Gibraltar
Gibraltar (in English: Gibraltar, AFI: [dʒɨˈbɹɒːɫ̩tʲə]) is a British Overseas Territory situated in a small peninsula at the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula and forms a land border with Spain, a country that claims its sovereignty. For the United Nations Organization, Gibraltar, as a colony, is one of the non-autonomous territories under the supervision of its Special Committee on Decolonization, as are sixteen other cases.
In accordance with article X of the Treaty of Utrecht, "the city and castles of Gibraltar, together with its port, defenses and fortresses" in 1713 would be a perpetual property of the British Crown in territory of Spanish jurisdiction, and must return to Spain if the United Kingdom renounces or disposes of said property in any way. The isthmus between the rock and the other Spanish fortifications is for Spain illegally occupied territory, according to its interpretation of the treaty.
Gibraltar is located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, east of the Bay of Algeciras, and extends over the rock of Gibraltar geological formation (in English: the Rock of Gibraltar or also, the Rock), a peninsula that dominates the northern shore of the strait of the same name, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It houses a population of 33,140 inhabitants in an area of less than 7 km², with an economy based on the service sector, mainly as a financial, tourist and free port center. Taking advantage of its privileged strategic position, it has a naval air base for the British Armed Forces.
Gibraltar was known in antiquity as the promontory or mount Calpe (in Latin, Mons Calpe), one of the two mythical Pillars of Hercules, and later renamed as a derivation of the Arabic Ŷabal Tāriq (جبل طارق), or "mountain of Tariq", in memory of the general Táriq ibn Ziyad, who led the landing here of the forces of the Umayyad Caliphate of al-Walid I in 711. It was the scene of fighting in the 14th and 15th centuries, within the framework of the Reconquest, and finally integrated into the Crown of Castile in 1462. In 1704 it was taken by an Anglo-Dutch squadron in support of Archduke Carlos, claimant during the War of the Spanish Succession, at the end of of which, the British and Spanish Crowns signed the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. Since then, the political evolution of Gibraltar has been the subject of controversy in Spanish-British relations.
Etymology
The place name Gibraltar derives from the Arabic Ŷabal Tāriq (جبل طارق), the anthroponym of the general who directed the landing of the Umayyad forces of Walid I in 711. Currently, the Spanish and English-speaking inhabitants call the peninsula Gibraltar, although the latter know it colloquially as Gib or the Rock ('the rock').
History
Antiquity and Middle Ages
The peninsula and the rock of Gibraltar, due to their privileged location on one of the shores of the strait of the same name, have been known since antiquity, as evidenced by the prehistoric sites of the Gorham's and Vanguard caves (40,000 years). Phoenicians and Greeks visited Gibraltar and Greek mythology identified the rock as one of the Pillars of Hercules, called Calpe.
Gibraltar followed the evolution of the southern coast of the Iberian Peninsula, passing from Roman rule to the Vandals, later to the Visigoths, to later become part of the Byzantine Empire, returning again to Visigothic hands, finally passing in 711 to Muslim hands, together with the rest of the Visigothic kingdom. Until then there is no record of any stable settlement in the territory. However, the conquest of the Visigothic kingdom by the Muslims led to a significant event: the attribution of a name that, with some variations, has survived until today: جبل طارق (Jabal Tāriq, 'Mount of Táriq') in honor of the Muslim warlord Táriq Ibn Ziyad.
The first permanent settlement dates from the Almohad period. In 1160 the Almohad sultan Abd al-Mumin ordered the construction of a fortification in the territory, the remains of which are still part of the castle from this time. This would later pass into the hands of the taifa kingdom of Granada, which would keep it until 1309, when it was taken by Castilian troops. In 1333 it was conquered by the Merinids (the traditional benimerines), who had invaded Muslim Spain, who ceded it to the Nasrid kingdom of Granada in 1374. Finally, in 1462, it was reoccupied, this time definitively, by the troops of the 1st Duke of Medina Sidonia, to whose successor the Marquesate of Gibraltar was granted in 1488, who in 1502 rejoined the royal domain. A year later, the Catholic Monarchs granted it its own coat of arms.
Occupation and cession to the United Kingdom
I Asedio, escaped from the civilian population to neighbouring populations and Anglo-Dutch invasion.
II Failure of Captain Villadarias to reconquer him
III Despite the new reinforcements, Felipe V decides to surrender.
In the context of the war of the Spanish succession, in the summer of 1704 a fleet belonging to the side in favor of the pretender Archduke Carlos, made up of English and Dutch ships, attacked various towns on the Spanish south coast until reaching the bay of Algeciras on August 4, 1704, where they took up positions for the attack on Gibraltar. The defending Bourbon forces had 80 soldiers and 120 cannons, of which a third were useless, together with 300 militiamen with little or no military training, which will prove to be insufficient to face the assaulting force that totaled 12,000 men and 1,500 cannons, and the support of marines. Among them is a battalion of 350 Catalan soldiers who would lead the land assault, disembarking on the beach of La Caleta, which has since become known as Catalan Bay.
