UK and Spain between a rock and a hard place

According to legend, if the apes desert Gibraltar (derived from its Arabic name Jebel Tariq in honor of the Umayyad commander Tariq bin Ziyad), so will the British. So when the numbers of Barbary Macaques began dwindling during World War II, Sir Winston Churchill swiftly sent off for replacements and ensured they received the best medical treatment. Today, the apes are thriving along with Gibraltar’s residents enjoying the benefits of an economy growing by 8 percent and the lowest unemployment rate in Europe of a mere one percent which is a dramatic contrast with the closest Spanish town suffering from 14 percent unemployment.

The Rock of Gibraltar that stands sentinel to Britons’ naval interests in the waters off Cadiz was formerly of great strategic importance to London; nowadays the connection is more emotive. Its 30,000 Gibaltarians, packed into an area of 2.6 square miles, are staunchly proud of their British citizenship, flying the Union Jack from their balconies and refusing, almost to a man, Spain’s intermittent attempts to reassert its sovereignty.

Referendums on the rock’s transfer to Spanish sovereignty were held in 1967 and, more recently, in 2002 when almost 95 percent of the population voted “no.” And, indeed, first time visitors to Gibraltar crossing from Spain are often amazed by it sheer British character evidenced by traditional fish ‘n’ chips restaurants, cozy tea shops serving butter scones—and a high street that would not look out of place in any UK town.

However, the Spanish government still asserts its claim on the territory it lost to Britain during the 1704 War of the Spanish Succession, which is why Cameron’s head was not only buzzing with plans to attack Syria, his heels are being nipped by a determined Spanish flea.

Tensions between Spain and the UK recently resurfaced over a dispute over fishing rights amplified by Gibraltar’s creation of an artificial reef around the rock using underwater concrete blocks. Earlier this month, some 40 Spanish fishing boats sailed toward Gibraltar’s shores in protest, followed by an inspection of “the reef” by Spanish police who infuriated residents of the rock by hoisting a Spanish flag within British waters.

For the first time in 10 years, a British nuclear submarine, “HM Tireless” was spotted berthed in Gibraltar’s port, which has been interpreted as a warning to the Spanish authorities not to push their luck. The EU is currently pondering whether the immersion of concrete blocks constitutes an environmental crime. A fact-finding commission from Brussels is due on the scene this month but the feisty government of Gibraltar insists the EU has no authority to dictate what the rock does within its own territorial waters.

Spain is contemplating asking the United Nations Security Council to support its claim on Gibraltar with anticipated backing from Argentina and, in the interim, Spain’s Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo has called for bilateral talks with the UK on the transfer of sovereignty, something the British government asserts is not up for discussion.

In the meantime, Spain is making life as difficult as possible for Gibraltar residents with the introduction of security checks at the border—described by David Cameron as “politically-motivated”—that are causing anyone wishing to cross being forced to queue for up to eight hours. This move is not only hampering the rock’s tourist industry, but is preventing Spaniards living on the Spanish mainland working on Gibraltar from reaching their places of work. Spain is also threatening to impose charges of up to 60 euros on vehicles crossing the border and may impose restrictions preventing airplanes flying to and from the rock access to Spanish airspace.

Pouring fuel onto embittered embers was an image posted on Facebook by the mayor of Callosa de Segura in Alicante, depicting Spanish warplanes and soldiers wielding machine guns on Gibraltar above the silhouette of a bull, considered to emblemize the Spanish state. The image has served as a red rag to the more bullish members of Briton’s Parliament—and it’s likely the British Bulldog, Churchill, is turning furiously in his grave at the very notion. Moreover, London’s Gibraltar House says it’s being swamped with “abusive” e-mails from individuals with less than perfect English ordering the British government off “Spanish soil.”

The idea that two major members of the EU would wage war over a rock is far-fetched. But when one recalls how, in 1982, the UK successfully used its military might to defend its overseas territory, the Falkland Islands (known to Argentina as the Malvinas), against an invasion by Argentine forces, it’s not entirely beyond the realm of possibility.

So which side has right on its side? I believe both the UK and Spain have good arguments. Geographically, Spain has the edge; historically, less so, because if nations had the right to put their hands on territories lost in battle hundreds of years ago, many maps would have to be redrawn including America’s. In the end, I think it should be left for people themselves to decide what passport to hold and which standard to fly—and, in this case, the proud people of Gibraltar have spoken. For the sake of UK-Spanish relations, EU solidarity and the wishes of the people who call that rock home, Spain’s government should drop the case . . . at least for now.