Sue Littleton is a 79-year-old investigative poet from Texas. She first came to Argentina in 1957 and has been living in Buenos Aires off and on ever since, and is currently based in Recoleta.

What originally brought you to Argentina and why did you decide to stay?

I married an Argentine, came here, and had five years of wonderful marriage – but the next eight years, forget it! When I finally got my divorce I always said, I divorced my husband but I never divorced Argentina.

Importantly, I have three Argentine children and eight Argentine grandchildren. My eldest daughter was born a year after I came here. She’s a psychologist who works with children. My son is a penal lawyer who practises defence law, and my youngest daughter lives in Uruguay and is a wonderful musician.

As a Texan who has lived in Argentina for so many years, where do your allegiances lie?

I have a friend who writes a blog and he calls me a Texargentine. In Texas I’m Argentine and in Argentina I am Texan. The result is I’m nowhere but that’s OK, I like being nowhere. I like being a Texargentine. When I go to Texas I enjoy being Argentine and speaking Spanish and when I’m here I do like pounding on the Texan drum.

Texans have a very special attitude that I don’t think anyone else in the United States has; it makes them alternate between being delightful, generous, wonderful and completely unbearable. In that sense, similar to Argentines.

Do you notice any other similarities?

There are many similarities shared between Texas and Argentina: gauchos and the cowboys for one.

I don’t know if you know the history of Texas or not, but it is the only state in the union that was a republic for three months. After the Alamo, Texans got very cross with the Mexicans and they declared war on them and they won, so they got to keep this enormous chunk of land. And there they were – the ham in the sandwich; Mexico to the left and the States to the right.

What keeps you in Buenos Aires?

Well compared to Austin in Texas, it’s a little bit more sophisticated. My part of the city is very literary; I am very lucky. It’s a wonderful pleasure to know people who are poets and to share my poetry with them.

I’ve had this apartment since 1972. This is a neighbourhood where everybody knows me and I give my poetry books to everyone. The people are so nice, the lady on the corner, the optometrist, the people next door. It’s my neighbourhood.

Much more has happened to me and I’ve lived much more in Argentina than I have in Texas. I have lived through history in Argentina that most expats haven’t lived; so my roots are deep here.

Do you ever worry about crime here?

You know, there is a lot of crime in Buenos Aires. My granddaughter – who’s ten years old – was so worried about me. I told her “Don’t worry Martina, you see this cane? I go on the street and I pretend I’m an old lady and I lean on it. But what I do, if someone attacks me, is I hit them on the head with it or I stick it in the wheels of the bicycle.” There is a certain amount of violence, just don’t go out to meet it – don’t incite people to rob you.

You’ve become very active in the world of haikus – where does that interest come from?

Long ago, when I was a child, we got these paper flowers from Japan. When you dropped them in water they would open. That’s what haikus are supposed to do to your imagination and your mind. They make such demands on you to say so much in so few words.

I’ve worked so much with haikus that gradually people just accepted me as the doyenne of the haiku. I gave a conference in 2010 called ‘The influence of the Japanese Haiku on poets of other languages’ and, believe me, they have influence. It was really one of the most fun things I have done in years.

Everybody fights to the death over the 5, 7, 5 syllable structure. Some people say 5,7,5, some people say we don’t need it. I’m a classicist and I say 5,7,5, no punctuation, no title, no capital letters, no rhyme and no metaphors. That’s what the Japanese said when they told us how to do it.

But 5,7,5 in English gives you a far greater space to express yourself than it does in Spanish – poor things, they have to work so hard because they have so many syllables.

You were recently commissioned to write about the Falklands/Malvinas for the 30th anniversary of the war. How did you do your research for that project?

I mean, I have my credentials to write about what happened in those years – perhaps not to write about the emotional aspect of the Malvinas, but, through talking to people I’ve found out so much.

I researched a lot online, but most of all I talked to people. What was really fun was talking to taxi drivers; taxi drivers know everything, it’s just amazing. I really went deep into the history of it all and I think I did a fairly good job of going into the whys and wherefores.

A nation’s memory is important, and you have to remember the bad things with the good. You don’t do any favours to your population by simply pretending it didn’t happen or not thinking about it.

Is there a particular poem that you think people will always associate with you?

