True inclusivity cannot turn a blind eye to the challenge of migration, President Marie Louise Coleiro Preca said today.

Addressing the Commonwealth People’s Forum on the theme “What makes societies resilient?”, the President said migration was a reality that continued to create situations of great concern.

“As an international community we need to continue finding tangible ways of addressing migration, anchored in a rights-based approach. Most importantly, we need to think about every human being risking their life at this very moment. We must ensure that no more lives are put at risk or lost.”

President Coleiro Preca said that emphasis had to be placed on the human face of migration.

“We need to continue anchoring our interventions within the framework of universal human rights.

“We need to appreciate that migrants who live in our community are in fact part of the community we belong to. They too bring added value, bringing a unique sense of life and its potential.

“In a truly inclusive society these individuals are welcomed. It is only then, united together to form part of one society, that we can ensure equal and active participation of all, thus contributing to our human resilience.

“This happens because, only then will we be working together to achieve sustainable wellbeing, grounding our resilience within the values we share as a community.

“My message to you, today is a simple and a straightforward one – ‘Resilient societies are Inclusive societies’, that embrace equality.

President Coleiro Preca said that inclusion had to be thought about as a process, in which equal opportunities for all had to be ensured.

“Everyone must be allowed to achieve their full potential in life, and be afforded opportunities that include access to education, employment and political participation.

On gender equality, the President said the road towards gender equality should be viewed not merely as a transfer of opportunities or privileges from one group to another, but as a fundamental step in the enjoyment of rights.

“We have to remember that gender equality is not an issue faced by women or gender minorities alone. It is a human rights issue that affects us all.

“We all stand to benefit from gender equality, liberating us from prescribed social roles and the gender stereotypes of a binary system that must be interrogated, and transformed,” she said.

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