Yesterday’s national protest on the streets of Valletta themed ‘Enough is Enough’ represented civil society in action making its voice heard in the interests of an important public cause. 

Perversely, there were some – especially those operating from a safe distance in the comfort zone of social media – who chose to label environmental activists who participated as being motivated by anti-government, anti-Labour considerations.

Those who took to the streets in 2006 to protest against the reckless expansion of Malta’s construction development zones may recall similar political branding – on that occasion by Nationalist Party apologists.

Active civic participation consists of individual or collective actions designed to address issues of public concern often demanding non-partisan debate. It is defined by the process of working together to make a positive difference in the civil life of our communities and developing the combination of values and motivation – almost  always voluntarily – to make a difference to our quality of life for the common good of Maltese society regardless of political affiliation.

The scope is wide and has as its focus civic engagement designed to contribute to better public policies and influencing public opinion on issues of national importance in the long-term interests of the country as a whole, not sectoral or party interests within it.

The vast majority of civil society organisations are not affiliated to any political party or movement.

Many of the major organisations have statutes specifically enjoining them to maintain an independent, non-partisan and non-party political stance in carrying out the voluntary purposes for which they have been founded, whether environmental, cultural, social or humanitarian. That was the case with yesterday’s event organised by Moviment Graffiti and dozens of others NGOs.

Naturally, the individuals who make up a voluntary organisation hold their own personal political views. But their overriding purpose is to uphold and promote a particular cause and to hold state power to account if it fails to do so. It takes both energy and courage. Civil society activism is founded on the ability to speak truth to power. It is the power of advocacy and giving active verbal support for a cause – as we saw vividly demonstrated yesterday and three weeks ago at Attard.

The art and craft of successful advocacy is two-fold: to provide informed and constructive criticism; and to cajole and persuade those who have the power to make decisions affecting our lives.

This was, and still is, almost invariably the government of the day, or over-mighty institutions such as big business or construction developers.

The objective of civil society activists is to influence people’s views and opinions so as to achieve the ends sought for the social, economic and just enhancement of society. The crucial point which guides civil society activists is the conduct of advocacy campaigns responsibly and constructively – never criticising without also offering solutions and never making any political distinctions. Credibility is all-important.

The mark and strength of good civil society activism is founded on not having a party-political axe to grind. For good civil society activism to succeed it must be politically impartial, but it is also crucial not to be indifferent. It is never to look the other way. It is to make clear distinctions between good and bad policies, between dysfunctional and comatose government administrations, and those whose policies would be beneficial.

To do this, civil society activists are prepared to speak truth to power, however unpalatable that truth may sometimes be to those in power.

To fail to do this in the face of any government neglect is to betray the aspirations of society to improve itself.

It is the responsibility of civil society activists to highlight as fairly and objectively as possible the issues of concern.

Our policymakers and politicians – of whichever party – must be made to understand through civil society’s lobbying that they ignore it at their electoral peril and will be held to account.

The political labelling to which civil activists are subject for daring to uphold a cause in which they believe is inexcusable in a free democracy. The politicisation that has increasingly corrupted so many issues that demand non-partisan debate in our country is unacceptable.