I have taken part in far too many conversations in Malta and Gozo (and elsewhere) where silence has been the response to the words and actions of aggressive and bigoted individuals or groups.  This has been in the context of issues such as murder (the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia), migration, the rights of women and gays, hate speech and racism.

Inevitably, it has also been the case with respect to the apparently endless, widespread sleaze and criminality that stalks Malta. 

I am also aware, from later, more private moments, that many do not share the bigotry and behaviour of the few.  Many are scared or uncomfortable of speaking out or in challenging what is asserted or done.  Staying silent, even in the face of the most outrageous and dishonest lies and actions, has become something of a default position in Malta.

In the current crisis, this has all but paralysed Malta and allowed criminality to become official strategy and policy.  Staying silent is doing untoward damage to the country all profess to ‘love’ as well as to our families, communities and our well-being as a people. 

In 1958, Martin Luther King said: “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends”.

Prophetic words. By being silent we betray not just ourselves but also our friends, our communities and we place those ‘at risk’ in even more precarious situations.

Through silence, we give permission for ignorance and hate to take hold, for corruption to become normalised and for impunity to reign.  Silence is taken as agreement with what is being said or done. In the end, our silence amounts to collusion and even culpability.  This reality has been on full public display in the inquiry of the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia. 

Each of us is aware of events or situations in which we should have spoken out but chose not to – these memories stay with us over time.  It could have involved a female or gay member of our family, a neighbour with a disability, a situation in a work or a public place involving a foreigner or migrant, a community member put upon by the greed of others etc. 

Ultimately, silence is the sound you choose to make when you’ve already given up and raised your arms in submission to someone or something you deem wrong, illegal or even evil.

In their agendas and strategies, Malta’s (mis)leaders are fully aware of the value and practice of the (often very noisy) silence engaged in by a significant cohort of citizens.  They manipulate it, encourage and rely on it and twist it. But they never fear it, for it allows them to continue with their routine agenda of corruption.

In contrast, the more we speak out, the more speaking out becomes the norm - the more we claim back our lives, our identities, our country and our dignity.  The more we speak out, the more we give permission to others to do the same and the more we send out the message that things must change. 

In my own life to date, I have experienced the emotional trauma, the loss of friends and sometimes family as a result of speaking out on Northern Ireland, Aboriginal rights in Australia and Apartheid for example. I have experienced the consequences of getting involved and trying (and often failing) to do the right thing and I have decided that in certain situations, I am okay with those consequences.

Whether we realise it or not, silence contributes to violence at various levels. It permits the actions to continue, it sends the message to everyone that you are okay with what is happening.   As we see daily, our silence emboldens the bigots and the criminals even more.  

Yes, it can sometimes be risky and challenging to fight wrongdoing and evil. But surely the consequences of allowing it to grow and flourish are far worse? Silence is similar to and often the same as indifference, and indifference to criminality and violence of whatever kind diminishes us all.

We can never be true to ourselves nor useful as members of our community or as citizens if we allow our voices to be silenced.  There is no shortage of bullies in Malta and elsewhere – ministers, politicians, business tycoons, poorly educated journalists and those simply echoing the latest trend in social media.

They need to be challenged as a matter of urgency and it is our duty to do so. Continued silence in the face of what is happening is not an ethical option: we simply cannot leave it up to others to fight the good fight.