HISTORY
Gibraltar derives from Gibel
Tariq – Tariq’s Mountain – which is named after
Tariq Ibn Zeyad who led the eighth-century conquest of Spain by
a combined force of Arabs and Berbers crossing from Africa. Gibraltar’s
unusual status was not acquired until almost 1000 years later,
long after the Islamic invaders had been driven out by the Spanish,
as a consequence of the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht which brought to
an end the War of the Spanish Succession and gave the territory
to Britain. The British interpretation of the treaty moreover,
holds that the territory was ceded to them indefinitely. The presence
of a foreign-owned mini-state on the Spanish mainland has been
an irritant to Anglo-Spanish relations ever since (though the
UK points to the Spanish-controlled enclaves of Ceuta and Mellila
on the Moroccan coast). The Spanish dictator, General Franco,
launched a campaign in 1963 through the United Nations to reclaim
Gibraltar, adding to the pressure by closing the border and severing
telephone links.
Since the death of Franco
in 1975 and the return of democracy to Spain, relations between
London and Madrid have improved immensely in every area –
except Gibraltar. The current Spanish position was first outlined
by Felipe González, Spain’s Socialist premier during
the 1980s, when he suggested joint Anglo-Spanish sovereignty.
Successive Spanish governments, including the present Aznar administration,
have since refined the proposals, allowing for possible EU or
NATO involvement. The British have no major objection, in principle,
to the Spanish recovering full sovereignty over the territory
– provided they are guaranteed continued access to its military
base facilities. The problem is that the Gibraltarians are having
none of it: no handover; no joint sovereignty; no Spanish involvement
whatsoever. In response to the latest round of talks between London
and Madrid which began in 2001 and explored in detail possible
joint sovereignty models, the Gibraltar government led by Peter
Caruana organised a referendum in November 2002 to assess the
popular mood. As expected, it returned a huge majority in favour
of the status quo. Whatever its preferred option, it is politically
impossible for any British government to cede the territory to
Spain against the clear wishes of the inhabitants.
Domestic politics in Gibraltar
are dominated by two main blocs, the ruling centre-right Social
Democrats and the opposition alliance of the Socialist Labour
Party and the Liberal Party. The Social Democrats formed the present
government after their victory under the leadership of Peter Caruana,
who was re-elected Prime Minister at the most recent poll in February
2000. On the issue of sovereignty, there are some differences
in emphasis, but no essential difference between the basic positions
of any of the three parties.
Following the 2002 referendum,
whose legitimacy was rejected by both the British and Spanish
governments, talks between the two staggered on for another six
months. Finally, in June 2003, the British put the process on
ice, telling the Spanish that without a fundamental change in
the attitude of the Gibraltarians, the status quo would remain.
It is difficult to see any prospect of change in the near future:
should it come to pass, a major change in economic conditions
(see Economy) is the most likely source.