I wrote a book about the trees in Argentina called ‘Imagenes’. I wrote it in Spanish in 1972 and it was selected as the book of the month for Latin America. You know, a poet will always write poems that stay with people. You’ll write 500 poems and there’ll be two that people remember, but that’s OK; look at Joyce Kilmer. “I think I’ll never see a poem that is as lovely as a tree,” and that’s it, that’s all you ever hear from Joyce Kilmer.

You have wonderful poets and complete idiots, that’s just the way the cookie crumbles; I haven’t decided yet which section I belong in.

As a poet about to begin her ninth decade, is death an issue that concerns you a great deal?

My attitude is that, when I go on to that great poetry reading in the sky, let my kids sort it out. Of course your children never think you’re going to die, they think you’ll live forever.

I have a great friend who admires my poetry and has a very similar past to me. One day she very delicately asked me if I would like to have a cemetery spot and, well, that was one of the things that had been worrying me. This friend of mine gave me this wonderful plot in the British cemetery which I love and I talk about it in my book of haikus. It says:

you visit my grave
stay a while remember joy
memories delight

I did what we do in Ozona, the little town where I’m from in Texas. I guess 50 or 60 years ago this gentleman died and his widow decided she wanted to have his signature on his tombstone. And now, in that little cemetery, every other tombstone you see has a signature on it. It’s beautiful and I’d never heard of anyone doing it anywhere else. It’s something unique to Ozona and now it’s going to be in the British cemetery in Buenos Aires.

And I’ll be there, in some way, sharing your presence. And if you just remember talking to me, being with me, reading my poetry, that’s fine, the memory should please you. But I’m not there yet; I still have a lot of things to do.

Commemorating the 30^th anniversary of the Falklands/Malvinas War, President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner made a speech today at just after 1pm from Plaza Islas Malvinas, Ushuaia, to honour the deaths of 649 Argentines who died during the war.

The president paid tribute to the soldiers, stating “We come to honour these men with medals on their chests, won in battle. But we are also here to honour the hundreds of young people who fought on the islands.”

Commenting on UK prime minister David Cameron’s speech made earlier today, the president stated that Argentina wanted “live in peace” with the inhabitants of the Falklands/Malvinas.

“Few countries the world have such an open immigration policy as Argentina. How will we not respect the interests of the islanders? We want to live in peace with them.”

She also criticised Cameron’s assertion that in 1982 Argentines invaded the freedom of the islands’ inhabitants. “He is clearly not aware that back then, the Argentine people’s freedom was also taken captive by the military dictatorship… it was not the decision of the Argentine people to go on to war.”

President Fernández was one of five speakers today in Plaza Islas Malvinas, Ushuaia. The Tierra del Fuego governor also made a speech, as well as war veterans from around the country

President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner began the country’s main ceremony in remembrance of the Falklands/Malvinas War today at midday.

The ceremony takes place in Plaza Islas Malvinas to mark the 30 year anniversary of the conflict between Argentina and the United Kingdom.

The president, accompanied by members of her cabinet, vice-president Amado Boudou and local authorities, will give a speech followed by words from Tierra del Fuego governor Fabiana Rios. In total there will be five speakers, including war veterans from around the country.

A monument bearing a map of the Malvinas and a cenotaph with the names of soldiers lost in the conflict are located in the square.

Other acts of commemoration are happening throughout the country. Today at 11.30am, the names of the 649 soldiers killed in the conflict were placed on a cenotaph in Plaza San Martín, Retiro. In Plaza de Mayo, ex-soldier who were placed in military bases in Patagonia laid replicas of the cross in memory of those killed.

As a sign of protest, the Quebracho group along with other organisations will march from 1pm, from the cenotaph in Retiro to the British embassy.

 

 

The 30th anniversary of the Falklands/Malvinas war highlights a re-emerging colonial debate that has added tensions to the dispute over the islands.

The Falkland Islands, known as the Islas Malvinas in Argentina, have been the focal point of a war of words in the run up to the anniversary commemorations.

British Prime Minister David Cameron accused Argentina of acting “colonial” after the decision in January to restrict any vessels bearing a Falkland Island’s flag from entering Argentina’s ports.

