Junta used war as a smokescreen

The death of Margaret Thatcher has prompted an outburst of comment from her admirers and detractors, some of it measured, some of it fatuous. It seems to me that this letter falls into the latter category. How could anyone possibly describe the decision by the Thatcher government to reclaim the Falkland Islands as “stupid”?

The brutal junta ruling Argentina at that time decided to invade the Falkland Islands, a British Overseas Territory, in a cynical attempt to whip up patriotic sentiment at home and divert attention from mounting opposition to their incompetent and corrupt rule. The writer refers to the inhabitants of the Falklands with the derogatory term “shepherds”, presumably not worth the sacrifice of British troops – but most of us in Britain saw it differently.

The courage and resolve of Thatcher and of the British forces resulted in the invaders being defeated and thrown out, which led to the collapse of the military regime in Argentina and the return of democratic rule to that country. So it wasn’t just the Falkland islanders who regained their freedom.

Finally, the writer’s comment that the Falkland islanders have never been asked if they want to join Argentina makes no sense whatsoever. Successive British governments have made it clear that the islanders are free to decide their own future.

Robin Grant

Bangkok