European Movement calls for EU referendum before election

The European Movement (Malta) said a referendum on EU membership should be held as soon as possible and in any case before a general election.

"The question that is to be asked in this referendum, published by the government, is a straightforward one, that requires a simple yes or no answer.

"All political forces which wish to strengthen the democratic process in our country must urge all those eligible to vote to do so according to the dictates of their conscience, in the national interest and to achieve the common good," it said in a statement.

The movement discussed the counter proposals on the referendum made by the Labour Party in response to those proposed to it by the government on the timing of the election and the referendum.

"The European Movement (Malta) will not be as outlandish as to suggest that instead of a 60 per cent threshold for the yes vote as suggested by the MLP, both parties should agree to a 60 per cent threshold for the no vote, meaning by this that if this threshold is not reached by the no vote, Malta will join the EU. A wrong can never be righted by another wrong.

"We do however strongly appeal to all concerned to respect the people's will and the citizens' right to participate directly in this important decision. What the MLP has proposed means in practice that the minority will exercise the power to nullify what the majority decides.

"This goes against all principles of democracy and repeats the same mistake committed in the past when a party governed for a whole legislature against the will of the people.

"The European Movement (Malta) was under the impression that such a grievous threat against our democratic system was behind us and that all political forces in Malta had been reconciled to the principle of majority rule," it said.

"To ask the government at this stage to forgo the referendum and move on to a general election will be to ask it to renounce a fundamental promise in its electoral manifesto which should be duly honoured before the end of the current legislature. Should such an eventuality be allowed to happen, the people will have a right to believe that they have been cheated by both parties and to treat electoral programmes as not worth the paper they are printed on.

"The European Movement (Malta) observes that the Labour Party's initial stand was not to recognise the result of the referendum. Now it proposes an undemocratic condition that leaves the government no other option than to reject it."

The European Movement (Malta) augured that direct democracy through referenda on important political issues should be developed in the years to come.

"This would be a much-needed late development in our democracy," it said.