GAUCHO is an evocation of a dying way of life and a portrait of a true original, Heraldo Rial, an eighty-year-old cattle rancher who embodies the traditional ranching culture of his Patagonian ancestors. ‘Gauchos’ are proud, self-reliant cowboys living on the edge of the known world in an immense land virtually untouched by man. Grazing their herds in glacial valleys under mountain peaks and along trout-filled rivers and lakes, it is a way of life virtually unchanged in centuries: hard, beautiful and dangerous.  

The Arratia family of gauchos: Papo, his son Franco and nephew Diego, lead us into the wilderness and their proud culture as they undertake an action-filled three-day journey on horseback out to Don Rial’s remote mountain cattle ranch. There they will resupply and for a week help the old man before the winter snows cut him off him from the rest of the world, utterly, from April until September. The gauchos will have to do the last and most dangerous work of the year: corralling, pointing and castrating the bulls of the herd and slaughtering Rial’s meat for the winter. But first they must find them, free-ranging as they do, thousands of unfenced hectares of forest and hillside. Dangers lie in wait for the unprepared and the unlucky. So too does death, and it has touched Rial more than closely in his life.

For the Arratias, Rial is a legend and perhaps mad. Certainly he is the last true gaucho living the old ways, utterly alone and free of the need for outside help until a recent accident left several fingers broken. For the philosophical Rial, the raging rivers, snowdrifts, runaway animals and life’s personal tragedies are part of the natural order of things.

This may be his last winter and the last time the world can ask wisdom of a man living at the outer limits of the earth and conventional reason.

“I will die here alone…if they find me, fine. But if they don’t, they should just leave me. I’ll be in the earth anyway.”

Run Time: 37 mins

Film Credits

Directors: Tom Martienssen & Josh Bullock
Executive Producer: Josh Bullock
Commissioner: CNN’s Great Big Story

Josh Bullock:  is a freelance writer and filmmaker. He has worked for a variety of current affairs and documentary strands at the BBC, Channel 4, Press TV and ARTE. His own films include subjects like Alabama juke joints, the new Cuba and Gabonese pygmies. Until early 2017, he co-edited the international print magazine he also co-founded, So It Goes, writing regular features on world affairs and the arts and interviewing leading cultural figures from Werner Herzog to Tony Benn. He also headed a production company, So It Goes Films, directing and producing an eclectic mix of branded docs, music videos and promos for clients like Land Rover, Sundance and the Natural History Museum. Josh is a storyteller in several forms: a freelance journalist published in major broadsheets; an agented novelist and a Royal Court Theatre Young Writer. He is currently writing a film script about the Norman Conquest of 1066.

Tom Martienssen is an Emmy nominated journalist turned director, Tom has filmed in all but one continent. From Afghanistan to Bolivia, Tahiti to Patagonia, he’s told the stories of those unable to tell their own. A former soldier in the British military he now travels the globe creating content for brands and broadcasters alike. Tom started his journalism career working with the BBCs World Affairs Unit before moving into the world of independent filmmaking. He now makes adventurous documentaries and features.

Simon Parker is a British travel writer and broadcast journalist covering stories from round the world and across topics such as product shortages in Venezuela, the migrant crisis in Greece and social inequality in the barrios of Northern Colombia. He is a contributor to the Daily Telegraph, BBC World Service, BBC Radio 4, The Lonely Planet and The Independent amongst others. Between March and July 2016 he embarked on a sail and cycle expedition from England to China in 133 days.

Monday April 22

Foreign Ministers from the European Union, including British Foreign Secretary William Hague, meet in Luxembourg on Monday. Among other things, they are expected to agree to lift remaining sanctions against Myanmar (Burma). The meeting is also a chance to discuss Syria and Mali.

In Milan, a hearing is due to take place in former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s trial for allegedly paying for sex with then 17-year-old Karima el Mahroug, better known as ‘Ruby the Heart Stealer’.

Also Monday, IAEA officials who have been visiting Japan to review the ongoing decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant are due to hold a press conference in Tokyo. There have been a number of setbacks at the site recently.

