800 years ago...

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 Monday, June 8, 2020 - 09:13

Dear Sir,

I’ve barely started on George Hills’s ROCK OF CONTENTION, a history of Gibraltar, and I’m on the edge of my seat. For in ending his Preface he defines the now circa sixty years old Spanish claim on Gibraltar at the UN and Gibraltar’s even longer claim to the Right of Self-determination as follows:

<Therefore I suggest no solution to what the United Nations called ‘the disagreement, even dispute between the United Kingdom and Spain over the status of and the situation of the Territory of Gibraltar’ except this conclusion:

Eight hundred years ago Abu Abl’ al-Ath Muhammad Ibn Galib looked on the Rock from across the bay and wrote:

Uproot the mountains of the world

Save this. This one retain,

But free from fear and misery;

Here let peace reign.

For 700 hundred years the Rock has been the occasion of fear misery and war affecting millions of human beings because men have considered ‘their’ justice and ‘their’ liberty only instead of Justice and Liberty.

In the last two and a half centuries during which Britain and Spain have discussed the possession of Gibraltar, as well as fought over it, the negotiators have considered ‘their’ truth in preference to ‘the’ truth.

There will be no solution, no peace except in Truth, Justice and Liberty.>

The foresight of Abu Abl’ al-Ath Muhammad Ibn Galib after just one look at this Rock of Ages is inspiring. As for the conclusion, after serious research in many languages, is nothing short of brilliantly incisive. Incidentally the UN Committee of 24 could take a leaf from Abu’s foresight.

With Brexit round the corner and the Spanish far right (extension of our ‘friends’ in the PP) Vox with their spurious accusations and sabre rattling, it is worth reflecting on these predictions.

Though with our own vision of reality I guess we are in for a hard slog.

Immersed in our rich history,

Joe Brugada

08-06-2020 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR