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‘Disposable Slaves’: Malta Reacts In Disgust To Developer Who Dumped Terrified Injured Worker On Pavement

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Maltese people from all walks of life and political backgrounds have come together to condemn an inhumane incident that occurred on our shores today.

An injured man has been hospitalised after being found dumped on a pavement in Selmun, Mellieħa, believed to have fallen from a height of two storeys while working on a construction site. Told by his boss that he’d be taken to hospital, he was instead discarded on a pavement, where he was later found by passersby, who alerted authorities.

The cruel and inhumane treatment of the worker has sparked widespread condemnation across Malta, with everyone from lawyers to activists reaching out to Lovin Malta to offer support to the man.

1. Former President Marie Louise Coleiro Preca said it was shameful that workers were being treated so terribly in Malta, calling for authorities to do everything they can to ensure justice is served.

2. Similarly, PN leader Bernard Grech said he was “shocked. Every person has a value that supersedes the price of the work they do. Money generation should not come at the cost of humanity”.

PN candidate and lawyer Emma Portelli Bonnici also offered to take on the man’s case pro bono.

3. The President of the Republic George Vella said he hoped that those responsible were identified by the authorities while wishing the worker a speedy recovery. 

4. Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri said that though he’s been criticised for both being too easy and too hard when it comes to migration issues, he said that one’s dignity is not something that should be discarded so easily. He said that he believed that whoever was responsible would pay the consequences. 

5. PN MP Jason Azzopardi described the incident as obscene, saying: “this is not the Malta I want to call home”. 

6. Repubblika’s Robert Aquilina said the island had made money its god, and said it was time to examine our consciences. 

7. Activist group Moviment Graffitti condemned the “concrete hearts” of those who continuously push the construction industry, no matter the costs. 

8. And human rights NGO aditus said this was the “result of a system that dehumanises the individual, as merely a cog in the wheel of an insatiable industry or a burden to society.”

 

9. It wasn’t only politicians and activist groups calling out the incident.

The Malta Employers’ Association condemned “without reservation the incident whereby an injured construction worker was dumped on the side of a road instead of being taken to hospital. The Association stated that such abusive actions are unacceptable in a civilised society.”

In 2021, Malta does not need to treat its workers in such a degrading way, migrant or not. Today has shown the true horrors vulnerable people face when forced into precarious work on the fringes of society.

Anyone with information that could lead to justice being served is urged to come forward and contact us in confidence at [email protected] and [email protected]

Share this story if you believe these abusive incidents need to stop once and for all 

 

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Johnathan is an award-winning Maltese journalist interested in social justice, politics, minority issues, music and food. Follow him at @supreofficialmt on Instagram, and send him news, food and music stories at [email protected]

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