In Guantanamo, hearings are due to begin (and last all week) in the case of the alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and his alleged co-conspirators.

Finally, Monday is the deadline for creditors suing the Argentine government for $1.3bn in outstanding debt to respond to Buenos Aires’ latest, court-ordered, repayment proposal.

Tuesday April 23

On Tuesday, Julius Malema, the firebrand former leader of South Africa’s ANC youth movement, is due back in court on money-laundering charges.

In Brussels, NATO Foreign Ministers are scheduled to meet on Tuesday with Afghanistan and the planned handover next year likely top of the agenda. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will be in town, for a meeting of the NATO-Russia Council.

In France, the National Assembly is scheduled to vote on the country’s same-sex marriage bill, which has provoked major protests.

Finally in Washington DC, President Barack Obama will host the Emir of Qatar, Hamad bin Khalifa al Thani, for talks at the White House.

Wednesday April 24

On Wednesday, French President Francois Hollande is scheduled to hold a cabinet meeting at which concrete legislative proposals announced in the wake of the Jerome Cahuzac affair are scheduled to be presented.

In Russia, the trial of opposition figure Alexei Navalny on embezzlement charges is scheduled to resume after it was adjourned on 17 April to allow the defence more time to prepare. Critics argue the charges are fabricated.

Wednesday is also the ‘deadline’ for the ESM Board of Governors to sign off on their €9bn share of the €10bn bailout for Cyprus announced by the Eurogroup on March 25.

In Brunei, ASEAN leaders are scheduled to hold the first of two planned summits this year, with tensions in the South China Sea likely high on the agenda.

Finally, former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is due to deliver a public address in Texas. She has made several public appearances recently, leading to frenzied speculation about her potential candidacy in the 2016 presidential election.

Thursday April 25

On Thursday, Spain will release its latest unemployment statistics.

In Russia, President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to hold a live Q&A with members of the public. The catch: the questions are pre-selected.

Meanwhile, US President Barack Obama will be among those attending the dedication of the George W Bush Presidential Center in Dallas, Texas. Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter will also be in attendance.

North Korea will mark the 81st anniversary of the founding of the country’s army. The day actually recognizes the beginning of Kim Il-sung’s guerrilla activities in 1932, since the Korean People’s Army was not founded until 1948.

Also Thursday, the trial of former Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman relating to his selection in 2009 of Ze’ev Ben Aryeh to be Ambassador to Latvia. Lieberman has said he will plead not guilty.

Finally, French President will begin a two-day visit to China where he will meet his counterpart Xi Jinping.

Friday April 26

On Friday, US President Barack Obama is scheduled to host King of Abdullah of Jordan for talks at the White House. Syria is likely to be high on the agenda, with a recent announcement that the US plans to step up its military presence in Jordan in response to the conflict in neighbouring Syria.

Friday will also see the world’s largest economy release its GDP figures for the first quarter of the year. It will be the first GDP data since the automatic budget cuts – or sequestration – went into effect.

Sticking with finance, the Bank of Japan will make its second monetary policy announcement under its radical new Governor Hurihiko Kuroda.

Finally, in Ndjamena, Chad, foreign ministers from the region are due to hold a regularly scheduled meeting. The situation in the Central African Republic is likely to feature significantly.

Monday 25 February

In Seoul, South Korea’s first female president, Park Geun-hye, will be inaugurated following her victory over Moon Jae-in in last December’s election. Ms Park takes office amid heightened regional tensions, in particular given Pyongyang’s recent decision to test a third nuclear device, provoking widespread international condemnation. Ms Park has vowed to take a more conciliatory approach toward her country’s neighbour to the north than that of her predecessor, Lee Myung-bak.

US Secretary of State John Kerry, meanwhile, will kick off his first international travel since taking up the post with a stop in London on Monday, where he will meet with his British counterpart William Hague. Kerry’s trip will see him visit a number of European and Middle Eastern capitals, though he will not travel to Israel this time around.

