MGRM Activists Interrupt Minister’s Speech To Protest Detention Of Community Member
Activists from the Malta Gay Rights Movement (MGRM) interrupted a speech by equality junior minister Rebecca Buttigieg on Thursday morning to protest the detention of one of their members.
Holding placards reading “Celebrating Pride while queer people are in detention” and “No Pride for some of us without liberation for all of us”, the group said the protest was in solidarity with their “client and community member”, Angoua Abdu, who was apprehended last week and is currently being held in Safi detention centre.
An MGRM spokesperson told Times of Malta that Abdu was detained after a rejected asylum application, which he was trying to appeal on the basis of his sexual orientation, adding that he was active in MGRM activism.
They described the detention, which coincided with Pride celebrations and the opening of the SOGIGESC conference, as “shameful.”
It is understood that Buttigieg spoke to activists following the protest.
MGRM stressed that Abdu’s detention “places him at severe risk of bullying, harassment, homophobia, and violence.”
“Pride is a time to celebrate resilience, equality, and visibility, but we cannot truly celebrate while one of us is left behind, vulnerable, and alone,” the group said.
“We raise our banners today to say clearly: No one is free until all of us are free,” the statement added.
“We call for Abdu’s safety, dignity, and release, and for an end to practices that endanger members of the LGBTIQ community. Solidarity means action. Pride means justice. We will not stand by silently.”
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