After five hours of bombardment, the English sailors kidnapped a group of civilians, including women and children, using them as human shields and notifying the besieged by letter. The defenders agreed to negotiate their capitulation by handing over the square to the prince of Hesse-Darmstadt.
The occupation of Gibraltar meant the displacement of most of its population. On August 5, the Gibraltar council chaired by Cayo Prieto Laso de la Vega together with the military governor of Gibraltar, Artillery General Diego de Salinas, decided to leave Gibraltar as they did not wish to swear allegiance to the Archduke. A vote is taken by popular acclamation (loudly) but the will of the neighborhood is left to leave or stay. The following day, August 6, the exodus begins, with the identifying attributes of the city: banners, files, seals, documents, religious images, parish register books with birth, death and wedding certificates, etc., leading the The alderman Bartolomé Ruiz Varela marches towards the hermitage of San Roque, origin of the current San Roque and in Algeciras, depopulated and in ruins until then. At the end of that same year, 1704, Spanish-French troops laid siege to the city, unsuccessfully trying to take it by force. British possession would be recognized in the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713, which ended the war. By this treaty, Spain ceded the rock to Great Britain in perpetuity without any jurisdiction, establishing, however, a clause whereby if the territory ceased to be British, Spain would have the option of recovering it. Technically, Gibraltar was an Anglo-Dutch Colony from 1704 to 1707 and a Dutch and British colony from May 1, 1707 (the date of the birth of the United Kingdom until July 13, 1713 (date of the signing of the Treaty of Utrecht). From July 13, 1713, Gibraltar would be solely a British possession under the terms of the treaty and the Netherlands withdrew its flag and troops.
The aforementioned Treaty of Utrecht put an end to hostilities with the United Kingdom, and the recognition of the pretender Felipe V as king of Spain by the British in exchange for the cession of the territories of Gibraltar and Menorca.
Spain made several attempts to recapture Gibraltar during the 18th century: the first, already named a few months after the capture of the city and a second siege a few years after the Treaty of Utrecht, in 1727. The longest lasting and most persistent took place between 1779 and 1783, known as The Great Siege, but it was equally unsuccessful. Apart from the British garrison, a population of diverse origins (mainly Genoese, but also Maltese, Portuguese, Jewish and North African) gradually settled in the territory and finally received the status of a British colony in 1830. During the 18th century, after a terrible epidemic, the Spanish Crown agreed to cede a humanitarian zone on the isthmus between the rock and the Spanish fortifications, the half of which closest to Gibraltar was later illegally occupied by the British. The opening of the Suez Canal (1869) underlined the strategic importance of Gibraltar.
20th century
At the beginning of the XX century, the British authorities raised the border barrier (1909), later popularized in Spain as « the gate”, on the land of the isthmus.
In World War I, there was speculation about a possible entry of Spain into the war on the side of the allies. Among other conditions to enter the fore, such as obtaining sovereignty over Tangiers or control of Portugal, Spain requested the return of Gibraltar in exchange for a territory in North Africa that would become British sovereignty. However, the British did not consider it necessary since they supposedly already had everything they wanted from Spain, and they did not trust the mobilization of the Spanish army.
During World War II an airport was also built on the land, which Spain does not recognize as British. The arrival of the world war meant an even greater increase in the strategic importance of Gibraltar as a stopover and supply point, while the entire civilian population was evacuated to London, Northern Ireland, Casablanca, Madeira and Jamaica. In addition, it was the base of the flights to map Spain during the war, keys to Operation Torch and Operation Backbone.
After the end of the war, the attitude of the Francoist authorities hardened. At the beginning of the 1960s, the Spanish government raised the situation of Gibraltar before the United Nations decolonization committee and the General Assembly adopted resolutions 2231, of 1966, and 2353, of 1967, urging the start of of talks between Spain and the United Kingdom to end the 'colonial' status of Gibraltar, safeguarding the interests of the Gibraltarian people. In response to these resolutions, the Gibraltar authorities appealed for the right to self-determination and the United Kingdom organized a referendum in 1967 for Gibraltarians, in which 99.64% of voters expressed their willingness to remain under British sovereignty. In 1969, the constitution granted by the British government established the change in the status of the colony, transformed into a British Overseas Territory (British Overseas Territory). The new framework also established the transfer of internal affairs to the local executive, elected by the Gibraltarians themselves, while foreign affairs and defense were reserved exclusively for the representative of the Crown government.