Finally, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will host Syria’s Foreign Minister Walid Muallem in Moscow for talks on Monday. Russia ‘s continued support for the Assad regime has frustrated many, particularly the United States.

Tuesday 26 February

Meanwhile, international talks on Iran’s nuclear programme will take place in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Political directors from France, Britain, Germany, the US, the EU, Russia and China will meet with representatives for the first time since last June. Indications about the prospects for progress during the talks are positive.

Finally, in New York City, a court will hear an appeal from Argentina’s government after a court there ruled in favour of billionaire Paul Singer’s hedge fund NML Capital, and others who are suing Argentina for $1.3bn in sovereign bonds owed to them since the country defaulted on its debt in 2001.

Wednesday 27 February

In the US, oral arguments are scheduled in the Supreme Court a case challenging a key element of the Voting Rights Act. Specifically, justices will hear a challenge to Section 5 of the act which which requires state and local governments in certain, mainly southern, US states to obtain federal permission before making changes that affect voting. Critics of the provision say it is outdated and unfairly singles out certain states, while supporters say it provides important protections.

Finally, delegations from rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah are expected in Cairo on Wednesday for further reconciliation talks.

Thursday 28 February

An international meeting on Syria will take place in Rome on Thursday, attended by the US Secretary of State John Kerry as well as representatives of the Syrian National Coalition, including its head Mouaz al Khatib.

In Moscow, President Vladimir Putin will host his French counterpart Francois Hollande for talks on a range of bilateral and multilateral international issues, likely to include Syria.

In India, Finance Minister P Chidambaram will present his budget for 2013/14 before the country’s parliament.

Friday 29 February

Assuming a last-minute deal is not reached during the week, drastic across-the-board cuts to federal spending – known as a sequester – are scheduled to take effect Friday. Last week, the US Department of Defense, which would be particularly hard-hit by the measure, announced plans to furlough 800,000 members of its civilian staff, should sequestration occur. Barack Obama has repeatedly warned that the cuts threaten the US economic recovery.

Lastly, former Italian Prime Minister is expected to appear in person on Friday in Milan’s court of appeal, where he is challenging his conviction last October on tax evasion charges. A verdict in the appeal is tentatively expected on 23 March.

Weekend

In Switzerland, on Sunday, a referendum is scheduled that includes a vote on whether to strengthen shareholders’ influence on the remuneration of directors and management of listed companies in order to prevent excessive pay. The outcome is likely to have international implications.

Finally, the annual policy conference of the powerful American Israeli Public Affairs Committtee (AIPAC) opens on Sunday. The three-day conference traditionally features addresses from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Barack Obama, though these have yet to be confirmed this year. Obama, of course, is scheduled to visit Israel from 20 March.

Images courtesy of Katherine Welles / vipflash / Shutterstock.com

By Rosie Scammell

An intimate evening unfolded at the Frontline Club last night, as Argentine photojournalist Adriana Groisman talked through her photography commemorating the Falklands/Malvinas War.

In a venue famed for its images of conflicts, Groisman’s work presented an unexpected calm – rolling waves in black & white; stark island landscapes in grey hues tinged with colour. But rather than see beauty in the images, it is the scars within the landscapes she urged the audience to understand.

‘Voices of the South Atlantic’ began when Groisman accompanied National Geographic on its search for the Belgrano, the Argentine warship sunk by the British to the loss of 323 lives. Soon after, however, the project gained its own momentum:

“I showed it in Buenos Aires, and was able to see how it was received. That was what     inspired me to keep working on the project; the fact that people were seeing somethingtotally different, because the work did not force them to stand on one side or another of theconflict.”

With politicians ruled by their own agendas on both sides, Groisman sought out another avenue, and united Argentines, Brits and islanders affected by the conflict to reconcile with one another.

Bringing together the man who took a fateful torpedo shot at the Belgrano and one who received the blow, for example, seems an ill-fated venture. Yet granting the men innovative opportunities, such as writing down one wish from the other side, resulted in an openness Groisman said many had thought themselves incapable of.

