Double celebration in Gibraltar: for the fall of the fence and for the qualification for the final

LondonThousands of people celebrated at midnight this Tuesday the opening of the Gibraltar border, after the physical disappearance of the fence that for decades, centuries, in fact, has separated the Rock from the town of La Línea de la Concepción. At midnight, police officers abandoned their checkpoints and the Chief Minister of Gibraltar, Fabian Picardo, and the mayor of La Línea, Juan Franco, shook hands in a symbolic act that signifies a new era in the relationship between the British territory and Spain.

The opening coincided with the qualification of the Spanish national team for the World Cup final, which contributed to the festive atmosphere. And according to testimonies disseminated by the English press this Wednesday, the usual shouts from the Spanish right and far-right of "Gibraltar, Spanish!", have been replaced by equally nationalist ones, in this case using football as an excuse:"I am Spanish, Spanish, Spanish". In any case, the reunion ceremony took place hours after the United Kingdom and the European Union signed in Brussels the treaty regulating Gibraltar's relationship with the EU and with Spain after Brexit. Without this agreement, the British exit from the Union would have forced the establishment of a strict external border, with serious consequences for the economy of the Rock and for the more than 15,000 workers who access it daily from Spain. For the moment, however, the treaty has provisionally entered into force until final ratification by the European Parliament and the House of Commons.

Biometric checks for Britons

The removal of the fence does not, however, imply the removal of controls for everyone. Citizens of the Schengen area will be able to enter Gibraltar freely, while Britons will have to undergo biometric controls of the European Entry/Exit System (EES), with fingerprint and passport verification when they arrive by air at the Rock. This point continues to generate concern among some British sectors due to the implications for sovereignty and possible delays.

A witness mentioned by the BBC, Brian Brophy, a 72-year-old resident of Gibraltar, recalled that he had also been present when Spain reopened the border in 1985, after sixteen years of closure decreed by the regime of Francisco Franco. "This conflict is 300 years old and will not end tonight," he commented. "But I hope it is a step forward; it is time for the two communities to integrate."

The Vice-President of the European Commission and one of the negotiators of the Brexit agreement, Maros Sefcovic, has described the treaty as "historic". The Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, also defined it as "the last piece of the Brexit puzzle", and from the community capital assured that it opens "a new era" for Gibraltar and the Campo de Gibraltar, although he insisted that Spain does not renounce "a single comma" of its claim of sovereignty over the Rock. In practice, the treaty has postponed this issue sine die and, for once, Madrid has taken a pragmatic stance.

For his part, Fabian Picardo stated that it is "one of the most significant days in the modern history of Gibraltar", because the agreement "protects the Rock, safeguards our sovereignty and opens the way to a more secure and prosperous future". According to the Chief Minister, the border will go from being an element of division to becoming "a space of cooperation and shared opportunities".

In London, however, not everyone sees it that way. Former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith, a hardline MP, has warned that the agreement will be remembered as "a model of weak negotiation", and has assured that it represents "a significant step in the dismantling of centuries of British sovereignty". The leader of the Reform Party, Nigel Farage, has described it as "a regrettable surrender" and stated that the opening of the border will mean that "Gibraltar will never be the same again".

It is not surprising, either, that the Spanish far-right rejects the agreement. In mid-May, Vox managed to get the Mixed Commission for the EU to approve a non-binding proposal that urged the Spanish government to reject the agreement. Santiago Abascal's party considers that the treaty harms the interests of Spain, the Campo de Gibraltar and Andalusia, and maintains that it is contrary to the Constitution because it does not start from the recognition of Spanish sovereignty over the Rock. MP José María Sánchez has described the situation as a "national disgrace".