Labour Leader Joseph Muscat said yesterday he was saddened by hate comments made recently about Labour supporters but spoke about the importance of not paying back in kind.
Where there is hatred there should be love.
“It is with a heavy heart that I heard declarations over the past few days and I have deeply thought about the country’s quality of politics and its contribution to people’s lives,” Dr Muscat said in a political meeting in Qormi.
He was referring to comments made by Sliema councillor Julian Galea, that he had a phobia of Labourites and paid them less than their Nationalist co-workers, and by mayor Joanna Gonzi saying she wanted them all dead. Mr Galea has since apologised for his remarks.
These comments about hatred, political racism and discrimination, Dr Muscat said, raised different sentiments: “sadness, anger, sorrow and rage – you don’t know which one will take over”. However, the worst thing to do – especially for the party’s movement – was to “fan the flames”.
“If you use political hatred and adopt an eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth approach, you might be popular for a while and possibly win an election but what good is it for the country?” he said.
Using this type of political language would only take the country back to “tribes” – of those who were with the Church or the Labour Party, the English or Italians, pro or against the EU, for example. “What good is it for the country to have this mentality?”
Dr Muscat said he wanted his children to grow up in a country that went beyond political beliefs but was made up of people who loved their country. “We opened our doors, pulled down barriers and are becoming a movement. We are not looking at the past but at the future that will bring us together.”
This line of thought was not a temporary one taken by the Labour Party to win elections but one he absolutely believed in.
He would be ready to work with everyone and “will be a government for everyone, including those who do not vote for us or who lead personal campaigns against us”.
Many Labourites had been suffering from political hatred or discrimination for years and it would be easy to fan their anger and suffering.
“I know what you have suffered but that can never be avenged by doing something wrong to other people. You will be only avenged by justice where you will be given what was taken away,” Dr Muscat said.
A Labour government would not complain about what it would find once it came to power but instead would work on it and improve the country.
“The only point I want to make is this: where there is hatred, there should be love and where there is despair there should be hope. The road is uphill but we’ll make it together,” Dr Muscat said.
The Nationalist Party said it condemned – as it always did – any hurtful comment because it was the only party that worked in favour of giving people the liberty to choose their political party.