Red Cross launches road safety campaign

Malta may have advanced as regards road safety and behaviour and in terms of the number of traffic accidents and deaths compared to other European countries, but the issue still remained a national priority that could never be ignored, Justice and Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici said at the launch of the fourth European Red Cross Road Safety Campaign yesterday.

"The car is a commodity and should not be transformed into a lethal weapon," he insisted. Every single life that was lost, hurt or permanently disabled meant that the need for education was still strong. The culture of not drinking and driving was slowly forming but required a fresh injection to remind the public, the minister said.

Last year, over 16,000 traffic accidents occurred in Malta, resulting in 14 fatalities, 1,200 injuries and 62 that resulted in permanent disabilities - figures that highlighted the importance of the need to raise awareness on road safety, which is the aim of the Red Cross campaign.

Dr Mifsud Bonnici said it was particularly appropriate and timely, with summer round the corner, when people went out more in the evenings and stayed out later. He said it was particularly important to target 18-year-olds and to spread the campaign even to those who taught them how to drive.

"You've only got one life. Keep it!" That is the basic message behind the Red Cross campaign which targets four main aspects: Do not drink and drive; wear a seatbelt; do not use a mobile telephone at the wheel, which is known to increase the risk of traffic accidents; and the importance of first-aid training, which could save a life if applied immediately.

The Malta Red Cross Society, in fact, trains around 3,000 persons a year in first aid, said its president Frederick Fenech.

The campaign, which is focusing on children and youths, is being spread over two weeks and includes the distribution of 20,000 bookmarks, with information on road safety, to schools across the country, Prof. Fenech said.

Visits and educational talks are being organised at schools, where stickers, safety cards and other leaflets are being distributed.

On Saturday, Red Cross ambulances are being stationed at Paceville, Buġibba and Marsalforn between 8.30 and 11 p.m., with first-aid posts set up to provide information.

The same event is scheduled for the following Saturday in Freedom Square, Valletta, between 10 a.m. and noon, while next Wednesday, another Red Cross ambulance is being stationed in Mdina, during the Dawra Durella Madwar Mdina morning event for schoolchildren.

As part of the campaign, a three-minute spot is also being aired on the TV programme Paqpaq and passed onto schools.

The road safety campaign was launched on the occasion of World Red Cross Day yesterday, which marked the birth of its founder Henri Dunant, Prof. Fenech said.

Set up in 1863, the Red Cross Movement has since spread from 16 countries to 186, numbering over 100 million members and volunteers, making it the largest humanitarian movement in the world. It has been active in Malta for the last 15 years, Prof. Fenech said, listing its accomplishments.