Gibraltar will remain British, co-operation is the future – Picardo declares at Gibraltar Day
by Dominique Searle, London
BRITISH AND PROUD Chief Minister Fabian Picardo addresses the sea of guests that packed the vast Great Hall at The Guildhall in London.
Chief Minister Fabian Picardo last night made a clear call on Spain to commence a friendly relationship with Gibraltar based on co-operation but equally emphasised that he regards the links with Britain will go on with the Gibraltar flag been flown over the Foreign Office for at least another 3,000 years.
The remarks came in a speech that celebrated Gibraltar’s strong links with UK be it in education, the military or even the law.
“We are here to celebrate also the deep and long standing links between Gibraltar and the United Kingdom as a whole. The people of Gibraltar value those links immensely. We have already said loud and clear in two referenda that we do not wish to pass from under the sovereignty of the British Crown,” he said in the presence of Overseas Territories Minister Mark Simmons.
Invited amongst many distinguished guests, most with long and well know connections with the Rock, were several Ambassadors and representatives including the ambassadors of Finland, Singapore, Israel, Belgium, Russia, Malta and Morocco.
Mr Picardo told the guests that, on Gibraltar’s desire to remain British, “if anyone hasn’t got the message yet it must be because they are not listening!”
The Chief Minister publically thanked both William Hague and David Liddington for their consideration in the months since the GSLP/Liberal government’s election.
“I am delighted to say that the relationship which I have developed with both demonstrates
the attitude of mutual respect and positive engagement with the Overseas Territories,” he said adding that this is illustrated in the White Paper recently published.
SPAIN’S AGGRESSION
“The fact is that after 308 years of uninterrupted British Sovereignty, despite never yielding to sieges and all manner of attempts to undermine us, Gibraltar continues to face aggressive Spanish challenges to the undisputable British sovereignty of British Gibraltar Territorial Waters around the Rock and – for the past five days, but not today, intolerable queues to exit Gibraltar.”
He welcomed David Liddington’s words on this issue in the House of Commons saying that “neither the British Government nor the people of Gibraltar will be fooled by any argument contrived to suggest that constant incursions into our waters or lengthy queues at our frontier as are occurring have anything to do with fishing and the supreme importance that Gibraltar’s laws should be adhered to in BGTW.”
“Such challenges have been a scourge of the past three years before our election and were to a great extent the initial reason for the floundering of the Trilateral Process of Dialogue which involved the governments of the UK, Spain and Gibraltar,” he said. Mr Picardo urged UK to be “consistent, direct and clear about peacefully asserting its sovereignty over BGTW and to the freedom of movement of persons at the Gibraltar frontier”.
SIGNALS
“It is essential that Spain never again gets a signal from London or Gibraltar that she can interpret as any softening of Gibraltarians’ resolve to remain under the exclusive sovereignty of the British Crown in perpetuity, as provided for in the treaty signed in the Dutch city of Utrecht almost 300 years ago.”
Mr Picardo declared that it was the clear position on sovereignty that adds to his continued “conscious desire to engage positively with Spain and all our neighbours and European partners, on issues of potentially mutual co-operation, and not because we have to but because as good Europeans and good neighbours we want to.”
“We stand ready and are strongly committed, for example as HMG has already said it is, to take part in re-activated discussions on non-sovereignty issues under the tri-lateral forum for dialogue with Spain. That is the formula acceptable to the people of Gibraltar for structured talks with Spain; always with a veto on all matters affecting Gibraltar and with sovereignty firmly off the table.”
Mr Picardo said that, despite these intolerable actions by the Spanish Government, the people of Gibraltar wish to continue with a positive engagement and mutual co-operation with the Government and people of the Kingdom of Spain.
“Despite the fact that whether in the provision of services or goods from Gibraltar there is a constant attempt by Spain to put obstacles in the way of Gibraltar’s own continued prosperity and progress. And this despite the fact that over 7,000 frontier workers who live in Spain and work in Gibraltar are beneficiaries of the economic activity generated by Gibraltar.”
“The reality is that we could do much more to develop Gibraltar and the neighbouring Spanish regions if we were able to engage in a meaningful co-operation with Spain,” he said.
JOBS
Gibraltar could create thousands more jobs in Gibraltar and in the neighbouring Spanish towns and transform for the better the lives of people who live around Gibraltar, he said. “Lets us all take a step forward to grasp the opportunities of the future,” declared Mr Picardo.
http://www.chronicle.gi/headlines_details.php?id=26355 
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