“It’s strange that we would try to kill each other, when we have so much in common,” said one participant in a short film of the project.

This desire to close the divide plays out throughout Groisman’s work; in one piece she has united all those who died in sea-related hostilities, and notes that with many names it is impossible to tell which side they fought on.

While the tide may be turning in Argentina, with veterans at last receiving better treatment, Groisman said raw emotions still rule: “The few people that are proposing a new way of looking at this are being dismissed as traitors.” Just last month, for example, a television advert was aired depicting Olympic athletes training on ‘Argentine soil’ on the Falkland Islands. The British government responded with furore, while still plotting oil exploration in the region.

But while some are still unwilling to open dialogue, Groisman explained that in getting people together (in a studio lifeboat, no less) to see the faces and hear the voices of the war, reconciliation is achievable:

“The experience between these people made me realise that for former enemies, it ispossible to find common ground and understand each other, and acknowledge eachother’s pain. What this work is proposing is to include rather than exclude, and look at each other as humans.”

Adriana Groisman:Voices of the South Atlantic is showing at Photofusion in Brixton, London, until 25 May.

[acf field=”Tickets”]

By Nicole Hunt

The UN Human Rights Committee session opens on Monday in Geneva, with the situation in Iran on the agenda for the first two days.

Meanwhile, Under Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Valerie Amos begins a five day visit to North Korea, which is currently suffering through a major food crisis.

A judge in Courbevoie, France is due to rule on whether L’Oréal heiress Liliane Bettencourt should be made a ward of the state following accusations by her daughter Françoise that she is mentally unfit to manage her €17bn fortune.

South African President Jacob Zuma hosts Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Pretoria on Tuesday for a trilateral summit, expected to focus mostly on trade.

The meeting comes on the same day that fellow BRICS country China releases its third quarter GDP figures. 

In London, judges reveal the winner of this year’s Man Booker Prize for Fiction; nominees include Julian Barnes, Carol Birch, Patrick deWitt, Esi Edugyan and Stephen Kelman.

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh begin a 10-day trip to Australia on Wednesday, heading first to Canberra. During their visit, the royal couple will also take in Brisbane and Melbourne before heading to Perth for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting on 28 October.

Greek public and private sector unions hold a 24-hour strike to protest what they say are ‘barbaric’ austerity measures being introduced as part of the Government’s efforts to meet the conditions of its €110bn bailout from the IMF, the EU and the European Central Bank.

EU Commissioner for Internal Markets Michel Bernier holds a press conference in Brussels on Thursday to present the Commission’s proposals for reforms to the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive and the Market Abuse Directive. The reforms are aimed at strengthening the EU regulatory system and increasing oversight in the wake of the financial crisis.

The European Space Agency is having a more exciting day in Kourou, French Guiana, where the first two Galileo satellites are being test-launched at 12:34pm. The full satellite project is expected to be operational by 2014.

News Corporation holds its annual general meeting in Los Angeles on Friday, amid calls from some shareholder groups to vote against the re-election of CEO Rupert Murdoch’s sons James and Lachlan to the company’s board in the wake of the UK phone hacking scandal.

In Abu Dhabi, Finance Ministers from the Gulf Cooperation Council begin a two-day meeting where they discuss proposals for a single Gulf currency. IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde attends on the second day.

Remember the apocalypse hysteria back in May? When the world failed to end, preacher Harold Camping revised his prediction, and is now confident that the world will in fact end on 21 October.

Assuming we’re still here, attention turns to Cairo on Saturday where the court hearing resumes for two police officers charged over the death of Khaled Said. The verdict in the case, which prompted widespread protests against police impunity last year, has been delayed twice, most recently from 24 September after new evidence emerged.

Unusually, there’s quite a lot going on on Sunday, beginning with the delayed European Council and Eurogroup meetings in Brussels. Predictably, Greece and the euro debt crisis are at the top of the agenda, with leaders focusing on economic governance and financial regulation.