In response to Cameron, Argentina and supporters have denounced Britain’s presence in the South Atlantic as “crude colonial power in decline.” With the support of the rising powerful Latin American region, Argentina has used this opportunity to call for renewed negotiations over the issue of sovereignty.

However, some political analysts believe that Argentina’s revived interest in the dispute is due to recent developments in oil extraction.

Exploitation of Natural Resources in Disputed Areas

Argentina generally claims historical and cultural rights to the islands and asserts that its oil and fishing resources are being plundered by the British.

George Grant of the Henry Jackson Society in London, in a response to such claims said, “Argentina is behaving childishly by trying to provoke a row. It is morally and legally indefensible.”

However, former Argentine Foreign Minister, Jorge Taiana, accused the British Government of refusing to comply with calls to open negotiations on the sovereignty of the islands and of continuing to carry out unilateral actions in the disputed area, which undermined UN General Assembly Resolution 31/49 of 1976.

In 2005, Argentina submitted 15 notes to the United Kingdom rejecting illegitimate acts such as carrying out seismic surveying for hydrocarbons, granting licences for exploration and exploitation of minerals and aeromagnetic surveying activities on the islands.

In more recent months, the increased interest in oil exploration by British licensed companies in the territory and in disputed areas has fuelled tensions in the debate.

Argentina has just sent letters to British and American banks involved in oil exploration in the region warning them that continued involvement would lead to a court case being filed against them, reported the UK’s Sunday Telegraph.

Argentina’s current Foreign Minister Héctor Timerman, told Télam news agency: “the exploitation of fishing and hydrocarbons without permission in Argentine waters, usurping goods that belong to the Argentine people, not only escalates an unnecessary dispute but carries environmental risks”

He continued arguing that “the UK is run on colonialist considerations and behaves as if it were above the international legal order, ignoring many decisions of the UN and calls for regional forums to re-establish dialogue with Argentina”.

The Malvinas Basin, which is thought to be connected to the South Falklands Basin but is in Argentinean waters, has a number of wells that were drilled in the early 80s largely by Exxon. This basin is now believed to be connected to the same sedimentary basin that Borders and FOGL (Falkland’s oil and Gas) are drilling.

UK-based Rockhopper Exploration has made a series of finds since 2010 that have seen tensions rise within Argentina as Rockhopper believes it could be pumping 120,000 barrels a day out of its Sea Lion field by 2018.

The Argentine Parliament says that the recent promising developments in oil extraction around the Falkland Islands call for a fresh review of the Islands’ sovereignty.

Sovereignty and the Right to Self-Determination

The issue of sovereignty raises a problematic concept, of which the United Kingdom refuses to discuss based on the UN Declaration of the right to self-determination.

The UK’s Foreign Office responded saying that “there would be no negotiations with Argentina on sovereignty unless the islanders wish it.”

Taiana said that the right to self-determination was not applicable to the Falkland Islands since the Islanders were “a British population transplanted with the intention of setting up a colony,” a point also supported by the UN General Assembly resolution in 1965.

He continued to urge for the recognition that the Islands were part of an independent state, Argentina, which had been separated against their inhabitants’ will by an act of force by the United Kingdom in 1833, and Argentina had protested that situation ever since.

Argentina has been using these claims to argue that British claims to uphold the right to self-determination stand on flimsy, if not illegal, foundations and consequently demand Britain return to the negotiating table on this matter. “The fundamental principle of international self-determination must not be used to transform illegitimate possession into full sovereignty, “said Taiana.

However, Richard Davies, a member of the Legislative Council of the Falkland Islands, replied, “For far too long, Argentina had equated the decolonisation process with a claim to sovereignty, but by taking over the Falklands, Argentina would itself become a colonial Power.”

Davies outlined the history of Argentina’s claim to the Falklands in previous dialogue with Argentina, maintaining that when Britain and Spain claimed the islands in the 18th Century, Argentina did not even exist and they had not been ceded to Argentina by Spain.

Britain’s UN Ambassador Mark Grant on the Falkland Islanders position said, “We are also clear that the Falkland Islands Government is entitled to develop a hydrocarbons industry within its waters, and we support this legitimate business in Falklands’ territory.”

