Malta can 'better exploit' its strong relations with China

There is still room for Malta to better exploit its very good relations with China and both the Maltese business community and the government could do a lot more to benefit from the unprecedented growth of the Chinese economy.

That is the opinion of Reno Calleja, president of the Malta-China Friendship Society, a former Labour minister of tourism and a member of Parliament for 22 years.

Mr Calleja thinks the appointment by Malta of a new ambassador to China, Karl Xuereb, even if somewhat overdue in the opinion of some observers, "suggests the island values the warm and long-standing relations between the two countries. This is a hint of a further warming of Maltese-Sino ties".

He is sure China has a soft spot for Malta "and that is why I believe we are not exploiting the immense goodwill that exists in China towards Malta".

"I am convinced that the fact that in the early 1970s Malta recognised 'Red China' was never forgotten by the Chinese government and its people."

Mr Calleja does not deem it a co-incidence that it was with Malta that China signed its first agreement allowing Chinese citizens to travel abroad. "What is painful is that countries that followed Malta and signed this tourist destination agreement with China are attracting thousands of Chinese tourists while almost no Chinese arrivals have been registered in Malta," he notes.

Attempting a historical analysis of the development of relations between the two countries, Mr Calleja hastens to point out that in his opinion Dom Mintoff's visit to China in 1972 was "the most significant achievement" on Malta's part. He lists the generous grants and loans from China to Malta in the years that followed and the technical assistance China gave to Malta to build the Red China Dock and the Marsaxlokk Port Project as the most important contributions that further cemented the relations between the two countries.

"At the time, China had a shrewd and highly intelligent Prime Minister in China Chou en Lai. As the mastermind of China's foreign policy he immediately realised that if tiny Malta, with no natural resources, would succeed in closing the British military base, it would serve as an example for other countries to do the same."

Relations with China continued to improve even when the Nationalist Party was elected to power in 1987, notwithstanding the fact that in the early 1970s the PN had genuinely been concerned that China's warm relations with Malta and its generosity were not all that innocent, Mr Calleja said.

He said President Emeritus Guido de Marco, who had struck a "special personal relationship" with former Chinese President Jiang Zemin, was still very popular and respected in China.

Alas, Mr Calleja is quick to add, the PN failed to fully exploit this situation. "Much more could have been achieved if only a part of the zeal shown by the successive Nationalist governments towards Europe was also shown towards China." Ironically, he added, Europe is striving to consolidate its ties with China in a determined and aggressive manner.

Mr Calleja makes an observation: "China is now showing intense interest in Africa and the Middle East, mainly because of its need for oil. Now is the time for Malta to exploit its good relations with the Arab world and its special role in the Mediterranean to act as a broker for China in this area".

The Malta-China Friendship Society, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this October, can and is willing to give its share towards the further strengthening of Maltese-Sino relations and this by doing what it has been doing all along: promoting people to people contact. "As one of the founder members of the society I have always believed that if the people of China and Malta come closer together, boost their cultural contacts, and understand each other better, then the governments have to follow to suit."

In July, the society plans to take part in the 50th anniversary celebrations of the city of Guangdong through Maltese presence. Mr Calleja is banking on the support of the government and the private sector to make this happen.

He admits that although usually his society finds all-round support, sometimes the going really gets tough. Now it has to double its efforts as it fears it could die a natural death as a result of the opening of the China Cultural Institute in Malta. The institute, he points out, is well funded but the society is run by volunteers and has to find its own funds. The society has to find new areas where to operate such as in the case of tourism, education and by giving advice to the Maltese business community.

Mr Calleja thinks there is particularly a lot to be done in tourism. "We rarely see a Chinese group in Malta. Even the hundreds of Chinese students who used to come and learn English here have dwindled almost to nothing," he notes sadly.

He goes further:

"The tragic incidents that occurred last year when a number of Chinese students were allegedly thrown into the sea and left to drown in the cold waters off Sicily and the allegation that a Chinese girl was murdered before being thrown into the sea have had a very negative effect on Malta's bid to attract tourists from China.

"Given that rumours were so rampant that Maltese and Chinese criminals were ferrying Chinese students and tourists to Italy, I feel action should have been taken before the tragic events occurred. When the incidents became public, Malta tried to become more Catholic than the Pope. Typical of the way we act, we panicked and almost no visas at all were issued to any students or Chinese tourists wanting to visit Malta. This was understandable as the government wanted to take stock of the situation. However, now enough time has passed and the authorities should have found a workable solution to this visa problem.

"I see no reason, for example, why tourists from China who are on a European tour should not be granted a landing visa to visit Malta. Our country is not part of the Schengen Agreement and, therefore, Chinese tourists with a multiple visa to visit Europe still have to apply for a separate visa in order to enter Malta. I think a way should be found to solve this problem. It is ridiculous for a prospective tourist from Shanghai or Guangdong to have to go to Beijing and wait for days to get a visa from our embassy there. The most important tour operators in China find it frustrating to have to wait for so long to get visas for their clients. So they organise tours to Turkey, Greece, Cyprus, Egypt and Tunisia and bypass Malta.

"Something is wrong and the Malta Embassy in China should address this."

There is then the cost of travelling from China to Malta. Mr Calleja said Air Malta signed an agreement with Air China making it possible for Chinese tourists travelling to Malta via Rome by Air China to use an Air Malta flight without breaking the trip, thus cutting costs for travellers. He failed to understand however why the Maltese carrier did not have a similar agreement in the case of other destinations it serves in European and Mediterranean countries.

Mr Calleja feels the Ministry of Tourism and the Malta Tourism Authority should work closely with his society in order to better promote Malta in China. For a start, he thinks the society's participation in the Guangdong activities deserves the MTA's support.

Then, a lot of work should be done in order to attract Chinese students to Malta. "Millions of students are leaving China to study English and other subjects. I think the staff of our embassy should work in conjunction with our educational institutions and do much more to exploit this enormous potential. The English language schools in Malta should form a cooperative and market Malta's excellent facilities in this area together."

Finally, what does Mr Calleja really like to see happening to give a boost to relations between Malta and China?

"I think more business delegations should visit China in an organised and professional manner. When visiting China, ministers and even members of the opposition should be accompanied by Malta-based businessmen, travel agents and entrepreneurs. Let us roll up our sleeves and work to benefit from the tremendous economic boom taking place in China."

Mr Calleja feels that some form of consultancy service should be available to Maltese businessmen both at the Foreign Office in Malta and at the Malta Embassy in Beijing. He acknowledges that Maltese businessmen are "naturally" a bit cautious to venture into the Chinese market.

"However, the Chinese are very eager to attract foreign investment. They are prepared to get involved in joint ventures in tourism, manufacture and innovation. Focusing on Europe is fine but I fear that where China is concerned we continue to look after one tree oblivious of the fact that the whole forest is on fire. I have personally assisted a number of Maltese businessmen through my contacts in China and will continue to use my knowledge of China to help anybody requiring my assistance."