Following an international uproar over five to 15 year sentences for Bahraini medical staff convicted of inciting hatred against the regime and attempting to topple the monarchy during anti-government protests earlier this year, a civil re-trial ordered by the country’s Attorney General begins in Manama.

There are also four elections taking place across the world: parliamentary polls in Tunisia, which were scheduled in the wake of President Zine al Abidine Ben Ali’s resignation back in January; a general election in Argentina, where incumbent Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner is expected to win a second term; a presidential election in Bulgaria, where current President Georgi Parvanov is not eligible for a third term; and federal elections in Switzerland, where 13 parties are currently represented in parliament.

To top it off, the Rugby World Cup final takes place in Auckland.

The scene couldn’t have been more different from two years ago. In the same conference hall in the same Buenos Aires hotel, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner (Nestor’s wife) had waved to the cameras and blown kisses to the millions who had voted for her.

The popularity of Argentina’s first elected female president (known simply by her first name, ‘Cristina’) has plummeted since that triumphant night in 2007. A protracted conflict with the country’s all-powerful rural bloc last year cost her dearly. She’s never really bounced back.

Yesterday’s mid-term was her chance to turn that around and breath new life into the “K Model” of politics. It didn’t happen that way. A centre-right coalition headed by dissident Peronist Francisco de Narvaez and backed by the business tycoon Mauricio Macri (former chairman of Boca Juniors) pipped the Kirchners to the post.

Analysts are busily assessing what the result means. One thing is clear. This is good for Argentine democracy. Congress has become an increasingly lame dog under the Kirchner reign, which began with Nestor’s election in 2003. Both enjoyed a parliamentary majority in the Lower House. Now that’s gone.

Logic would suppose that they will need to tone down their centrist presidential style and seek to rebuild alliances in Congress. But logic and politics are uneasy bedfellows, especially in Argentina. The new deputies elected yesterday won’t sit until December (the midterms were brought forward from October to July 28). A deluge of policies could feasibly be pushed through between now and then.

The worst case scenario would be that the Kirchners refuse to take the parliamentary route. With strong support among the ‘social classes’, as Argentina’s disenfranchised are called here, they could seek to rule through the street. It would be the first time. Argentine political activists like nothing better than a march or strike. The electorate might have shown a disgruntlement with the Kirchners, but the unions remain behind them. It’s amazing how much trouble transport workers can make if they decide to down tools (or, worse, block roads).

There was a longer-term issue at stake at yesteday’s elections as well. 2011 marks the end of Cristina’s presidential term. A strong win in the mid-terms would have set up Nestor to replace her in the hot seat, or at least one of their allies. Now the presidential race has been thrown wide open. Expect to see the Kirchner quorum diminish in coming months as Peronist legislators throw their weight behind other contenders from with the ruling party.

Sunday’s mid-terms mark a turn in Argentine domestic politics. The Kirchners’ six-year grip on power has loosened. It’s unclear how things will now pan out. It’s bound to get messy. But true democratic politics is a messy game. And with presidential elections in 2011, there’s all to play for.  

The Church never seems to do itself any favours when it comes to the media. Admittedly, most secular news outlets pay little heed to the institution’s main message, preferring headlines like ‘Randy Reverend in Love Tryst’ to stories on civic outreach or sermons on loving our neighbour. 

Still, knowing what the media agenda is, you’d think a comms expert from the flock would step up and give them some basic instruction. The Williamson story provides a good case in point. When the news first broke, I travelled out to the bishop’s seminary on the edge of Buenos Aires. Instead of providing a spokesperson, they padlocked the gates and hid away inside.

I phoned as well for an entire week. I finally got to speak with the telephone receptionist, but only because I met her at the seminary gates arriving for work. Apparently the phone lines were down. An unfortunate coincidence to be sure – especially given that the Pope was trying to get through too.

Williamson no doubt didn’t want to add fuel to the flames. But by saying nothing, he let reporters speak for him. After a fortnight or so, he did eventually break his silence, giving an email interview to Der Spiegel. 

