The Deputy Chief Minister Dr Joseph Garcia has said that Gibraltar has a clear willingness to use our uniqueness to our advantage as we carve out our own destiny and our own place in the world. He added that those values are, inevitably, shaped by our experiences of the past and our hopes for the future.

These comments have come in a contribution to the 100th anniversary issue of “The Parliamentarian” which is the journal of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA).

The CPA was founded in 1911 and is the parliamentary wing of the Commonwealth. Its membership is made up of CPA Branches in 180 Commonwealth Parliaments and Legislatures at national, state, provincial and territorial levels and it offers a vast opportunity for Parliamentarians to collaborate on issues of mutual interest and to share good practice.

The 100th anniversary edition of “The Parliamentarian” carries a four page feature on Gibraltar and its links with the Commonwealth.

This consists of an article headed “Building Commonwealth links in the post-Brexit World: A view from Gibraltar”, by the Deputy Chief Minister Dr Joseph Garcia. A further article covers the Commonwealth Roadshow that was held in Gibraltar by then Acting Secretary General Mr Jarvis Matiya.

In his article, which is based on an address to young people at Bayside School, Dr Garcia said that the raising of the flag of the Commonwealth at different locations around Gibraltar was a simple act which carried a serious political message.

“Like many of our friends across the Commonwealth, Gibraltarians boast a unique cultural identity. We have lived on this Rock for more than three hundred years. We are a British Overseas Territory, a modern nation in our own right,” he argued.

The Deputy Chief Minister, who is the Minister for relations with the Commonwealth, pointed out that Gibraltar was proud of its long and historic relationship with the institutions and organisations of the Commonwealth.

“The Parliamentarian” is distributed to thousands of Commonwealth Members of Parliament all over the world.

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