Geography has always played a key role in the development of Malta. Located as it is in one of the world’s crossroads, it has influenced almost every facet of its evolution and character.
Malta’s intellectuals, artists, diplomats and politicians routinely reference the country’s location in the Mediterranean as a distinctive opportunity.
Malta’s particular geography was again highlighted during the recent visit to Gozo of European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen in noting there is no better place to have discussions of migration than at the “crossroads” of Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
Malta has long sought to present itself as a potential and real interlocutor between the interests and agendas of the States and regions bordering the Mediterranean. In recent years, Malta has found itself central to the critical debate on migration and all too frequently not in a positive light.
By contrast, in recent years, researchers at the University of Malta have been working on the twin challenges of migrant integration and extremist attitudes and behaviours.
The research project, which began in 2016, has recently been awarded €3.2 million from the EU. Overall, it seeks to contribute to countering extremism and to boosting political maturity across Europe.
This is certainly a welcome objective at a time when a number of European voters are being attracted to populist rhetoric and are being bombarded daily by fake news and extremist views on social media.
The original study investigated majority-minority relations in Malta by exploring the views of the Maltese majority and the Arab minority on the issue of migrant integration and, as a result, developed a scale to measure and assess that integration.
The study suggested that Maltese participants perceive Arabs to be less pro-integrationist than Arab participants, implying that Maltese do not have an accurate perception of Arab views on the issue.
By contrast, Arab participants perceived the Maltese to be slightly pro-integrationist, implying that Arabs had a more accurate perception of Maltese views.
Prof. Gordon Sammut, University of Malta project leader, said the project makes use of methods that serve towards reconciling opposing viewpoints and developing social solidarity.
The integration scale and its associated tools can be used in the lead-up to events that are likely to become polarised, such as national or European elections or referenda or even in micro-scale contexts such as family splits.
The tools and methods in the project can also be used by individuals wanting to understand if their views, or the views of others, such as politicians, could be considered extremist. Having familiarity with such tools can assist in pinpointing extremist speech, according to Prof. Sammut.
Once the research is developed further and the associated tools sharpened, it can be administered as a straightforward survey allowing groups and societies to gauge how extremist their group or country is compared to others.
Psychologists at the Open University in the UK and the University of Malta are currently working on strengthening the research which now involves 17 partners across Europe and beyond.
One of the particular strengths of this research is its exploration of the issue of integration from both sides, something that directly addresses the perception that priority is normally given to the views and needs of minorities.
The research represents a welcome and positive Maltese contribution to a key issue in the Mediterranean region and beyond.