Norman Lowell’s Party Files Complaint After RTK Presenter Suggests He Should Be Censored
Norman Lowell’s party Imperium Europa has filed an official complaint against RTK presenter Andrew Azzopardi for suggesting he should be “censored” by the media in the run-up to next year’s MEP elections.
During a recent interview with Broadcasting Authority CEO Joanna Spiteri, Azzopardi made his stance about Lowell crystal clear.
“He has a history of racism; we can beat around around the bush as much as we like but he is xenophobic and racist,” Azzopardi said.
“His words lead to that and I can’t understand how you can view it differently. Should people like him who pop up and speak like this be censored or do they have a right to space just because they’re candidates? Does he have a right to come on RTK?”
“I can tell you that he can complain as much as he likes and he can tie himself to our front door for all I care but he won’t come onto my program. Can the BA insist that I have to give him a chance?”
Without giving a straight answer, Spiteri strongly indicated that the BA will make sure that all political parties, including Lowell’s, are included in public debate.
“While we will take precautions against discriminatory content, one cannot expect a politician to be completely excluded just because one might disagree with what he has to say,” she argued.
“Maybe your mistake is that you’re immediately drawing a line because he has a history of whatever and so you won’t invite him. Fair enough, you could disagree with some politicians but the BA cannot exclude them.”
“If we want to promote a wide spectrum of voices, how can we leave him out just because we’re against the messenger?”
BA CEO Joanna Spiteri
Imperium Europa secretary general Josiah Vella has now filed a complaint to Azzopardi, copying in Spiteri, Inclusion Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli, Shadow Inclusion Minister Graziella Galea, and the University of Malta, where Azzopardi works as a professor).
“I am filing an official complaint about the discrimination and malice you intentionally and consciously created during your RTK programme, during which you identified Mr Norman Lowell and Imperium Europa’s agenda as racist,” he wrote.
“Worse, you abused of your position as a broadcaster by threatening censorship and openly told the Broadcasting Authority’s CEO that you won’t invite Mr Lowell to your show, come what may. This is a public threat that can also serve as an example to other presenters to adopt the same discriminatory behaviour, and this before the BA has even issued directives.”
Claiming this breached the BA’s obligation of impartiality in political discussions, Imperium Europa gave Azzopardi three days to rectify his message.
They also dragged the University into the debate by claiming that Azzopardi’s comments raise “serious questions” about his educational practices and his relationship with students who might sympathise with the party.
Lowell, 77, has a history of inflammatory public comments, which have included defences of Adolf Hitler, promotions of eugenics for babies with disabilities, and claiming that Maltese people who breed with African people are committing a “sacrilege to nature”.
Nevertheless, his party won 8,238 votes at the last MEP election, making it Malta’s most popular third party.
READ NEXT: Watch: Robert Abela Admits Minimum Wage Is Too Low And Promises To Increase It
