Labour proceeds against 'fascist' committee member

Self-proclaimed fascist Joe Meli has "no chance" of contesting local elections under the Labour banner.

MLP general secretary Jason Micallef yesterday told The Times: "The Labour Party will not have any of its members holding or promoting intolerance or declaring in public that they are convinced fascists".

Mr Meli is an auditor and management consultant by profession. A disgruntled Nationalist, he joined the MLP in December 2001 and contested the Valletta council election with the MLP in 2002, obtaining 107 first count votes. Then 44 years old, Mr Meli declared he was turning to Labour because the Nationalists wanted to "sell out Malta's sovereignty to the European Union".

Mr Micallef insisted that "under current circumstances", Labour could "definitely not allow someone who publicly proclaims his fascist beliefs to contest under its banner".

On Thursday, during a meeting of the MLP St Paul's Bay committee, where Mr Meli is a member, committee president Keith Grech tabled a motion of no confidence in Mr Meli.

The motion, a copy of which was passed on to The Times by Mr Meli himself, declared that by attending a meeting in Safi last Saturday which, the motion adds, fuelled ultra-rightist sentiments, Mr Meli had "irremediably" compromised his position as an official and member of the Labour committee.

The motion said Mr Meli should submit his resignation to the St Paul's Bay committee after making a public apology for his "irresponsible" action. Otherwise the committee would ask the central administration of the MLP to expel Mr Meli from the committee.

Mr Meli, however, is insisting he was present at Safi last Saturday as a "free citizen" and not as a "stooge" of a political party. He said he had not been involved in planning or organising the event.

"Where is freedom of speech and freedom of thought? I always voiced my beliefs in public," Mr Meli said yesterday, saying he strongly condemns racism and intolerance. "I challenge you to find an instance where I have incited hatred," he said.

In a signed statement posted on an internet forum, Mr Meli said the committee had used his declared fascist beliefs and his presence in Safi "to get rid of him".

"The way the motion was presented bypassed the board of vigilance and discipline and put the case in the hands of the party administration for a quick and final deliberation. How very democratic," Mr Meli said.

Asked how he reconciled his fascist beliefs with the values of the MLP, Mr Meli said political parties were referred to as "Nationalist" and "Labour" but the parties' position on the political spectrum had shifted in opposite directions with the result that Labour had become the "right-wing" party of Malta.

He said being a fascist meant being a "hyper nationalist", a "lover of the nation and its people".