Pensioners' fundamental rights

The pensions of the "privileged... political class" are uncapped, with "no limit on the amount of pension payable and with their pension revised with every change... to the actual salaries of the holders of political office" (Malta Today, November 28). In the case of the President, for example, this equates to a pension of over Lm12,000 a year, as compared with the meagre Lm4,500 maximum for the ordinary citizen "imposed during the 1981 Labour wage freeze" (ibid.).

There is no doubt in my mind that this is discriminatory.

Are other factors also discriminatory in a similar manner? Whereas ordinary citizens must contribute for 30 years (The Times, December 10) before being eligible for a pension, how long must members of the parliamentary "super" class serve in order to be entitled to their "super" pension? Are the earnings (either via subsequent employment or a pension drawn from another source) of ex-MPs deducted from their "super" pension, as in the case of British service pensioners (December 17)?

If there are differences between the pension rights of ordinary citizens and those of MPs, then these are discriminatory against virtually the entire population. Moreover, if those who have been elected to Parliament to represent the ordinary citizen use their position to privilege themselves in such ways, then this can only be seen as a betrayal of trust. By making themselves exempt from the rules governing other citizens, what interest could they possibly have in finding a truly satisfactory solution to the pensions problem?

Just as the British service pensioners are claiming a "breach of their fundamental rights as stated in article 14 of the European Convention of Human Rights, of which Malta is a signatory" - and as this article reads: "The enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in this Convention shall be secured without discrimination on any ground such as sex, race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth or other status" - is not the Lm4,500 pension ceiling (and any other differences between those eligible for the "regular" pension and those for the "super" pension) not discriminatory against all Maltese who are "mere" citizens and do not have the status of "MP"?

Could our new-found MEPs tell us whether the EU can protect us from this kind of injustice? Or is this perhaps a more universal case of "some animals (being) more equal than others"?