Solution for the Mediterranean

Last week, the Sicilian capital Palermo hos­ted the “study days” of the European People’s Party, the largest political group in the European Parliament, of which the Nationalist Party forms part. Through activities over several intensive days, we sought to identify a timely but long-term strategy to deal with the turbulent events in the Mediterranean – to rebuild a stronger partnership between Europe and its southern neighbours premised on a now profoundly different political environment.

The events in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya and the resultant influx of migrants into Europe cast, perhaps somewhat unfairly, an unforgiving light on the EU’s existing Mediterranean policies.

We were caught unprepared to lend our support to forces for change in Egypt and Tunisia and were unequipped to deal with the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Libya.

The vast majority of speakers who addressed our meetings agreed on the pressing need to fundamentally transform Europe’s partnership with the Mediterranean. Above all, the consensus turned on the importance of aiding our neighbours in transitioning to strong, consolidated and prosperous democracies. It is no longer about Europe not turning a blind eye to the tumultuous events so near our borders. Neither is it enough to simply react to developments. The events unfolding are an opportunity, unique in history, for the European Union to fulfil its long-standing ambition of forging a zone of peace, prosperity and representative government in the Mediterranean. In the next few weeks and months, our actions should, without exception, demonstrate an appreciation of this. As EPP chairman Joseph Daul put it, the solution is not less Europe and more populism but more Europe and a spirit of responsibility. However, when it comes to the issue of migration flows from south to north this may be easier said than done.

How do we take greater responsibility when so many are calling for us to relinquish even our existing responsibilities? Taking the path of responsibility rarely results in short-term gains but to find a sustainable solution to the problem we’ll need to view it with a broader lens. We’ll need to go beyond fulfilling our basic duty of rescuing people at sea and providing adequate accommodation. To really bring an end to a situation that neither the migrants nor Europe’s citizens wish to prolong, we’ll have to go further.

It is in our interest to see our neighbours grow, to democratise and to open their economies up to trade with Europe. There are opportunities to be seized in the southern shore of the Mediterranean and there are opportunities for our neighbours to seize in Europe, without them having to risk their lives crossing the sea that divides us. This is not something that can be tackled boat by boat. Given the rapid changes underway in North Africa, only a holistic approach would stand any chance of bringing change to the region. We should be proactive and promote reforms that lead to economic growth, reduce employment and strengthen the rule of law.

This is necessarily a long-term approach. Societies can’t reinvent themselves in a matter of weeks or months. But unless we commit to a special mission of dialogue and concrete solidarity, the problem will persist. To do this, however, our counterparts in Europe must understand that the Mediterranean, and this was always true historically, does not only concern Malta and Italy but the whole of Europe. Sharing responsibility, in the near term, in handling migration flows and, in the long term, in helping our neighbours transition and prosper, must be a European undertaking. Failing this, we would risk becoming a union of treaties and documents, a union void of unity.

In view of the growing number of Arab countries seeking to embrace democracy, I stand by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi’s statement made in Palermo that we cannot just throw money at countries and be done with it. We have to ensure they have effective law courts, honest police, good schools, adequate health care and robust public institutions. In short, good governance. This is where our aid should go if we want to have a stable neighbourhood. Developments in North Africa have a strong bearing on us, in Malta and in Europe, and the need for a strong and working partnership should be at the forefront of our relations with our southern neighbours.

We must focus on rebuilding the confidence of Tunisians, Egyptians and, I hope very soon also, Libyans and Syrians, in their new governments and their new form of governance. We know what measures need to be taken to do this. Now all we must do is match the unprecedented display of political will in our southern neighbourhood with some of our own.

The author is a Nationalist member of the European Parliament.