The Chief Minister of Gibraltar, Fabian Picardo, and the mayor of La Línea de la Concepción, Juan Franco, starred at midnight this Wednesday in a symbolic act marking the end of the border fence that, for a century, has kept the Rock separated.
In a scene charged with symbolism, both public officials crossed the fence from opposite sides of the border, becoming the first to do so without showing their passports. The action took place before great neighborhood expectation and was accompanied by the "Ode to Joy" performed by a music band.
The ceremony takes place after, throughout the day, the European Union and the United Kingdom signed the agreement that normalizes Gibraltar's relations with the community bloc, after four years of uncertainty derived from Brexit.
The European Commissioner and negotiator for relations with the United Kingdom, Maros Sefcovic, was responsible for stamping the Treaty's signature on behalf of the Twenty-Seven, while, on behalf of the British Executive, the signature corresponded to the Secretary of State for Europe, Stephen Doughty.
In this way, the agreement has begun to be applied provisionally, still pending final ratification by both the European Union and the United Kingdom to acquire permanent status.
The main clauses of the pact may begin to be executed from its entry into force and, to underline this milestone, the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, will travel on Wednesday to La Línea de la Concepción (Cádiz) in order to symbolize the end of the border fence and the elimination of passport controls between Spain and the Rock.
For more than a hundred years, the border fence separating Gibraltar from Spain has represented the division between the British colony and the surrounding area of Campo de Gibraltar, even functioning as a total closure during the Franco dictatorship.