26 March 2018
Información para la Prensa N°: 119/18
Last Night, FAURIE bid Farewell to the relatives travelling to the Malvinas Islands to pay homage to th 90 recently identified argentine Fallen Soldiers
"This is a deeply moving day for each and every one of you, but also for all the Argentine people," Foreign Minister Jorge Faurie stated last night as he bid farewell to the group of relatives of Argentine soldiers fallen in Malvinas, who will go on a historic trip to the Islands to pay homage to their loved ones, now identified at Darwin Cemetery with plaques bearing their names and surnames.
"It has been nearly 36 years and we, the Argentine people, still remember and admire those soldiers for their heroism. All Argentines are travelling to the Islands with you," Faurie stated before the relatives gathered in a hall at the Hotel Presidente in the City of Buenos Aires.
"You will be able to kneel and, as you touch the ground, be closer to them. Nothing will change history or the loss that each one of you has suffered, but, somehow, being able to pay homage in front of a plaque with their names and surnames will make a difference," Faurie highlighted.
"Kneeling and praying before a grave that reads: 'Argentine soldier only known to God' is not the same as doing so before a plaque bearing the name of your son, your brother or your husband," he stated before this historic visit to Darwin Cemetery.
Faurie further underscored "the invaluable support of the International Red Cross, to which we express our deep gratitude, as well as to the Forensic Anthropology Team," which worked on the identification of the 90 soldiers. He also thanked Eduardo Eurnekian, the businessman who provided the funds for the planes for transport and the plaques of each one of the identified soldiers.
The Argentine State was in debt to the relatives of the fallen in the Malvinas War, especially to the relatives of the Argentine heroes whose remains had been buried at Darwin Cemetery without identification. For all these years, the relatives of the Argentine heroes buried there have suffered the anguish of not knowing the exact location where the remains of their fallen loved ones in the South Atlantic conflict lay.
An unprecedented humanitarian mission, entrusted in late 2016 by Argentina and the United Kingdom to the International Committee of the Red Cross within the framework of a renewed bilateral relationship, has come to an end thanks to the identification of the remains of the 90 Argentine soldiers, through the joint work of politics and science.
The willingness of the Argentine Government to close this painful wound thus combined with the tremendous work of scientists and forensic experts and ultimately led to this historic compensation - a major act of justice for those who lost their lives defending our Homeland.