Liberation day to become Jersey's national day

Liberation day will become Jersey's national day

Jersey politicians have approved plans to make Liberation Day the island's national day.

Thirty four politicians voted in favour of the plans, with seven voting against them.

The States Assembly also voted to make Beautiful Jersey the island's national anthem.

Deputy Carolyn Labey, who brought forward the plans, said 9 May would still be referred to as Liberation day.

'Not merely symbolic'

In her speech to the Assembly, Labey said: "This proposition is not merely symbolic, it is a step towards strengthening our collective identity and fostering a deeper sense of unity within our community."

She said when the public were consulted on the plans there was overwhelming support.

Labey added: "Of the 2,400 respondents an impressive 82% were in favour of adopting liberation day as our national day.

"This clear mandate from the people reflects the deep-rooted significance of the occasion in the hearts and minds of islanders.

"The values of freedom and resilience which liberation day embodies are universal and unifying, all highly relevant themes in today's world."

While the plans had wide support with 34 politicians voting to support them, there was some opposition.

Deputy Alex Curtis said he could not support Liberation Day being Jersey's national day because he did not feel the States Assembly had been vocal enough in defending the values of Liberation Day when it came to the conflict in Gaza.

Curtis said: "Right now we know the hardest place to be is Gaza and the Assembly hasn't done much to show that the values we were granted on Liberation Day are those we will stand up for in other places like Gaza."

Labey responded to Curtis by saying she understood his concerns and Jersey Overseas Aid had been donating money towards relief efforts in Gaza.