Shameless discrimination in our midst

As Malta grappled with defeated Budget votes and a judiciary rocked by scandal, it was no surprise that an important report about housing prejudice failed to make the main headlines.

In an in-depth study, the National Commission for the Promotion of Equality found ethnic minorities were subjected to blatant discrimination when trying to rent properties.

Estate agents and landlords were found to be discriminating against certain migrants (including Maltese citizens) and played a central role in producing and sustaining housing prejudice.

Aptly titled ‘I’m Not Racist, but...’, 27 sub-Saharan Africans, 13 Middle East and North Africans, eight East Europeans and two Asians revealed the shocking abuse they were subjected to.

In one of the worst incidents reported, a property owner told the Maltese girlfriend of an African man that he did not rent housing to “animals, blacks and Arabs”. As the report said, it appeared that racist language and practice was being “normalised”.

Of concern was that estate agents and property owners were extremely open in their responses and admitted to discriminatory practices with no sense of wrongdoing or impunity, despite the fact it is illegal.

There is nothing wrong with landlords establishing their own terms and conditions to ensure their property is rented out to reliable tenants. But to issue a blanket ban based on skin colour or ethnicity goes well beyond the realms of acceptability.

Most of this bad practice is the result of misconceptions which have been allowed to fester along the years. In the 1980s especially, a number of Libyans frequently visited Malta, and many a time left the property they rented in a pitiful state.

Since then, the Maltese have put many non-Westerners in the same basket, perpetuating racial stereotypes, singling out Arabs and Africans in particular. Western society is often programmed to think it’s Arabs and blacks who are guilty of fraud and several landlords and agents play gatekeeper - maintaining neighbourhoods as white or non-Muslim.

What was equally worrying about the NCPE report was that a number of apartment owners feared the value of their property would go down if they rented it out to black Africans.

Again, racist perceptions come into play, and landlords and agents are reluctant to rent out to blacks or Arabs not because their property is unsafe but because neighbours may object.

Another worrying comment emerging from the study is that many respondents said they never got their deposit money back whenever they rented property.

No matter in which state the flat is left, some landlords look for excuses to take the deposit money from tenants.

Furthermore, official statistics shamefully expose sentiments fuelled by prejudices. A Eurobarometer survey released last summer showed that only 32 per cent think immigration enriches Malta economically or culturally.

Ignorance still abounds. Many Maltese still believe all ethnic minorities are “illegal”, irrespective of whether they hold a work permit or have a right to asylum.

As much as we hate to admit it, the segregation of African migrants in detention centres from the rest of the community has contributed to racism in Malta.

Unless agents are going to eliminate discriminative rental practices or until a foreigner challenges such abuse in court, we risk creating ghettos and parallel societies - which is the last thing we need.