Women’s Rights Foundation Condemns Sexist Harassment Of Maltese Protestor
The Women’s Rights Foundation has condemned the harassment of Maltese protestors who took part in a London protest against Henley & Partners.
The protest, which saw protestors chanting “Shame on you!” as Prime Minister Joseph Muscat entered a Henley & Partners event in London and a clash with tenor Joseph Calleja before a performance at the event, has sparked off numerous abusive online comments against the protestors and those perceived to have masterminded them.
Among some of the foremost incendiary comments was a comment by Valletta 2018 Artistic Director and veteran theatre director Mario Philip Azzopardi, who called a Maltese protestor “a sorry bitch” publicly.
It didn’t stop with just the one protestor though. Soon, many people were being singled out as anti-government critics.
Some online harassers even released the personal information of their targets, including their names, home addresses, and mobile numbers.
A number of harassers even called for the boycott of restaurants and businesses related to a man they deemed to be instrumental in organising anti-government protests.
The tense atmosphere comes after new revelations by the Daphne Project and an increased furore in Maltese protests. The Labour party has urged its supporters to turn up en masse for its annual meeting on the 1st of May as a show of support in the current administration.
“With regards the stories that are being rehashed right now, I repeat my call for a sense of calm and tranquility to prevail,” said Joseph Muscat. “With regards certain things that were organised in the past few days, the best response will be to gather as a united country on 1st May.”