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2.
GIBRALTAR
(Previous Reference: OPD (66) 43rd Meeting)
The Committee considered memoranda by the Foreign Secretary (OPD(67) 16) and by the Minister of State for Commonwealth Affairs (OPD(67) 17) on the dispute with Spain over Gibraltar.
THE FOREIGN SECRETARY said that since the Committee last considered the question on 28th October 1966 (OPD(66) 43rd Meeting, Minute 1) the
Spanish Government had, on 14th December 1966, rejected our proposal for a
reference of the legal issues to the International Court of Justice and
the question had subsequently been debated the same month in the General
Assembly of the United Nationa. A compromise Resolution, for which we had
voted, had there been adopted which called on the two parties to continue
their negotiations, taking into account the interests of the people of Gibraltar, and asking the administering Power to expedite, in consultation
with the Spanish Government, the decolonisation of Gibraltar.
We had since
held talks with the Spanish Government, but there had so far been little
sign that the Spanish Government would call off their campaign against us,
and they might soon put further pressure on Gibraltar by completely closing
the land frontier, cutting off the supply of Spanish labour and even by
interfering with our military use of the aerodrome.
There were three courses open to us which the Committee had previously
considered at their meeting on 28th October 1966. These were either simply
to maintain the present status of Gibraltar or to settle on the Spanish
terms; or decolonisation. We had however last December voted for the
Resolution which called on us to expedite decolonisation, and we must now
follow this course. We should therefore plan to hold a referendum in
Gibraltar this year which would give the Gibraltarians a choice between
(a) passing under Spanish sovereignty (according to Spain's
proposals); and
(b) being in free association with the United Kingdom (under new
constitutional arrangements).
In preparation for this referendum we should first consult Gibraltar Ministers,
then offer to talk to the Spanish Government about our plan, offering them
facilities to explain their own proposals to the Gibraltarians before
the referendum; we should in addition invite the Commonwealth, Spain and
the United Nations Secretary General to nominate observers of the referendum;
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