An end to polarisation

We urge voters not to neglect their right to vote in the forthcoming European Parliamentary elections. A vote for any one of the candidates who supports the process of European unity is a vote of confidence in the European Union and national unity.

The European Parliament is the only democratic institution of its kind. It is a supranational parliament made up of representatives of 25 states directly elected by the people. Together with the governments of the member states it makes the laws of the EU.

The European Movement (Malta) regrets that attempts are being made to turn the first election to the European Parliament into a political farce by unduly polarising the electorate just as happens in all other national and local elections.

Other developments which have occurred in the past 12 months are also worrying. The European Movement (Malta) congratulates the Malta Labour Party for being the first to select its candidates. We are also happy that a few of them have more than a good grasp of the EU and we wish them success.

We also accept that given the strong positions that they adopted in the past it is very difficult for them to change over quickly to the new reality of membership. But the Movement is worried that certain policy choices by the MLP are still confusing many people.

The Movement finds this rather odd given the crystal-clear support of the Party of European Socialists to the process of European unity. It is time for the MLP to proclaim a new policy on Europe if it wishes to strengthen its credibility.

What worries us? In February 2003 the MLP declared "victory" as soon as the referendum result was declared despite the clarity of the Yes vote. An election was called partly because it was nearly due and partly because the MLP said that only an election should decide the EU membership issue. The MLP lost the election.

The Treaty of Accession was brought to Parliament for ratification. One would have expected that, given its stand that the election should be the last word on the membership issue, the MLP would logically vote for the Treaty to respect the will of the majority or at the very least abstain. It chose to vote against it.

On May 1 Europe will be celebrating enlargement and the end of the division of Europe. Malta has earned its place in an enlarged EU. One would have expected the whole country to choose this occasion to encourage the people to celebrate together.

The EU after all belongs to all. Yet the MLP's decision to celebrate Workers' Day which also coincides on May 1 as it has done for many decades means that two tribes will be celebrating differently on the same day. Why should Labour supporters be quarantined in this manner from celebrating with the rest of their kith and kin?

We sincerely ask what the country gets out of this kind of political positioning. In the European Movement we are used to collaborate and make common cause with Europeans from all across the political spectrum. In meetings of the Movement overseas we find no difficulties mixing, arguing and debating with Socialists, Christian Democrats, Liberals, Greens and Communists.

Why cannot it be the same in Malta? The European Movement has time and again argued that we have to look to the future together and not to the past. In politics we need to harness the national energies by uniting them.

Political piques are a practice of the past. They were a necessary approach when we, the Maltese, had to mark ourselves off from the foreigners who dominated us. The majority of well-meaning citizens of this country - from the right, the left and the centre - have no desire to live in the past and look upon pique as a puerile sort of behaviour, a mark of a politically immature people.

This country needs statesmen and not politikanti. It needs leaders who are ready and willing to free themselves from the nauseating ruts and lead the people to new horizons. And this counts as well for other political forces, including the governing Nationalist Party.

In our opinion it was rather shameful for us that the outgoing Speaker of the European Parliament, Pat Cox, should cite the example of Maltese tribal politics as a style of politics that needs to be avoided in the European Parliament. We have been saying the same thing for many years.

So we urge the people to employ their right to vote in the forthcoming European Parliamentary elections. They should vote in accordance with their own political beliefs and for the national good.

We believe that voters should reward candidates who have consistently supported the process of European integration and Malta's place in it.

There are then those candidates who notwithstanding their past opposition to membership have now genuinely turned the corner and are ready to debate the EU and to give a valid contribution to its development. Do not be shocked if we tell you that we find nothing shameful in their behaviour.

Let us also debate programmes. The Nationalist Party forms part of the European People's Party (EPP), the Malta Labour Party (MLP) forms part of the Party of European Socialists (PES) and Alternattiva Demokratika forms part of the European Greens. All these political groups are supportive of the process of European unity.

There are a number of independents as well who intend to contest. Evaluate them in accordance with the worthiness of their cause and the contribution they can make to uniting people not only in Europe but in particular in their own country.

Those candidates who depart from good practice to fan the embers of division in Malta over Europe - from whichever party they may hail - are not respecting the twice expressed democratic will of the people on the EU, are encouraging confrontational politics and cannot expect to be treated with respect by commentators - and they will not.

As a nation it is time we grew up. Why don't we grasp the opportunity? The European Movement believes, earnestly, that people can change. So can politicians. We do not subscribe to the conservative judgment that individuals cannot change. Therefore we are always optimistic.

But individuals must make the conscious effort to cross the chasm to the other side. We do not perceive much of that in most quarters. That is a shame. Our politicians seem to pluck up enough courage when they are hurtling all that comes to hand at the other side. However they lose their nerve when confronted with the possibility of being true leaders and to perform something that precious few politicians have done before them - i.e. work for national unity.