The CEO of FOGL, Tim Bushell, dismissed Argentine actions as politically motivated in the year of the 30th anniversary of the war and claims the dispute has not interfered with operations: “We bring all our equipment into the Falklands through international waters and, actually, the Falklands from an operational standpoint is the most sensible place to run a drilling operation.”

With little prospect for either Argentina or the United Kingdom altering their position, Falkland Islanders are taking steps to suggest independence as a favourable option.

Falklands Councillor Richard Davies believes the possibility of full independence can no longer be ruled out, especially since economic prosperity looks to increase in light of recent oil exploration.

Yet, if Argentina maintains its sovereignty claim then political analysts suggest an oil deal with sharing of profits is a more realistic outcome.

The likelihood of such a deal is debatable but with the United Kingdom looking to build on economic relations with Latin America this could prove a testing time in the Falklands/Malvinas dispute that could give Argentina added leverage since the region has already proven support to President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.

One thing the anniversary has highlighted is that within 30 years, negotiations, or lack of, are worryingly stuck on the same issues that were contested before 1982 and during the first colonial phase.

Tomorrow, 2nd April, Argentina will once more pay tribute to the veterans and the fallen of the Falklands/Malvinas war of 1982, one of the most obscure chapters of Argentina’s history. It was a war that extended past the end of hostilities in June 1982, as Argentine veterans found out upon their return to the country. The lack of social recognition, financial and health assistance, plus a “de-Malvinasation” process triggered veterans’ general neglect. And it was not until last decade that their needs started to be addressed.

“Coming back was very hard. Veterans were not received as they should have been—their effort and their bravery were overlooked.” explains Captain Juan Carlos Ianuzzo, a veteran himself and administrative secretary for the Malvinas’ Veterans Association (AVEGUEMA).

“Veterans returned to the country ‘at night and through the back door’. Afterwards, conscripts that had completed their duties were dismissed from the military service. And they would not be employed anywhere because people believed veterans were crazy”.

The failed Malvinas campaign precipitated the military junta’s imminent demise. But, above all, defeat was as unexpected as it was dreaded: throughout the war, newspapers’ headlines –and the mainstream media- claimed the national army victorious.

In the political, social and economic turmoil that marked the start of the new democratic era, the country was neither ready to face defeat nor ready to cope with the consequences of war. Dr. Martín M. Bourdieu, a veteran, psychiatrist and director of the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Centre Malvinas Argentinas, explains: “Back in 1982 we were overwhelmed. There was a gap in the general assistance system caused by a lack of knowledge.”

Veterans returned with physical and psychological wounds. Many had suffered mutilations, burns and been through painful/traumatic experiences, only to find their problems worsen in an unwelcoming society. Former conscripts were mostly forced to beg in the streets to meet their basic needs and the number of suicides ascended to more than 450 since the war officially ended. And this figure is close to Argentine casualties during the conflict: out of the 649 victims, 336 died in the island and 323 in the sinking of the school-ship ’General Belgrano’.

Moreover, post-traumatic stress disorder, a severe anxiety disorder caused by the exposure to a traumatic event, added to veterans’ discomfort. “This type of condition, if not treated in time, tends to get worse,” explains Dr. Viviana Torresi, part of the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Centre staff.

“Patients have developed other pathologies related to post traumatic stress disorder as a means to alleviate symptoms. One of the most common is insomnia, so they retort to alcohol as a sedative. Alcoholism, and many others addictions, is an answer to the lack of therapeutic treatment and professional care. (…) The most painful experience these people had to go through was social abandon, and that was the only way many could cope with it”.

Swept under the rug

Historians, experts and veterans have failed to identify a single explanation for the nearly two decades of national silence that followed the war. However, there is a general agreement with what French political scientist Alain Rouquié called ‘de-Malvinasation’ process.

In a controversial interview with magazine Humor in 1983, Rouquié pointed out that the Malvinas/Falklands issue should be ignored to prevent another military coup. “Of course it is a respectable historical claim, but [Malvinas] is not just that: political focus on the Malvinas will create a time bomb in the Casa Rosada.”