The granting of greater self-government was interpreted by the Spanish authorities as a contravention of the Treaty of Utrecht and a move in the wrong direction.[citation required] In 1969 the Spanish government suppressed land communications between Spain and Gibraltar. The accesses remained closed until seven years after the death of Franco, in 1982, after the coming to power of the socialist Felipe González, when they were only opened to pedestrian traffic. The closure was traumatic both for the economy of Campo de Gibraltar (since several thousand Spaniards worked in the colony) and for Gibraltar itself, which suffered an economic crisis, which had to be countered by the economic injection of more funds. by the United Kingdom.
In the framework of the accession negotiations to the European Economic Community, Spain and the United Kingdom established the start of the Brussels process (1985), by which the latter promised to start a dialogue with Spain about Gibraltar, which it also included the matter of their sovereignty. Land communications were also fully normalized. Since then, Spain, with greater or lesser intensity, has continued to demand the retrocession of Gibraltar.
21st century
In 2001 Spain and the United Kingdom announced a preliminary agreement that included a proposal for co-sovereignty. However, this agreement was never signed, especially when it was widely rejected by Gibraltarians in a new referendum called by the Gibraltarian authorities in 2002.
Despite this, the Tripartite Dialogue Forum on Gibraltar was later established, made up of the governments of Spain, the United Kingdom and Gibraltar, whose work resulted in the announcement on July 25, 2006 of an agreement on the joint use of the airport, pensions, telecommunications and transit of the border post.
In the framework of the development of this channel of dialogue, on July 21, 2009 there was the first official visit to Gibraltar by a member of the Spanish Government, that of the Minister of Foreign Affairs Miguel Ángel Moratinos, a fact highlighted as historic by the British and Spanish press. The Forum's joint statement called for the creation of "a constructive atmosphere of mutual trust and cooperation for the benefit and prosperity of Gibraltar and the entire region", characteristics which "should become the norm".
However, this improvement in relations has not translated into an absence of incidents. In 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 there were clashes between British Royal Navy ships and Civil Guard patrol boats in the disputed maritime zone (the waters located less than three miles from the Gibraltarian coast, over which Spain and the Treaty of Utrecht do not in any sense recognize British sovereignty).
In August 2013, during the diplomatic conflict between Spain and the United Kingdom over Gibraltar that year, in an interview given to the Spanish newspaper ABC, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Spain, José Manuel García -Margallo assured that "recreation is over with Gibraltar", in reference to Miguel Ángel Moratinos, promoter of the Tripartite Dialogue Forum in 2004. Specifically, Margallo announced that the Spanish government was studying measures such as the introduction of a tax of congestion for entering and leaving the city of Gibraltar, airspace restrictions and an exhaustive tax inspection of those Gibraltarians with property in Spain and tax residence on the Rock. These statements were made at the same time that Spain denounced having thrown 70 concrete blocks to form an artificial reef, according to the Gibraltarian government preventing fishing, in disputed waters in Spanish fishing grounds by Gibraltar and, on the other hand, the complaints from the Gibraltarian government regarding the hours-long queues caused by border controls at “the gate”.
Status of Gibraltar in the European Union
Gibraltar was part of the European Union (EU) with a special status. Being a British Overseas Territory, the United Kingdom was in charge of foreign relations and business affairs. Under the United Kingdom's accession treaty to the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1973, Gibraltar entered the EEC as a "European territory for whose foreign relations the United Kingdom government is responsible". Gibraltar was the only European territory that enjoyed this status in the European Union. In the Brexit referendum, its population voted overwhelmingly in favor of staying in the European Union.
As negotiated by the UK at the request of the Gibraltar government, some EU laws were not extended to Gibraltar. Under various provisions of the treaty of accession of the United Kingdom to the European Communities, Gibraltar:
- It is outside the EU customs union.
- It is excluded from the Common Agrarian Policy (PAC).
- It is excluded from the harmonization of VAT.
- It does not disclose any part of the customs revenues to the EU.
A joint declaration made by Spain and the United Kingdom was annexed to the European Constitution (Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe, the ratification of which was not completed). The declaration was retained in the 2007 Lisbon Treaty. It reads as follows:
The treaty establishing the constitution applies to Gibraltar as a European territory whose foreign relations are the responsibility of a member State. This will not imply changes in the respective positions of the member states concerned.
Gibraltar, like the United Kingdom, is not part of the Schengen area, so the controls between Gibraltar and Spain have not been eliminated and anyone who wants to enter or leave Gibraltar must pass the corresponding border controls.
