The struggle for Maltese language recognition

Labour MP Jose Herrera spoke on the history of the Maltese language within the context of Maltese politics during the debate on the Maltese Language Bill in parliament on Monday.

He observed that although Malta was occupied by foreigners for most of its history, the people still continued to speak Maltese. Documents showed that Maltese was even written at the time of the Knights.

Nonetheless, Italian was the official language at that time.

The first time efforts were made for Maltese to be given the recognition it deserved was near the end of the time of the Knights through Mikiel Anton Vassalli.

The language issue first cropped up following the appointment of Sir Thomas Maitland as Governor in 1813 when the British wanted all procedures in the courts to be written in English. It met stout resistance from the higher classes who preferred Italian.

Sigismondo Savona, leader of the Reformist Party was in favour of giving importance to the English language but wanted Maltese to be given equal importance. Gerald Strickland, the Government Secretary, was of the same view. He argued in the Council of Government of 1896-97 that the Maltese language should be spoken in the courts. Dr Fortunato Mizzi, leader of the Anti-Reformist Party, was against.

In April 1922 the Labour Party central committee adopted a proposal to join the Unione Politica Maltese in a coalition on condition, among other things, that language teaching in primary schools remained as it was in the past (English, Maltese and Italian). The coalition collapsed in November 1922.

In January 1926 the Workers' Party and Strickland's Constitutional Party signed the "compact" agreement. Their political programme included a clause providing that the Maltese language would be introduced in the courts in the same manner as the English language and the laws were also to be written in Maltese.

In contrast, the Nationalist Party wanted the official languages to be English and Italian. History showed that the Workers' Party and the Constitutional Party had been the first political movement which had successfully battled for recognition of the Maltese language.

Le Mie Vicende by Sir Arturo Mercieca, a nationalist acolyte showed how, on the other hand, the Nationalist Party had been against the granting of recognition for the Maltese language, Dr Herrera said.