Prime Minister Addresses Malta’s Migrants: ‘The Majority Of Maltese Welcome You’
Prime Minister Joseph Muscat addressed migrants directly last night in an attempt to put their minds at ease that the majority of Maltese people welcome them.
Muscat was giving a speech in Parliament as a response to Opposition leader Adrian Delia’s criticism of the Budget and at one point switched to English so migrants could understand him.
“I would like to make this very clear to everyone among us, all those who are here as asylum seekers but also those contributing to our economy and are here with their full rights,” he said.
“I assure you that the majority of Maltese and the ethos of us Maltese is that of a welcoming country. Some of us might be way too angry at times but this is what the government is here for. We need to make it clear that rules are there for everyone so yes, you’re very welcome to be here but you must follow the rules as each and every one of us.”
“I know that, as in all societies, there are minorities which tend to have their image extrapolated on the rest of society.”
The Prime Minister urged Maltese society, the Opposition and the media not to use the recent riots at the Ħal Far open centre as a pretext to spread racist comments, recounting the racially motivated murder of Ivorian migrant Lassana Cisse Souleymane, which was allegedly carreed out by two young soldiers.
“We are a nation of migrants and around a third of Maltese have emigrated,” he said, citing a recent World Bank report. “Ask your families if the way they were treated by the countries they moved to effected them and their behaviour.”
Lassana Cisse Souleymane was murdered in Ħal Far earlier this year
While he condemned the Ħal Far riot, the Prime Minister said he was left astounded at the way false rumours, such as that a female open centre employee had been taken to ITU after suffering a beating, had spread online.
“I understand the issue of freedom of speech and that everyone says what they want on Facebook but the media has a responsibility over its comments sections,’ he said.
Muscat also appeared to warn people that their Catholic beliefs are meaningless if they issue death threats to migrants.
“We must not allow ourselves to be carried away or else carrying statues of saints and going to mass will be meaningless,” he said. “This is our major social challenge of the next century, no one has a magic wand and we must ensure that everyone respects the law. Yes, there will be problems but in recent months, Malta was one of the only countries that managed to distribute asylum seekers to other countries.”
“I ask fathers and mothers watching me now, if you see a person drowning in the middle of the sea, will you save him or not?”
What did you make of the Prime Minister’s speech?
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