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the nuclear age, the military value
of Gibraltar diminished signifi–
cantly from the days of cannons and
sailing ships, when a cannon ball
from the Rock could be sent across
the bow of a hostile ship.
Still, the Rock is of strategic value
to Britain (which maintains a naval
base and air facility there) as well as
to NATO, which operates a commu–
nications center and observation
post on the península.
In addition to its military func–
tions, Gibraltar today is an impor–
tant port of cal! with a large
shipping and transit traffic - on
which the Rock 's economy is pri–
marily based. (Gibraltar has vir–
tually no industry or agriculture of
its own.) Interestingly, more Rus-
OVERLOOK/NG
the Bay of Algeciras
and the southern coast of Spain
are gun emplacements (foreground)
along the sheer north face of Gibral–
tar. Airstrip which juts into the bay
extends across the isthmus.
sian ships cal! at Gibraltar, a free
port, than at any other port in the
non-communist world.
The Controversy
The Gibraltar question is a com–
plex one. Stated briefly, Spain in–
sists that a!though the 1713 Treaty
of Utrecht (see historical summary)
provides a legal basis for British
presence on the Rock, the treaty re–
tained
residual sovereignty
for Spain.
In 1967, Generalissimo Francisco
Franco of Spain made bis nation's
position clear: "Gibraltar is Span–
ish , and it is the task of every ruler
and every citizen of this country
[Spain] to try for its return lo the
integrity of the motherland."
Spain wants Britain to show a
willingness to begin the process of
transfer even if the process itself
should take decades.
In Spanish eyes, continued British
sovereignty over Gibraltar is an af–
front to Spanish dignity. Spain will
never settle for anything less than
full restitution of Spanish sover–
eignty over the Rock.
Britain, on the other hand, asserts
that her title to the Rock is based on
270 years of uninterrupted occupa–
tion, as well as on the 1713 treaty.
Moreover, London has given a firm
commitment to stand by the wishes
of the Gibraltarians, who desire to
remain British.
This desire was expressed in a
1967 referendum in which only 44
ofthe 12 ,182 voters cast their ballots
in favor of Spanish rule. There is
unanimous agreement that if a sim–
ilar referendum were held today, it
would produce the same result.
The problem, as many Gibraltar–
ians are quick to point out, is not
that they are anti-Spanish but that
they prefer British-type democracy.
Many Gibraltarians (who are pri–
marily bilingual) speak better Span–
ish than English, like Spanish food,
music, and wine, and are mainly
Roman Catholic.
The Spanish government, how–
ever, maintains that the wishes of
the people of Gibraltar are not the
point at issue. Not without logic,
Spain asserts that the present inhab-