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In relation to trade in goods, Gibraltar is de facto considered as an external country by the EU. The euro is not legal tender, but it is accepted informally in most businesses. British nationals settled there were classified as citizens of the British Overseas Territories related to Gibraltar. As such, they were full EU citizens, according to a UK declaration in 1982. Citizens of the British Overseas Territories related to Gibraltar were, from 1983, allowed to register as British citizens under section 5 of the British Nationality Act of 1981. On May 21, 2002, British citizenship was granted to all Gibraltarians who already held it.
The electoral roll compiled for the 2004 European elections showed that, except for a few, the majority of Gibraltarians had exercised their right to British citizenship.
Gibraltar was excluded from the elections to the European Parliament by a special provision of the Treaty that organized these elections by direct suffrage, but this provision was successfully challenged before the European Court of Human Rights. As a consequence of this decision, Gibraltarians voted for the first time in the 2004 European Parliament elections, forming part of the South West England region. 58% of Gibraltar's electorate turned out, compared to 31% for the region as a whole, with the Conservative Party securing a landslide victory.
On 31 January 2020 the United Kingdom officially withdrew from the European Union, thus ending Gibraltar's special status.
Government and politics
Since the adoption of the so-called "constitutional charters" Between 1969 and 2006, the territory of Gibraltar has developed a certain level of self-government. As a British Overseas Territory, Gibraltar has a Governor, appointed by the Monarch of the United Kingdom, who works as a representative of Her Majesty's Government. The Governor is responsible for security in the territory and representation between the territory and the British Government; he also dissolves the legislature and acts to enforce the laws.
The Government of Gibraltar is elected for a four-year term. The unicameral Gibraltar Parliament currently consists of seventeen elected members. The head of the chamber is appointed by a resolution of Parliament. The head of government is the Chief Minister, currently Fabian Picardo. There are currently four political parties represented in Parliament: the Gibraltar Socialist Labor Party and its minority partner the Gibraltar Liberal Party, the Gibraltar Social Democrats and Gibraltar Together.
All local parties oppose the transfer of sovereignty to Spain, whose governments have traditionally called for the return of the territory. For its part, the position held by the British government, of not opting for any change without the consent of the people of Gibraltar, was relaxed after the 2002 negotiations, by accepting the principle of joint sovereignty with Spain. However, the local political parties, with the support of the British opposition, opposed this agreement, demanding instead the self-determination of the rock and urging the Government to carry out a consultation similar to the one formulated in 1967. For this reason, a referendum in 2002, formulated by means of the question Do you approve the principle that the United Kingdom and Spain share the sovereignty of Gibraltar?, to which one could only answer affirmatively or negatively. He voted close to 88% of the census and won no by 99%.
Defense
The rock is a telecommunications listening post between Europe and North Africa, and due to its location it remains a key NATO base. Gibraltar is one of the sub-stations of the Echelon network providing signals intelligence to the so-called "Five Eyes" (the alliance of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand).
British and American ships frequently visit its port, including nuclear-powered submarines.
The military defense of Gibraltarian territory is the responsibility of the United Kingdom. The garrison is provided by the Royal Gibraltar Regiment, originally a part-time reservist force which became part of the British Army in 1990. The regiment includes full-time and part-time soldiers recruited from Gibraltar, as well as soldiers British professionals transferred from other regiments.
Geography
Gibraltar is a narrow peninsula located on the southern Mediterranean coast of the Iberian Peninsula, between the Bay of Algeciras and the Alboran Sea, northwest of the Strait of Gibraltar. It is about 6 km long and 1.2 km wide and is connected to Spain by a low, sandy isthmus, about 2 km long.
The peninsula consists of a limestone and slate crag known as "el Peñón". It rises abruptly from the isthmus to 411.5m at Rock Gun Battery, the northernmost summit. Its greatest height (426 m) is located near its southern end. The slope of the rock descends gradually to the sea at Punta de Europa, the southernmost point of the territory, located in front of Ceuta, located 32 km to the south, on the other side of the strait. From the Mediterranean, Gibraltar appears as a series of steep and inaccessible cliffs. On the western side, the slope is more gradual and is occupied by houses located at different heights that squeeze up to 90 m above the old walls of the fortress. Higher up, limestone cliffs almost isolate the top of the crag, covered in a tangle of wild trees.
The rock has a system of caves, among which the Cueva de San Miguel and Cueva de Gorham stand out.
Gibraltar lacks any springs or rivers, so a 14 ha area of sandy slopes above La Caleta and Sandy Bay was covered over to capture rainwater. It is currently in disuse and the area has been restored to its natural state. The water is stored in various cisterns dug into the rock of the rock. This water is later mixed with water extracted from wells located on the isthmus or desalinated from seawater.
