[ad_1]
FABIAN Picardo has described people chanting ‘Gibraltar belongs to Spain’ after Spain beat England in the Euro 2024 final as “heartbreaking”.
The First Minister added: “But nothing will change because of what a 20-something footballer said, Gibraltar will remain part of the UK.
He explained: “This is an old legend from the time of General Franco, who used to encourage people to chant this slogan.”
“To see young people accepting these statements without thinking, without realizing what they are accepting, and to see the daughter of the King of Spain and the mayor of Madrid follow suit, it’s frankly heartbreaking.”
However, he calmed concerns that the songs’ popularity among ordinary Spanish people might translate into a more concerted effort to regain control of rock music.
“In Spain, even the progressive socialist government could not get rid of its claim to Gibraltar, even though most Spaniards would tell you privately: ‘Gibraltar will always be British territory, that’s nonsense.'”
The comments came after Spain celebrated in Madrid on Monday, with the Spanish players leading fans in chants after a 2-1 win.
The passionate outcry aroused anger in Gibraltar and confusion in Britain.
The Gibraltar Football Association announced it would lodge a formal complaint with UEFA, saying: “This type of behaviour should not be tolerated in football.”
UEFA has so far adopted a zero-tolerance approach to political provocations during tournaments and has fined and banned journalists for similar behaviour.
But Spanish efforts to ease tensions have made little progress.
“The players did not say anything that ordinary Spaniards could not feel,” Madrid Mayor Jose Luis Martínez Almeida said at a news conference on Tuesday.
He added that it was “a really good song,” and said: “Listen, we don’t say anything we don’t want to say – we only think what we think.”
For her part, government spokeswoman Pilar Alegría appeared contrite, demanding an explanation of the song’s origins.
“There was great celebration yesterday (Monday) and what was heard must be considered in context.
She added: “No one doubts that a country’s foreign policy is determined by that country’s government.”
Rodri Hernandez, 28, who plays for Manchester City, led the fans in chanting “Gibraltar belongs to Spain”, a chant that was enthusiastically repeated by the crowd.
Rodri’s team-mate and captain Alvaro Morata, who played for Chelsea for a season, spoke into a microphone to the crowd of several thousand at Plaza Cibeles, reminding Rodri that he played for an English team.
“I don’t care,” the Manchester City player replied.
[ad_2]
Source link
