European court nominees rejected again - Labour MP

Malta's list of candidates for the European Court of Human Rights has been refused for the second time because no women have been nominated, Labour MP Marie Louise Coleiro-Preca claimed yesterday.

When asked to confirm this, the Justice Ministry referred to a February 2008 decision taken by the European court which said that the Parliamentary assembly "may not reject the list in question on the sole ground" that it does not include a female.

The ministry also said it had not received any communication from the European court suggesting any revision of this decision. The decision was taken after the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe asked for an advisory opinion from the European Court of Human Rights. But it is not clear whether it is binding.

The list was first rejected by the Council of Europe in 2007 because the government had not included a female nominee as stipulated.

Ms Coleiro-Preca said the issue was raised a number of times during Council of Europe meetings this week, adding that various groups said that Malta should adhere to the requirement of gender balance and that Malta's claim that it did not have any women to nominate due to its small size was not valid.

The case goes back to 2006, when the government submitted a shortlist of Malta's three most senior judges - Chief Justice Vincent DeGaetano, Mr Justice Joseph Camilleri and Mr Justice Joseph Filletti - to succeed Judge Giovanni Bonello, who reached the retirement age of 70. This three-man list was rejected by the Council of Europe the following year.

But former Justice Minister Tonio Borg had insisted that Malta's list could not be rejected solely on grounds of gender. He insisted that the list was in accordance with the European Convention, adding that Cabinet felt the three nominees were the most competent to fulfil that role from the 11 applicants to a public call. "Gender issues should not come into the selection process," he said.

Alternattiva Demokratika yesterday condemned the government for its "pig-headedness" in the nominations, with party head Arnold Cassola saying that it was a real shame the authorities refused to nominate at least one woman.

"Because of the government's insensitivity, the Council of Europe has refused to accept the Maltese list for the past three years," he said.

AD social protection and health spokesman Mary Anne Zammit said the government was sending a message that Maltese women are not capable of holding certain posts, something that had been demonstrated to be wrong by Judge Ina Cremona, a respected Maltese Judge at the European court in Luxembourg. AD's MEP candidate Yvonne Ebejer Arqueros said the government was depriving Maltese women of equal opportunities.