Climate
The climate in Gibraltar is subtropical-Mediterranean; the Köppen Climate Classification classifies it as Csa. Summers in Gibraltar are hot, humid and almost without rain. Winters are mild and usually rainy. The spring and autumn seasons are usually moderately rainy. Its average annual temperature is 21 °C during the day and 15 °C at night. The coldest month is January and the hottest is August. There are two prevailing winds, the easterly, coming from the Sahara desert in Africa, which brings more humid air and warmer waters; and the western west, which brings fresh air and cold water.
 Gibraltar average climate parameters | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Ene. | Feb. | Mar. | Open up. | May. | Jun. | Jul. | Ago. | Sep. | Oct. | Nov. | Dec. | Annual |
| Average temperature (°C) | 16.3 | 16.8 | 18.5 | 20.0 | 22.4 | 25.6 | 28.2 | 28.4 | 26.1 | 22.6 | 19.2 | 17.0 | 21.8 |
| Average temperature (°C) | 13.5 | 14.1 | 15.6 | 16.7 | 19.0 | 21.9 | 24.2 | 24.6 | 22.9 | 19.8 | 16.6 | 14.6 | 18.6 |
| Temp. medium (°C) | 10.8 | 11.4 | 12.6 | 13.4 | 15.6 | 18.2 | 20.2 | 20.8 | 19.6 | 17.0 | 14.0 | 12.1 | 15.5 |
| Total precipitation (mm) | 106.6 | 99.0 | 74.3 | 65.9 | 33.1 | 8.6 | 1.0 | 8.8 | 20.0 | 80.7 | 121.6 | 173.8 | 793 |
| Precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 58 |
| Hours of sun | 147 | 143 | 204 | 233 | 289 | 319 | 326 | 309 | 240 | 197 | 135 | 134 | 2676 |
| Source: Metéo Climat 1981-2010 (Deutscher Wetterdienst, 1961–1990) | |||||||||||||
Flora and fauna
There are over 500 species of flowering plants in Gibraltar. One of them, known as the Gibraltar candytuft (Iberis gibraltarica) is endemic to the Rock. Among the wild trees that grow throughout the area of the protected natural area of the rock are the olive and pine.
With regard to fauna, mammals include the rabbit, fox, dolphin, and the Gibraltar macaque (also known as the "Barbary ape"), possibly introduced by Arabs from North Africa. It is the only wild primate that exists in Europe. Although they are free to move throughout the territory, they usually congregate in the area of the protected natural area of El Peñón. A superstition holds that if the monkeys leave the Rock, so will the British, so they are cared for by the local government (a situation somewhat analogous to the ravens at the Tower of London). Migratory birds are also common, and Gibraltar is home to the only Barbary partridges (Alectoris barbara) in Europe.
Economy
Gibraltar's economic activity is conditioned by its physical limitations and the lack of open land on the peninsula, which render the primary sector of agriculture non-existent. In the secondary sector, it maintains a small amount of light industry for internal consumption such as beverages. The main sources of income are therefore in the tertiary and service sectors: maritime transport, tourism (more than seven million tourists visit Gibraltar each year), financial activities and those related to administration services.
In recent years there has been a significant expansion of hotel facilities and bathing facilities to stimulate tourism. The port facilities occupy most of the western shore of the territory, as well as a portion of land reclaimed from the sea in the Bay of Algeciras.
The Gibraltarian economy has traditionally been supported by the provision of services to the Ministry of Defense of the United Kingdom. In 1984, such activities made up 60% of the Gibraltarian economy. Since then, however, the British military presence has been sharply reduced (in 1983, the British Royal Navy shipyards were closed), forcing the Gibraltarian economy to diversify (in 2002, the British Ministry of Defense contribution to the Gibraltarian GDP was barely 7%).
Gibraltar's carbon dioxide emissions were 4.5 million tonnes in 2007 (ranked 128th in the world), according to US Energy Information Administration statistics. Due to its relatively With a sparse population, Gibraltar had the highest per capita emissions rate in the world in 2007 (159 tonnes per person). However, the Gibraltarian environmental organization Environment Safety Group criticized the US report as it might suggest that Gibraltar was the "world leader in carbon dioxide emissions" and attributed the figures to the territory's sparse population and the large amount of fuel sold locally but consumed outside the territory (such as that sold for cars Spanish or related to the fuel supply service or bunkering).
In addition, Gibraltar's tax exemption has caused a multitude of virtual gaming companies to establish their fiscal headquarters in this territory, making it one of the places with the largest number of such companies in the world. As many as 15 online casinos were operating from Gibraltar as of early 2006. These are globally successful multi-million dollar revenue companies, such as the subsidiaries of Betandwin.com, which are also based here.