The frustrating aspect of this whole saga was that Williamson has his own blog. For a week or more, the world waited for some clarification on his opinions on the Holocaust. And what was the bishop blogging about? A film with Meryl Streep that he’d just been watching and "the varied wealth and dynamic force" of Beethoven’s Third Symphony!

What did Argentines do? In brief, this: they got angry, they got depressed, they improvised, they coped, they rebounded – and they stayed worried.
 
"Argentines are used to a more unstable form of capitalism than in Europe or the United States. As a result, they are more creative in their responses," said Marcela Lopez Levy, author of a book ‘We Are Millions’, about Argentina’s  collapse.
 
If so, northerners better start acquiring some Latin dexterity. Step one, it seems, is to let the anger froth.
 
From sleek Buenos Aires to wilderness Patagonia Argentines had reason to be furious: banks froze savings, the peso lost three quarters of its value and more than half the population slid into poverty.
 
Millions marched to demand politicians’ heads; the president duly resigned (fleeing the palace in a helicopter), as did three successors. The demonstrations morphed into formal protest groups with drums, saucepans and road blocks the preferred weaponry of the aggrieved picketers, the ‘piqueteros’.
 
These social movements reflected profound alienation, said Sergio Berensztein, a political analyst. "They demonstrated a complete rejection of the political parties and a desire to replace the government."
 
The famously neurotic citizens of Buenos Aires rival New Yorkers in their attachment to therapy and when the crisis hit demand for psychological care rocketed.
 
"The public mental health centres were very busy," said Hector Basile, of the Argentine Association of Psychologists. "The middle-classes were more nervous than ever but they didn’t have the money any longer to go to a private psychiatrist."
 
Rates of suicide and serious mental health problems did not soar, however, partly thanks to step two: community solidarity. Marooned by imploding state services, people huddled on street corners to devise solutions and debate everything from organising soup kitchens to writing manifestos denouncing global capitalism.
 
More than anything, these so-called "neighbourhood assemblies" helped vent frustration at the crisis. "They were like group therapy on the street," said Lopez Levy, the author.
 
Necessity bequeathed step three: invention. With cash devalued to a third of its initial value money was eschewed in favour of barter. Some 5,000 barter or ‘truque’ clubs, operating by word of mouth and the internet, had well-heeled professionals swapping goods and services with blue-collar workers. Some $7m of paper scrip went into circulation and reportedly $400m in goods was traded.
 
The clubs were an improbable safety net for the middle class, said Ibsen Martinez, a journalist, and the system collapsed after thieves stole million of barter coupons and went on a shopping spree.
 
A boom in recycling proved more enduring. Groups of collectors known as "cartoneros" scoured bins for glass, paper, cardboard and other salvageable material. Buenos Aires subsidised a train to transport them in from outlying shantytowns.
 
Another innovation was worker-run cooperatives in which laid-off employees took over idle businesses. "We took it back," said Ricardo Ruiz, of Cortidoros Unidos Limitada, a leather processing plant. "We broke the locks, turned on the lights and started the equipment up. We´re running things now."
 
Many cooperatives failed but some thrived. "I can quote you Marx or Lenin but this is not about ideology. It is about what works. And this is working," said Luis Caro, a leader of the  National Movement for Recovered factories, which boasts 10,000 members.
 
An export-led commodity boom helped resurrect the economy, halve poverty and boot out the hated IMF, whose policies contributed to the crisis. As the country regained its shine many emergency initiatives petered out.
 
To countries now facing their own financial meltdowns Argentina is a hopeful example. Its swift recovery, however, has not extinguished the trauma. Argentines are braced for another crisis, said Lopez Levy. "They don’t expect things to change so they just try and weather the storm as best as possible."

That, however, was before he had fallen out with a new regime at the paper and been grounded. Such was the froideur he felt he “had been posted to Antarctica”.

On a visit to Argentina, soon afterwards, I wondered whether my friend and   fellow hack would one day end up covering Antarctica after all. The talk in Buenos Aires was about how the perfidious British, having refused to give up the Malvinas, are now after the mineral wealth in the frozen wilderness at the tip of Latin America.

