BRITISH HIGH COMMISSION HOSTS SOIREE WITH CHEVENING ALUMNI
The residence of the British High Commissioner was the venue for a group of some 25 alumni of the UK’s prestigious Chevening scholarship scheme to get together over dinner, network between themselves and learn more about the Falkland Islands from Ian Hansen, one of the Members of the Islands’ Legislative Assembly.
As the guests from Barbados and Dominica feasted on lamb and squid (both staples in the Falklands diet), they listened to Ian in conversation with Chevening alumna Carol Martindale, who had recently visited the Islands with a group of Caribbean journalists. Discussions on the Islanders’ rights to self-determination, their economic self-sufficiency and preparations for future oil wealth provoked lively comment.
Dr Lennox Honychurch, Chevening alumnus from Dominica, noted the similarities between the Caribbean and the Falkland Islands. Barbados, Dominica and other independent countries chose Independence, whilst other territories such as Anguilla and Montserrat, choose to remain British Overseas Territories.
During dinner, guests enjoyed some of the sights of the islands in a photographic slide show displaying the natural and geological wonders of the Falkland Islands, which is home to over 1 million penguins and many rare endemic species.
Applications for this year’s Chevening Scholarships close on Thursday 20 December. Those interested should go to www.chevening.org.