Currency
The official currency of Gibraltar is the Gibraltarian pound, although the euro can be used, and even in some places, the US dollar.[citation needed]
Financial Center
It was especially after the election of Joe Bossano in 1988, when Gibraltar, protected by its status as a territory of the European Community, while exempt from VAT and outside the customs union, developed tax legislation that made it in an active financial center off-shore, considered a tax haven due to its favorable tax conditions. Thus, two types of companies were defined: exempt companies (exempt companies) and qualified companies (qualifying companies), which, residing in Gibraltar, have no economic or commercial activity in Gibraltar. territory. These companies pay an annual tax of no more than £300 and pay a testimonial profit tax (2% for qualifying companies, nothing for exempt companies). Additionally, there is no type of exchange control for individuals or legal entities residing in Gibraltar. In September 2004, Gibraltar had 28,000 companies on its register (virtually one registered company per inhabitant), of which 8,500 were tax free. Gibraltar has developed strict banking and financial codes.
Gibraltar's tax regime led to the OECD's listing of the territory as a tax haven in June 2000. The Gibraltarian government committed in 2002 to improve the transparency of its regulatory and tax systems and to establish an effective exchange of information in tax matters with other OECD members, so it was not included in the list of non-cooperative tax havens. The Gibraltarian authorities maintain that, despite the advantageous tax regime enjoyed by exempt companies, the rigor of controls applied prevents the use of the square as a center for money laundering, which has been supported by reports from organizations such as the IMF.
On 18 February 2005, the UK government accepted the Competition Commissioner's recommendation to abolish Gibraltarian's exempt tax regime by the end of 2010.
In December 2008, the Court of First Instance of the European Union annulled the decision of the European Commission to consider Gibraltar's corporate tax, reformed in 2002 and lower than that of the United Kingdom, as State aid or unfair competition, and recognized the right of Gibraltar to have its own tax regime.
Communications
Transportation
Passenger and cargo ships anchor in the port of Gibraltar. In addition, a daily ferry links Gibraltar with Tangier, in Morocco. Gibraltar also has an international airport built on the disputed territory of the isthmus, which links Gibraltar with London, Manchester, Madrid and Barcelona.
A cable car ascends the central cliff of the summit of the Rock. The silent journey to its summit (at a height of 426 m) offers a view of the African coast, where the waters of the Atlantic enter the Mediterranean, and the coast of Spain.
It has a road network of many kilometers dug into the rock of the rock, as well as several tunnels, most of which are closed to the public. In Gibraltar, unlike in most British territories, it is mandatory to drive on the right, as it shares a border with Spain.
Telecommunications
Gibraltar uses a digital telephone exchange, with both fiber optic lines and copper pairs in the subscriber loop. Currently the only telephone company is Gibtelecom, which also operates a GSM mobile telephone network. Telephone numbers increased from 5 to 8 digits in 2008, adding the +200 prefix. Mobile numbers are also 8 digits.
Until February 10, 2007, telephones called from Spain were routed to Gibraltar as part of the Cádiz province network. After this date, the only way to call is as it was done from other countries, with the international code +350.
In terms of internet and broadband services, there is currently another company apart from Gibtelecom, Sapphire Networks, which has established a permanent alternative communication line with the Spanish operators Vodafone and Telefónica. The communications of the territory do not depend exclusively on those Spanish. Gibraltar has an international satellite station, microwave connection with Morocco and other connections by submarine cable.
Media
Television and radio
The Gibraltar Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) operates a radio and television station on UHF, VHF and medium wave. The radio service and some televised special events are also broadcast over the internet.
- Television:
- GBC Television.
In addition, you can see all the national television stations in the United Kingdom and Spain (including the regional ones in Andalusia and stations in the Campo de Gibraltar region).
- Radio:
- Radio Gibraltar (frequency: 91.3FM, 92.6FM, 100.5FM and 1458AM)
- BFBS Gibraltar. British Armed Forces Radio in Gibraltar.
In addition, all the national radio stations in the United Kingdom and Spain are listened to (including the regional ones in Andalusia and stations in the Campo de Gibraltar region).
Press
The following stand out in the written and digital press:
- The Gibraltar Magazine
- The Gibraltar Chronicle
- Overview - Online news
- Insight Magazine - Monthly Insight Magazine (monthly withdrawal)
- GibFocus
- The M@G
- Gibraltar News File
- 123 Property News
In addition, you can buy almost all national newspapers and magazines in the United Kingdom and Spain (including the regional ones in Andalusia).
Demographics
The habitually resident population recorded in the 2012 census was 32,577, of whom 25,444 were listed as Gibraltarians, representing an increase over the 2001 census of 15% and 11% respectively. The estimated population in 2014 was 33,140.
Two-thirds of the territory's inhabitants are Gibraltarians (those born there before 1925 and their descendants). Nearly one fifth is made up of resident foreigners. The rest is made up of the garrison and their families.