Intentionally or not, Rouquié’s action plan was successfully implemented. The ‘de-Malvinisation’ process was deepened by political actions such as the eliminating ‘Malvinas day’ from the official calendar in the 80s. Increased labour flexibility and social vulnerability in the 90s also exacerbated veterans’ problems: low wages were not compensated by subsidies, unemployment escalated to 20.9% in 1995, and the public health system fell apart due to a lack of funding.

The Malvinas issue was replaced by increasing socio-financial problems and eclipsed by stories about corruption and impunity in the government. Schools hardly covered the subject, the media reduced its coverage to mere commemorative features and international politics were deviated to other priorities.

“Years before the conflict, people did not even know what the Malvinas were,” states Ianuzzo of AVEGUEMA. “However, Argentina collaborated with the islanders in terms of shipping, air transport, fuel, etc. There even were Federal Oilfield (YPF) units in the island, student exchange programmes, and many islanders came to Buenos Aires to be treated in the British Hospital. (…) After the conflict, people ignored the subject again,” adds Ianuzzo.

Veterans were not only neglected, but also victimized. They became known as “the boys of the war” (los pibes de la Guerra), an allegory referring to the young conscripts who fought in the battlefront. Conscripts might just have been approaching manhood in 1982, but their victimization hides the fact they were selflessly doing their duty as stated in the Constitution. And while landmark films such as ‘Iluminados por el fuego’ (Enlightened by Fire) portrayed Argentine soldiers’ pain during the conflict, they fail to meet veterans’ wishes to be acknowledged for their heroic actions.

Victimization finally resulted in segregation. Dr. Torresi explains prejudice regarded many veterans as intractable when in fact they represent a highly receptive population that has been continuously fighting against labels, economical hazards, de-historization and lack of moral recognition.

Looking ahead

The veterans’ plight has improved in the last decade. As democracy matured, different provinces and the national government started to grant a series of honorary pensions to veterans. “First, these were only given to soldiers and civilians who had been involved in the conflict. Then, in 2005 the national government broadened the national honorary pension programme to include officers and sub-officers,” says Ianuzzo.

Today, 17 out of 23 provinces provide economic aid and health assistance through the National Institution of Social Services for the Retired and Pensioners (PAMI). Also, as part of last decade’s new national focus on human rights, veterans gained access to credit lines and housing programmes as well as jobs in the public administration system.

As for the psychotherapeutic care, the recognition and redefinition of post traumatic stress disorder as an illness has lead to great improvements in the mental health system. Specialised, high-complexity centres have been established in Corrientes, Córdoba and in the city of Buenos Aires, three nodal points in terms of veteran population. These centres provide integral treatments free of charge.

However, there are still some unresolved issues, including the current controversy over the very definition of veteran. Approximately 9,500 former conscripts, who fulfilled tasks in the continental deployment area from the city of Trelew in Chubut to the city of Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego, demand their recognition as Malvinas’ veterans.

However, military sources explain the veteran status is determined by law from intervening in the South Atlantic Operations Theatre (TOAS), which includes the islands, continental shelf, air and underwater space. And, according to ex-combatants, veteran status is only gained by engaging with the enemy; they feel that regarding those who were not in the islands as veterans is unfair to those who fought and died in combat.

Meanwhile, the self-titled ‘continental troops’ assure the veteran status implies life-threatening conditions and not just geographical conditions. Tulio Fraboschi, president of the Group Camp TOAS, explained to daily La Nación that “during the conflict, 17 soldiers died in the military bases on the Patagonian coast. They were named national heroes by law, without distinguishing the place where they died”.

Continental troops have been camping in Plaza de Mayo and in front of the National Congress for more than two years and have been subject to various incidents. During a recent demonstration on 10th March, a former conscript threatened to commit suicide if legislators did not receive them while others tried to break into the congress.

Almost 30 years on, the government’s and society’s understanding of the war and its consequences is still incomplete and this translates into ongoing controversies. From violent episodes as described above to the Bicentennial celebrations in May 2010—where veterans were left out of a war commemoration­—Malvinas is still an open wound in the country.

As Dr. Torresi points out, “it is not about forgetting Malvinas, but historicizing the conflict. It should morph into a memory, an experience that is part of veterans’ history and past”.

The Malvinas conflict is not only veterans’ history and past, but Argentina’s too. And if a country chooses to deny and forget its history, it will hardly be able to defend the rights of those who shaped it.