Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 3, Number 4, 1 April 1986 — Gibraltar Leader Checks with OHA [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Gibraltar Leader Checks with OHA

A Gibraltar labor official visited Office of Hawaiian Affairs staff members recently to leam about the role of tourism in the islands and its impact on Hawaiian culture. Joseph Bossano, leader of the Socialist Labor Party (opposition) of the House of Assembly in Gibraltar, had made 'a special request to the U. S. ambassador in London to arrange a visitation to OHA while he was in Hawaii. Eeonomie Development Officer James Moa and Cultural Specialist Maleolm Naea Chun met with Bossano and discussed these topics as well as to familiarize him with the functions and operations of OHA.

Bossano explained that in the near future Gibraltar may initiate a number of tourist development projects and that he wanted to familiarize himself with the benefits as well as the problems whieh might arise from such developments. As his country has limited resources and labor, he was able to appreciate the similarities between Hawaii and Gibral-

tar in the area of tourism. Bossano's country is a crown colony of the United Kingdom located at the straits of the Mediterranean Sea along the southern border tip of Spain. It is approximately 2.2 square miles with a population of 29,000. The ethnic makeup of the country is diverse with mueh of the labor being done by immigrant groups from Morrocco and Europe. Bossano is also head of the Transport and General Worker's Union in Gibraltar. Bossano promised to eonhnue his dialogue with OHA through letters and materials.

Joseph Bossano