold did not hit as strong as the mere thought of the Argentine soldiers trying to resist and fight there between the months of April and June, not in October, when the weather is colder, without suitable clothes or food. The pain and sorrow of the families increased as they thought about the suffering of their beloved ones fighting for their country under such conditions.
There were families from Palpalá, as is the case of Silverio Quispe, the father of first officer Ángel Quispe. He had the chance of traveling to the Malvinas Islands for the third time. There were also families from La Tablada, as is the case of Delmira Hasenclever. Her son, Julio Rubén Cao, a teacher, was called to serve the Army in 1982. After suggesting him not to go, he told her, “How am I supposed to teach students if I evade my commitment with my Country.”
Time flew too fast that morning. Perhaps, it was just the opposite of what happened 27 years ago. All the families could get close to the 237 tombs. Out of them, 101 were identified, while the rest only bear the legend «Argentine Soldier known only onto God. »
At 2 PM, the way back to Mount Pleasant started very slowly. The plane took off two hours later to Río Gallegos immerse in sorrow and emotion, blended with silence and anger contained for what happened 27 years ago.
Negotiations were required even to agree on the cross height.
On July 14, 1999, during the last six months of Minister Di Tella in office, Argentina and the United Kingdom signed an agreement to authorize the creation of the monument that was finally opened last weekend.
There followed many ups and downs in the relationship between both countries. The islanders imposed as a condition that no symbol such as the Argentine flag could be there. There were differences concerning the cross height too. The big cross is three meters high. Yet, the islanders did not want it to be seen from the distance.
After watching a documentary about Malvinas on TV, executive Eduardo Eurnekian was worried for the delay and the condition of the cemetery. The cenotaph arrived after a nearly one-week sea voyage. It was mounted by a British company (that was another obstacle, as they did not allow having it assembled by an Argentine company).
Everything was financed by the majority shareholder in Aeropuertos Argentina 2000 and its cost climbed to nearly one million and a half dollars. He paid for the plane that transported the press last Saturday as well.
The monument designed by Architect Carlos Daprile demanded 200 tons of iron. There are 24 granite plaques, each symbolizing a province of Argentina, which have the names of all the fallen soldiers engraved. They also include the legend: «The Argentine Nation, in memory of all the Argentine soldiers fallen in duty in 1982. »
(Source: Diario Financiero)