As befits a Mediterranean port, Gibraltar's current population is of diverse origin: primarily made up of British, Andalusian, Genoese, Maltese, Portuguese, as well as Arab and Jewish descent from North Africa and other southern countries from the Mediterranean. Currently there is only a minority of Spanish residents: those who work on the rock cross Gibraltar daily to return home after work.
The inhabitants of Gibraltar are called "plains" or "yanitos" (term of unknown origin).
Gibraltar is one of the most densely populated territories in the world, with approximately 4,290 inhabitants/km². The demand for space has been solved with the occupation of land facing the sea, which currently accounts for a third of the total area of the city.
Languages
The only official language of Gibraltar is English, which is used by the government, on public television and in schools. Most of the locals are bilingual, and also speak Spanish, although without any kind of official recognition. However, due to the varied mix of ethnic groups that reside there, other languages are also spoken on the Rock. Berber and Arabic are spoken by the Moroccan community, as are Hindi and Sindhi by the Indian community. Maltese is spoken by some families of Maltese descent.
Gibraltarians tend to converse in Llanito, a vernacular unique to Gibraltar. It is based on Andalusian Spanish with a strong mix of British English and elements from languages such as Maltese, Portuguese, Genoese, Italian and English. haquetía (a Judeo-Spanish dialect). El llanito also often involves switching between English and Spanish.
Religion
The most professed religion is Christianity, within which the most professed denominations are Catholicism (78.09%), Protestantism (Anglicanism) (6.98%), (others) (3.21%). Other religions include Islam (4.01%), Judaism (2.12%), Hinduism (1.79%) and others (0.94%), while the rest of the population (2.86%) do not professes no religion (2001 census). The Anglican Diocese of Gibraltar also encompasses other southern European communities. The Jewish community is mainly of Sephardic descent.
The 16th-century Church of St. Mary the Crowned is the cathedral of the Diocese of Gibraltar, and also the oldest Catholic church in the territory. There are four functioning Orthodox synagogues in Gibraltar and several kosher establishments.
Territorial divisions
Gibraltar has no official divisions, but in statistical terms it can be divided into seven residential areas, which appear in the following table. Population figures are taken from the 2001 census:
 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Residential area | Population | % of total | |
| 1. | East Side | 429 | 1.54 % |
| 2. | North District | 4116 | 14.97 % |
| 3. | Reclamation Areas | 9599 | 34,91 % |
| 4. | Sandpits Area | 2207 | 8,03 % |
| 5. | South District | 4257 | 15.48 % |
| 6. | Town Area | 3588 | 13.05 % |
| 7. | Upper Town | 2805 | 10.20 % |
| Resto | 494 | 1.82 % | |
| Gibraltar | 27 495 | 100% |
Culture
Gibraltar's culture reflects the diverse origins of Gibraltarians. Like the other British Overseas Territories, the only official language is English, the language of government, commerce, education and the media.
However, the vernacular language, llanito, is a mixture based fundamentally on Andalusian Spanish with great influence from English among many other Mediterranean languages. In most Gibraltarian homes the language of daily use is Spanish, sometimes combined with English, even for UK natives who have moved to Gibraltar, who often adopt it as a natural consequence, and whose children learn it more easily.
Gibraltar celebrates its national day on 10 September each year, the date chosen to commemorate the 1967 referendum, considered the first act of self-determination of the Gibraltarian people. Gibraltarians gather in the main square (Grand Casemates Square) in red and white clothing (national colors) to celebrate the festival; 30,000 red and white balloons (representing each of the inhabitants) are released, followed by music, dancing and other festivities that last until the early hours of the next day.
Monuments and places of interest
Gibraltar has an interesting heritage, in which the following stand out:
- The Fortifications of Gibraltar They have made the Rock of Gibraltar and its surroundings "that is probably the most fought and densely fortified place in Europe, and probably, therefore, of the world," as Field Marshal John Chapple said. The peninsula of Gibraltar, located at the southern end of Iberia, has great strategic importance as a result of its position in the Strait of Gibraltar, where the Mediterranean Sea is with the Atlantic Ocean. It has been repeatedly disputed between European and North African powers and has endured 14 sieges since it was founded in the centuryXI. The occupants of the peninsula—andalusis, Spanish / Spanish and British—have built successive layers of fortifications and defenses, including walls, bastions, housemasses, batteries, magazines, tunnels and galleries. In its peak in 1865, fortifications covered about 681 cannons mounted on 110 piles and positions, monitoring all land and maritime approaches to Gibraltar. Fortifications continued in military use until the 1970s, with more than 55 km of galleries excavated in an area of 6.7 km2.
Sports
Football
- Gibraltar National League
- Rock Cup
- Pepe Reyes Cup
Football is one of the most popular sports in Gibraltar. The Gibraltar Football Association is one of the oldest football federations in the world, and is in charge of organizing the Gibraltarian league, the Rock Cup, the women's and youth leagues and futsal on the rock.
