As a country we are facing a very serious problem regarding the continuous influx of irregular immigrants and the Maltese are understandably worried.
The government is doing all it can to ease this burden but, unfortunately, only recently has the European Union pulled up its socks to help us carry the burden, or so it has promised.
The same goes for Libya. It is a fact that a large number of boats carrying tens of Africans leaves the Libyan coast day-in-day-out and for a very long time the Libyan authorities seemed reluctant to take action.
The Libyan coast stretches over hundreds of miles and it is no easy task for the authorities to monitor every movement but there has been and still is a lot of movement and it is high time that Libya has finally committed itself to tackle this problem!
One may argue that the government should have taken a stronger stand when the situation was not as serious as it is today in urging the EU and Libya to put this problem right on top of its agenda. Yet, now that the matter is what it is, one does not expect the issue to be shrouded in partisan controversy.
The Labour Party started of by tackling the situation in a very mature manner and had even proposed a national conference on this issue with very fruitful results.
Gavin Gulia, the MLP's spokesman on irregular immigration, has always adopted a responsible approach steering away from partisan politics and for that he has my greatest respect.
The latest statement by Labour Party leader Alfred Sant was, however, unexpected. Dr Sant was reported saying that the national interest should prevail over any other consideration. This is simply unacceptable and should be treated seriously, coming from a possible future Prime Minister.
Yes, indeed, the national interest should always come first but never at the cost of fundamental human rights.
What does the Leader of the Opposition mean when he says that when in office Labour would be prepared to go it alone and take unilateral action if need be? What type of unilateral action will Labour take? Will it ignore the United Nations conventions protecting irregular immigrants from automatic repatriation?
I have absolutely no doubt about Dr Sant's democratic credentials and I am sure he will be the first to speak up against any human rights infringement, however, his latest statement is shocking and Dr Sant would do well to make himself more clear.
Given that the general election is approaching, I would like to think of his statement as a cheap shot against the government to gain the support of a well-sized portion of the electorate who are extremely irritated by this problem.
I am irritated, too, and do believe that the government should increase its efforts to insist with Brussels and Tripoli that they are in duty bound to take immediate action.
It is unthinkable that any government should go it alone at the cost of human life.
Human rights organisations and the Church in Malta would do well if they speak up... before it is too late.