Global warming and the shrinking ice cap have made oil and gas exploration commercially viable and Britain has claimed, thanks to the territorial waters of the Falkland Islands and South Georgia, another 100,000 sq km of the adjoining seabed.

This, unsurprisingly, has not gone down well with Argentina which, along with Chile and a number of other countries, has its own claim to the desolate but lucrative wilderness.

Argentina itself has sought to bolster its claim to sovereignty by establishing its own population in the Antarctic, the same principle, it says, that Britain used in saying the Falklands are British.

As far back as 1978 they flew the pregnant wife of an army captain to give birth to its base in Esperanza and her son Emilio Marcos de Palma became, in theory, the first Argo-Antarctican.

Now, with the British move to extend its territory, the Argentines have made a similar claim. It has also formed an alliance with China on exploration in Antarctica.

Beijing’s voracious appetite for resources, so evident in Africa, has now spread to the southern extremities of the world and there are over a hundred scientists at two research stations with a third one  being built. Chinese research ships regularly receive official welcome in Buenos Aires.

To add to the Argentine sense of injustice, surveys have also revealed that oil just off the Falklands may rival a major North Sea oil field. Five companies are active in the area, and here, without the constraint of the Antarctic treaty, drilling can begin within a couple of years and the Falkland islanders, already on a massive per capita income thanks to fishing rights, will be richer still.

At the inauguration of Cristina Kirchner as president in December the French sent prime minister Francois Fillon, Britain sent Bob Blizzard, MP for Waveney, north Suffolk, an assistant whip. Now Mr Blizzard is a thoroughly nice chap who resigned his post of parliamentary private secretary in opposition to the Iraq war. But he is not, perhaps, the highest profile of international figures.

The reason he was sent and not someone more senior, apparently, was the danger that he would be snubbed at the ceremony by the new president. That did not happen, although in her speech President Cristina Kirchner mentioned the “occupying country” (Argentine officials do not refer to Britain by name on these matters but as the ‘occupying country’, much in the way the Arabs talk about the ‘Zionist entity’ rather than Israel) still practicing colonialism in Latin America.

M Fillon, in the meantime, laid flowers at the grave of two French nuns murdered by the military junta during the dirty war. An Argentine naval officer, commander Alfredo Astiz, was convicted in absentia by a French court for the killings. He was captured by the British during the Falklands war and brought back to England as the only Argentine PoW to be brought home. I remember futile attempts to get to see him at a military police barracks at Chichester in Sussex.

Human rights groups wanted him sent to France to stand trial, but Margaret Thatcher’s government returned him to Argentina instead. The scars of military repression are still raw in Argentina. More than 30,000 people were killed between 1976 and 1983 before the junta collapsed in the wake of the Falklands defeat.

The focus at present is on 500 babies born in military prisons and handed over to military families after their parents had been tortured and killed. Now many of them are discovering who their real parents were and meeting their families for the first time while learning to cope with the fact that the people who they thought were their mothers and fathers had been complicit in this horrendous crime.

A great journalist who did much to bring the abuse to international attention at the time, Andrew Graham Yooll of the Buenos Aires Herald, has just taken early retirement. A very brave man who had been forced into exile and withstood threats from military dictatorships around Latin America, he decried the way news coverage is being increasingly trivialized.

Andrew’s despair at the dumbing down of journalism, over a lunch in Buenos Aires, reminded me of the complaints at the Fleet Street leaving bash. This is a universal problem, but in some places, of course, ‘serious journalism’ continues to involve lethal risks.

Sayed Pervez Kambaksh, a student of journalism, has been sentenced to death in Afghanistan for downloading a report from the Internet on women’s rights. A petition to free him, started by The Independent, has gathered 77,000 signatures as I write this and various public figures like Condoleezza Rice have promised to help, but even if he avoids capital punishment, the danger remains of a lengthy prison sentence.

His brother Yaqub Ibarahimi, a campaigning reporter I got to know in Afghanistan, is in the meantime, in hiding following death threats after he exposed how public figures have been involved in criminality including murder.