Maltese MEPs split over Guantanamo resolution

A European Parliament vote on the resettlement of prisoners at the infamous Guantanamo Bay prison saw Malta's MEPs split with the Labour representatives voting for the motion and the two Nationalists opposing part of it.

Labour MEPs Louis Grech, John Attard Montalto and Glenn Bedingfield joined the majority of MEPs, particularly from the Socialist and Green groups, to call upon all EU member states to be prepared to share the burden with the United States and accept to host Guantanamo inmates after the camp's closure.

Nationalist MEPs Simon Busuttil and David Casa opposed this part of the resolution and instead supported an amendment urging the US to "refrain from applying pressure on EU member states to take inmates against a member state's will".

The two sides had contrasting views on the resolution with the Nationalist MEPs accusing Labour of wanting to host possible terrorists in Malta. The Labour MEPs insisted that the resolution had to be looked at from a wider perspective.

Dr Busuttil, the head of the Nationalist delegation in the EP, said he was appalled with the Labour and the Green MEPs, hoping "this was just another mistaken vote on Labour's part".

"We voted against that part of the resolution which called on EU member states to consider accepting some inmates from Guantanamo. We strongly opposed this paragraph because we do not agree that our country should host people who are suspected terrorists. Moreover, we also disagree that they should be hosted by other EU Schengen countries because this could pose a security risk for Schengen countries, including ours," he said.

On the other hand, Mr Grech, Labour's chief MEP, denied that his delegation had made a gaffe, insisting that "Malta has nothing to do with this".

He said the Maltese Labour delegation, like the majority of European parliamentarians, felt that it would have rendered the resolution on Guantanamo meaningless if it were approached from a narrow, insular "right-wing perspective".

"The EU is making a number of proposals relating to this complex issue and, consequently, it had no option but to be part of that solution. In all fairness, the European Union could not shirk from its responsibility, especially since some of the prisoners were European citizens or were arrested in EU territory. To relate this resolution in any way to Malta would be misleading and misrepresenting the main thrust of the debate, missing the whole point in the process," he said.

The EP resolution was drawn up following the announcement by US President Barack Obama to close down the Guantanamo Bay camp in a year's time. About 245 potential "terrorists" are held there.

The US has not yet officially asked the EU to host some of the Guantanamo inmates but diplomatic soundings over this possibility have already been made.

During a recent meeting of EU Foreign Affairs Ministers, Malta welcomed the US decision to close Guantanamo but insisted that any move towards taking prisoners would have to be decided on a country by country basis. It indicated it is not ready to host any of the inmates on its territory.

The Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp was opened by the US in its base in Cuba in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Suspected terrorists acting against the interests of the US are held at the camp. The opening of the facility has proven to be one of most controversial decisions by the outgoing Bush Administration, especially after repeated claims of torture and mistreatment of inmates emerged over the years.