Watch: Robert Abela Is ‘Angry’ At ABBA For Reporting Pro-Choice Activists To Police
Prime Minister Robert Abela has expressed his “anger” upon finding out that small party ABBA had reported a group of pro-choice activists, doctors, academics and organisations to the police.
“Many discussions start with the courage to think freely and I was so angry when I saw a political party continue the attitude it embarked on in the University debate by reporting a number of activists and academics to the police simply because they’re pro-choice,” Abela told a Żgħażagħ Laburisti event in Bormla last night.
“They reported them to the police to scare them.”
Abela pointed out that he has consulted with some of the activists over a number of issues in the past, such as the new femicide law.
“We cordially disagreed on other issues which is fine, but not reporting them to the police to instill them with fear. Let’s not be a society that accepts this. We want to remain a reformist society that isn’t afraid to speak their mind and I can see this manifested in you youths.”
ABBA, a new party led by Ivan Grech Mintoff, filed a police report calling for criminal investigations into 18 pro-choice organisations and activists.
The party said it reported the activists to the police to establish if they have been breaking Malta’s laws against abortion, which are among the strictest in the world. They have not publicly cited what laws they reported the activists for breaching.
Although Abela has repeatedly come out against abortion, his tone on the issue has noticeably softened throughout the election campaign.
During a recent University of Malta debate, the Prime Minister said that discussion on abortion has already started within Maltese society and that while the PL isn’t going to propose its legalisation in its manifesto, he wants to understand the pain of women who carry out abortions.
His reference to the activists as “pro-choice” last night is also significant as it portrayed them as people fighting for the right of choice rather than as people personally in favour of abortion.
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