A mobile clinic, to be donated by the Order of St John, will be placed at Haywharf to cater for rescued migrants who are brought to Malta.
The announcement was made by President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca after meeting Fra Matthew Festing, Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St John, who yesterday started a three-day State visit to Malta, the first by a Grand Master in 26 years.
Ms Coleiro Preca called for more tangible relations between the Order and Malta, raising the possibility of having the island serving as a ‘peace centre’ in the Mediterranean.
Fra Festing said the Order was well aware of the importance of Malta in terms of immigration. Describing the issue as a serious problem to Europe and defining the recent deaths of 400 migrants as a “scandal”, he said the Order remained committed to collaborate and help. The whole of Europe should concentrate on making the situation better, he said.
We have to react to it by being proactive. It’s not easy
He recalled the stories of a dozen immigrants he met and who admitted to him they had arrived in Europe to realise that it was not the land of milk and honey they had made it out to be. Still, he added, parts of Africa and the Middle East still harboured such a perception.
“Last time I was in Lampedusa, there was a little boy of nine all on his own as his parents had sent him off on the journey to Europe.
“His parents were taking a chance that this little boy might make it somewhere. Once you’ve got that mindset – and Africa is a heck of a sight bigger than Europe – then it’s a great problem. We have to react to it by being proactive. It’s not easy.”
The Grand Master announced he would be making another State visit in September to mark the 450th anniversary of the Great Siege. He hoped the occasion would help bring together the Order and, possibly, Turkey, adding that countries were better off when engaging in dialogue and working together.
The anniversary of the invasion of Normandy and World War II last year brought together the Americans, the Germans, the French and the British, he noted.
Asked whether the Order would be making the top floor of Fort St Angelo, which is leased to the Order, more accessible to the public, Fra Festing said the problem was a matter of practicality. The top floor was originally meant to function as a platform for artillery and could not ccommodate a lot of people. However, he added, the Order was looking into how it could make it accessible to the public.
Speaking about the Order’s relevance within the 21st century, Fra Festing said it was a protagonist in many challenges across the world. Members of the Order were working in over 100 countries, running major schemes across Central Africa, South and Central America and Southeast Asia.