The Gibraltar national football team was admitted in 2006 as a provisional member of UEFA. However, at the beginning of 2007, when a decision had to be made about its full admission as an associate member, the proposal was finally rejected. The Spanish Football Federation has always been against this possibility, and in 2002 warned UEFA that if Gibraltar was admitted it would withdraw Spanish clubs and its own team from international competitions.
Despite the threats, on October 1, 2012 UEFA re-admitted Gibraltar as a provisional member and on May 24, 2013 it was definitively admitted as a full member. UEFA 2018-19 played in Division D (4th) and finished top of their group earning promotion to Division C for the 2020-21 UEFA Nations League.
As of admission, the Gibraltarian team has played in the Qualification for Euro 2016 and the UEFA Qualification for the 2018 Soccer World Cup. In addition, the teams that play in the First Division have the possibility of participating in the Champions League and the Europa League.
Rugby
Rugby union, administered by the Gibraltar Rugby Union (GRFU, founded in 1945), is also a traditional sport. the GRFU is in charge of organizing domestic competitions and is also in charge of the Gibraltar rugby team. At the local level, there are currently 4 teams: Gibraltar Bay Bucaneers, Europa Stormers, Straits Sharks and Rock Scorpions. All of them compete annually in two competitions founded in 2010, the U-mee Super IVs where the 4 teams face each other under the system all against all 3 times for a total of 9 matches per club, and a cup competition, the Rugby Rock Cup that has a round of semifinals and a final. In the past there was a local league with 3 military teams and one civilian team, the Gibraltar Football Rugby Club, which after dominating the local league for years and given the decline in military personnel, and with it military teams, decided to enter the League. Andalusian Rugby in 1992.
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At one point the possibility was raised that the Super Ibérica de Rugby would have the participation of a team from Gibraltar that would have been called Hércules R. C.
At the national team level, Gibraltar is not a member of Rugby Europe or World Rugby.
Hockey
Hockey is administered by the Gibraltar Hockey Association (GHA) which became a full member of the European Hockey Federation in 1969. Hockey is the sport in which Gibraltar has achieved its most significant achievements as the fact having participated in the final phase of the 1978 Men's European Field Hockey Championship, the only final phase played by a Gibraltar team. It is also the sport in which local clubs first began to have international participation with the Rock Gunners making their debut in the 1980 European Field Hockey Champions Cup in Barcelona, some 34 years before the Lincoln Red Imps made their debut. debut in the UEFA Champions League in the 2014-15 season.
Basketball
Basketball, which is administered by the Gibraltar Amateur Basketball Association (GABBA), is a growing sport. He had a team participating in the provincial divisions of Cádiz (sixth Spanish level): Fosters GABBA from the 2004-05 season to the 2011-12 season. At the local level it has a men's, women's and several youth leagues. Currently, a women's team, ULB Europa, plays in the Cádiz league under the auspices of Europa F.C.
At the national team level, the Gibraltar national basketball team plays in the European Basketball Championship for Small Countries.
Cricket
Administered by the Gibraltar Cricket Association (GCA) which has been an associate member of the International Cricket Council since 1969 and is also a member of the European Cricket Council. At the local level, it organizes a league of 40 overs, a cup and a league with two divisions under the Twenty20 modality.
In 2019 the national team participated in a friendly competition known as the 2019 Iberia Cup together with the national teams of Spain and Portugal.
Others
Volleyball is administered by the Gibraltar Volleyball Association which is responsible for organizing local competitions for men, women and mixed.
Netball, an exclusively women's sport, is administered by the Gibraltar Netball Association which organizes a domestic league of up to three divisions and also runs the Gibraltar national netball team.
Water sports are run by the Gibraltar Amateur Swimming Association which sponsors Tarik Waterpolo Gibraltar, a water polo club that plays in the Andalusian Water Polo League. At the local level, it organizes swimming competitions in various modalities.
Athletics is also well represented in Gibraltarian culture with two events organized annually by the Gibraltar Amateur Athletic Association (GAAA): Top The Rock and 10K Round The Rock. Rowing competitions also have a long history and are organized by the Gibraltar Amateur Rowing Association (GARA).
Badminton, tennis, and squash are moderately practiced sports, as are games such as darts, pool, and snooker. Gibraltar also hosts the Gibraltar Chess Festival annually and occasionally hosts boxing events such as the Rumble on The Rock 2021.
Featured Characters
Twinned cities
- United Kingdom: Ballymena (North Ireland)
- Portugal: Funchal (Madeira)
- Venezuela: Gibraltar (Zulia)
Places
- Botanical Garden of Gibraltar
- North Front Cemetery
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