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GIBRALTAR

‘You’re too ugly to visit Spain anyway’

A member of the European Parliament has received a barrage of online abuse by Twitter trolls after she publicly encouraged British families not to go on holiday to Spain following the latest Gibraltar dispute.

Published: 16 August 2013 14:46 CEST

'You're too ugly to visit Spain anyway'

“Their abuse shows they have no argument as they can only resort to the lowest form of language,” said the MEP following the barrage of insults she has received. Photo: YouTube

Conservative MEP Julie Girling has been subjected to a string of insults sent to her Twitter profile and email account since she suggested a boycott on Spain by British families planning their holidays.

“You are a nazi Julie Goering,” read one tweet, in reference to Hitler’s right-hand man Hermann Göring.

“You're too ugly to visit Spain anyway,” another annoyed Twitter user posted on the MEP for South West England and Gibraltar’s wall.

The 56-year-old has responded to the insults by saying: “It may be that to be trolled goes with the job. However, the Spanish Twitter trolls aren't doing their argument any favours by trolling me.

“Their abuse shows they have no argument as they can only resort to the lowest form of language.”

“The people of Gibraltar need our support. They will not be bullied by the Spanish Government or by a minority of the Spanish people. Neither will I.”

Girling also sent out a tweet to thank all the support she has received from Catalonia.

“I encourage my constituents to take their hols with you!” she wrote.

Catalonia's Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC) party also sent a letter of support to Gibraltar's Chief Minister on Tuesday in the wake of the territory's row with Spain.

Tensions between Spain and its diminutive neighbour have mounted in recent weeks after Gibraltar created an artificial reef which the Spanish government says will destroy fishing in the area.

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Gibraltar holds referendum on its draconian abortion laws

A woman wears a t-shirt reading " Gibraltar for Yes!" outside a polling station in Gibraltar, on June 24, 2021. Photo: Jorge Guerrero/AFP

The issue has exposed sharply opposing views within this tiny, normally closely-knit British enclave at the southernmost tip of Spain, which is home to some 32,000 people.

The referendum was initially slated for March 19 2020 but a week ahead of the vote it was postponed as virus cases began spiralling at the start of the pandemic.Except in cases where it would save the mother’s life, abortion is currently banned in Gibraltar on pain of life imprisonment, although such a penalty has not been applied in modern times.

The government is proposing changes to the law to allow abortion where a woman’s mental or physical health is at risk — such as in cases of rape or incest — or when foetuses have fatal physical defects.

Although the changes have already been approved by Gibraltar’s parliament, the referendum will decide whether or not that amended law be brought into force.

Under the changes, a woman would be able to undergo an abortion up to 12 weeks into her pregnancy if her mental or physical health is deemed at risk, or beyond if such damage would be grave and permanent.

There would be no time limit on cases involving fatal foetal anomaly.

Until now, women wanting to have an abortion have had to travel to Spain or to Britain to undergo the procedure.

Chief Minister of Gibraltar Fabian Picardo and his wife Justine Olivero leave a polling station after casting their ballots. Photo: JORGE GUERRERO/AFP

– ‘In Gibraltar’s best interests’ –

Ahead of the vote, both sides have been campaigning hard, with Chief Minister Fabian Picardo and two other party leaders releasing a video urging people to vote “Yes” to the proposed amendment to the crimes act that will regulate abortions in Gibraltar.

“My personal, professional & political opinion on the abortion referendum: it is in #Gibraltar’s best interests to #VoteYes on Thursday 24th June,” Picardo tweeted.

“No” campaigners have also been rallying support with hundreds of people dressed in pink and purple joining a pro-life “Save Babies, vote no” march through the city centre last week, chanting “We vote no!”

On the ballot, voters will be asked: “Should the Crimes (Amendment) Act 2019, that defines the circumstances which would allow abortion in Gibraltar, come into force?”

If the changes are approved, the law is expected to take effect fairly quickly although officials have not yet laid out a timeline.

The proposed changes came after Britain’s Supreme Court ruled in June 2018 that Northern Ireland’s abortion laws, which at the time were almost identical to Gibraltar’s, were incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.

“It is therefore clear that if the equivalent law on abortion in Northern Ireland was in breach of the Convention, our identical, archaic law is too,” wrote Picardo in an op-ed in Wednesday’s Gibraltar Chronicle.

“It is our duty to vote to stop this ongoing breach.”

Picardo has said he believed the changes were long overdue and that the plans would be approved “by a very large majority”.

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