GOVERNMENT LAXITY

Thirteen years ago, precisely on the 3rd March 1997, the Panorama newspaper carried the following headline.

DECOLONISATION, says CHIEF MINISTER

The Chief Minister Peter Caruana spoke of  "our desire to achieve decolonisation, to shed our colonial status through a process of constitutional modernisation which, while preserving a status of political dependency with the UK, will give us a modern, non-colonial status, something along the lines of the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands."

This is what he says he has achieved today, but to our regret the British sovereignty of Gibraltar is not secured like that of the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands. Instead, he has restored to life the reversionary clause of the Treaty of Utrecht by including it in our Constitution and we are still very much a colony as far as the United Nations and the rest of the world is concerned.

Malta was denied integration with Britain in a referendum with a much larger "Yes" vote than the 30% the Gibraltarian electorate choose to give in our referendum on the Constitution. Consequently our Constitution should, likewise, have been denied. Instead, it was undemocratically presented to Her Majesty for approval and rammed down our throats; a fact for which the Opposition is, also, to blame and must now regret ifor more than one reason.

As far as Mr. Caruana’s achievements in the European Union are concerned, our status as a separate jurisdiction has been allowed to deteriorate to insignificance, notwithstanding the costs and hassle entailed in adopting European legislation. From being virtually equal in European Law to that of any other of the original jurisdictions it has become an excluded Cinderella. Why? Because of his neglect and failure to defend our original favourable position as a separate Jurisdiction; mostly against the Spanish Government’s persistent objections to our inclusion in rightful measures with the excuse that Gibraltar is not a state. The Spanish Government’s European claim of control over British Territorial Waters is the recent most blatant example of the result of this neglect and failure. The European Commissioner advised of Spain’s claim almost two years ago! One should consider how much is incompetent failure and how much deliberate neglect. Consider the withdrawal of our official representative in Europe. This would never have occurred under any previous Government.

Emilio Peire

Gibraltar Representation in UK Parliament

The people of Gibraltar should, by right, have had a vote in the British general elections. Have we forgotten that Gibraltar won the right to vote in the European Elections by virtue of the fact that we are part of Europe with Brit-ain as the "Member State", and that we became, for European electoral purposes, a part of the region of the South West of England? This was a hard fought right on a "private challenge" by Miss Matthews and sponsored by the Self Determination Group, SDGG.

When the European Parliament [Representation] Bill was debated in the House of Commons on the 10th  December 2000 all those who spoke, but one, stated that Gibraltar should now have representation in the British Parliament and should therefore have the right to vote in UK general elections.

Andrew Mackinlay MP said: "I am calling now for us to have a Member of Parliament for Gibraltar, I also hope that the people of Gibraltar will ask them [UK MPS ] where they stand on extending the peoples franchise to their Parliament, which is this Parliament".

Lindsay Hoyle MP stated: "now that we gave the people of Gibraltar the vote in Europe, we should give them the vote in Westminster. Let us not lose sight of the importance of direct elections from Gibraltar to this House in Westminster" . Geraldine Smith MP: "Is the time now right for Gibraltar to have representation in this Parliament at Westminster?".

Mr Heath MP observed: "But it [Gibraltar] has no access even to the Bar of the House and there is no representation for the people of Gibraltar here. The House and the Government need to address that point, this is an anomaly".

David Ruffey MP stated: "It is clear that the House sees a more important role for Gibraltar in the life of this country. It certainly represents a move towards closer integration".

Andrew Rosindell MP stated: "The Minister should come to the House to state that she will also give the people of Gibraltar the right to make their own decision on who will speak for them in this House as well. I welcome the Bill, principally because it takes the first step in a long overdue move towards the integration of Gibraltar within the UK".

W Cash MP reasoned that: "A logical extension of the right to EU representation is that there should be representation for the people of Gibraltar in this House. It holds great attraction in principle".

We wrote about these nine years ago, but in all these intervening years the Government has done nothing to foster this move. The Gibraltar public should be aware that getting representation in Westminster is the shortest and logical route to "decolonization". Our constitution does not have to change; only a Bill headed "The British Parliament Representation Bill for Gibraltar", would be needed. Simple and logical for British Gibraltar. All other European countries, Holland, France, Denmark, Portugal, Spain, have given the vote both in the European and na-tional elections to their "overseas territories", none of these territories are in Europe, yet Gibraltar which is in Europe does not have representation in the national [British] Parliament.

I hate to think of the day when Gibraltar does not have "friends" to speak out for them. When the occasion arises, a highly probable situation, present friendly MPs may not be elected, others may resign and others could die. Who would then speak for Gibraltar in the British Parliament? Straw? Hain?

Our Movement is determined to indefatigably continue to press for the option of representation in the British Parliament with our own autonomous governing system, the New Style Integration. People interested in pursuing this aim please call or write to me, Joe Caruana, or any member of the IWBM Committee.

Joe L Caruana, Chairman, IWBM.

Tel 58009064
e-mail joelcaruana@yahoo.co.uk.