Sunday 26 June 2016

Better Together

1967: European Free Trade Association
Perhaps these are the most appropriate stamps for me to show this week after some of my compatriots had a moment of madness and voted for the UK to leave the EU.  Ironically the FDC date of 1967 was the year General De Gaulle had vetoed British membership of what was then the European Economic Community for the second time.  The European Free Trade Association, the alternative for countries unable or unwilling to join the EEC is shown with their flags, today there are only two members, Norway and Switzerland.  I suspect we are going to hear a lot about tariffs and trade deals in the years ahead while hoping environmental and workers rights are not denuded. 
1973: Interpol 50th Anniversary
Another international organisation with a membership of 190 countries whose crime fighting headquarters are in Lyon, France.  The stamp shows Interpol's logo with the flag of Burundi.
1974: Malaysian Scout Jamboree
On first glance I thought this stamp was for the world gathering of scouts every four years, the Jamboree, but discovered that it is actually Malaysia's national Jamboree which each state takes it turn to hold.  This Jambori of 1974 was in Johor, one of the most populous states in Malaysia.
1963: 17th Balkan Games
In celebration of the sporting summer I'll end with the Balkan Games, first held in Athens in 1929.  As you have guessed from these stamps the 1963 games were held in Bulgaria (Sofia).

An entry to Sunday Stamps II theme - Flags - more can be seen flying at See It On A Postcard

6 comments:

Mail Adventures said...

Among these, I like specially the design of the Malaysian stamp.

FinnBadger said...

Great set of stamps today, I don't get to see Bulgarian stamps very often, that's for sure.

Brazilian Philately said...

Nice cover! Congratulations!
I would say it is a historical document, and a philatelic piece formidable.
Congratulations on the blog. If you are interested in mint stamps from Brazil, I am available for exchange.

Greetings!

VioletSky said...

I hadn't really thought much about which countries were in Interpol - but how cool to see a stamp from Burundi (and to know they are a member).
I quite like the EFTA stamps. Maybe there will be a third member in the next decade or so?

Heleen said...

I love to see flags 'thus' counrties uniting in stamps. Thank you for sharing!

Bob Scotney said...

A moment of madness as you say, and it's getting madder by the day. I didn' remember that EFTA stamp = very appropriate as you say.