REPUBLIKA.CO.ID,  STANLEY, Falkland Island - Residents of the Falkland Islands voted almost unanimously to stay under British rule in a referendum aimed at winning global sympathy as Argentina intensifies its sovereignty claim.

The official count on Monday showed 99.8 percent of islanders voted in favour of remaining a British Overseas Territory in the two-day poll, which was rejected by Argentina as a meaningless publicity stunt. There only three "no" votes out of about 1,500 cast.

"Surely this must be the strongest message we can get out to the world," said Roger Edwards, one of the Falklands' assembly's eight elected members.

"That we are content, that we wish to retain the status quo ... with the right to determine our own future and not become a colony of Argentina."

Pro-British feeling is running high in the barren and blustery islands that lie off the tip of Patagonia, at the southern end of South America. Turnout was 92 percent among the 1,649 Falklands-born and long-term residents registered to vote.

Three decades after hundreds died when Argentina and Britain went to war over the far-flung South Atlantic archipelago, islanders have been perturbed by Argentina's increasingly vocal claim over the Malvinas - as the islands are called in Spanish.

 Local politicians hope the resounding "yes" vote will help them lobby support abroad, for example in the United States, which has a neutral position on the sovereignty issue.

Argentina's fiery left-leaning president, Cristina Fernandez, has piled pressure on Britain to negotiate the sovereignty of the islands, something London refuses to do unless the islanders request talks.

Most Latin American countries and many other developing nations have voiced support for Argentina, which has stepped up its demands since London-listed companies started drilling for oil and natural gas off the Falklands' craggy coastline.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague said the referendum clearly showed the islanders wanted to remain a British overseas territory.

 "All countries should accept the results of this referendum and support the Falkland Islanders as they continue to develop their home and their economy," he said in a statement.

However, officials in Buenos Aires questioned the referendum's legitimacy. They say the sovereignty dispute must be resolved between Britain and Argentina and cite UN resolutions calling on London to sit down for talks.

"This (referendum) is a ploy that has no legal value," said Alicia Castro, Argentina's ambassador to London.

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