Call for closer anti-racist movement

The fight against racism has become ever more relevant in the context of the reactions to migration that Malta is presently experiencing, a senior official of the European Network Against Racism said yesterday.

Michael Privot, ENAR senior campaigns and networking officer, said non-governmental organisations, the key players in this fight, had to work closely towards common goals.

Speaking at the end of a two-day visit to Malta to meet various policy makers and NGOs, Mr Privot said the goal of the ENAR was to bring anti-racist NGOs together and be the voice of the anti-racist movement at a national and European level. One of the aims of the visit was to kick-start the second phase of ENAR Malta's existence especially through recruitment, to bring more NGOs into the network and hopefully foster greater co-operation in the fight against racism.

The ENAR is an EU-wide network of more than 600 organisations working to combat racism in all the EU member states, and serves as the voice of the anti-racist movement in Europe.

Jean-Pierre Gauci, national co-ordinator for Malta, explained how since its inception three years ago, ENAR Malta had issued a leaflet and two shadow reports about racism on the island, attended seminars and meetings, and organised lectures.