Submission from Mr W L Chamberland, Gibraltar
Pardon my further intrusion into your valuable
time, which in all fairness you have to dedicate to your electors.
On 7 February 1 wrote to you, in the main supporting
the Hon Joe Bossano's testimony vis-á-vis the ongoing saga
between the Chief Minister and the Chief Justice. This new "epistle"
if I may be permitted to state goes to the core of all our problems,
dating back to 1704 but which any decent nation would have put
to bed, but when you have certain elements both in Britain and
Gibraltar who unwisely wish to reach an accommodation the very
essence of democracy goes out of the window. Both Spain and the
Foreign Office have been waiting for a fall guy after years of
non co-operation to fold up by successive Gibraltar Governments
from the late Sir Joshua Hassan through Sir Bob Peliza, thankfully
still alive and Mr Bossano.
From the gist of the correspondence you will
be able to perceive how much Spain has gained and Gibraltar lost.
To continue in the 21st century with an archaic claim and still
not be willing to test in court speaks for itself but if you have
a CM of Gibraltar accepting to sign an agreement without an implied
mandate from us the Gibraltarians and to cap it all continues
to defend the Spanish interpretations as to the isthmus, the non
existence of the frontier (but a police post to them) and the
renaming of the "Bay of Gibraltar", is I am afraid not
a sign of a mature politician but rather a sign of either weakness
or undue pressure from the FO Mandarins. If you or any other member
of your committee wish to recap the words of Mr Peter Hain to
the people of Gibraltar which was more of a threat than a message
you may or not arrive at my and quite a few thousands of my compatriots
conclusion that the FO were behind these insinuations, gladly
we are still about, he has had to look for other pastures.
Gibraltar has not been defended for quite a
number of years and in all sincerity one cannot blame the present
Government as this stems from the times of Lord Howe and Baroness
Thatcher, I could go on and on but would detract from the object
of this letter. I sincerely hope that you Sir take the time to
digest fully the contents of all these letters and can be proved
by production of documents. I am not an angry young man, I am
73 years of age and except for the war years, spent in the heart
of London during the blitz, lived here, I served our equivalent
of National Service in 1953, very appropriate Coronation Year,
in 1957 with a group of some 38 other Gibraltarians I was Commissioned
in the then local Defence Force now The Royal Gibraltar Regiment
and until recently Chairman of the Regimental Association from
which I resigned in October 2007 after 8 years in the post.
Therefore Sir I do not consider myself a trouble
maker but more of a partisan and in conclusion may I suggest that
since certain letters contain Spanish words, which I have purposely
not translated as not to appear to be bias, I can but recommend
that Mr Albert Poggio OBE, well known to you all be asked to explain
the words.
My profound apologies for the letter but in
all fairness you and your committee are the only ones we can trust
because at this rate Gibraltar will never be decolonised but could
end up as a Banana Republic or worst still Spanish.
25 February 2008
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