Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico quoted Joseph Muscat on immigration, only a few weeks before Slovakia will take over the EU presidency. Many worry about Fico’s strong anti-immigrant sentiments.

He seems to imply that even a person like Muscat, who is more moderate on the subject, is worried by what can happen through immigration. “I have talked about this several times with the Maltese Prime Minister, who told me that the problem is not that they were coming but they are changing the character of the country,” Fico said, according to the EurActiv website.

In this regard, it is good to keep in mind that 72 per cent of the Maltese have recently stated they want the law to prohibit cartoons ridiculing Mohammed while 82 per cent said the same about cartoons featuring Christ.

To deprive the Maltese society of such a law would certainly be “changing the character ofthe country”. However, Bill 113, as now proposed to Parliament, wants to allow the vilifying of religions without any stated limit. Limiting vilification to genuine art and set conditions would already be a minor earthquake. Imagine how much harder the free-for-all in the Bill would hit us.

If leaders shortsightedly misinterpret this opportunity and let the people down on this, the latter will only be able to look back and point disappointed fingers at those whom they had trusted. Leaders must not fail to respect people’s sentiments and to safeguard important aspects in the character of our country, which is built on respect for people and for the sacred.

This is a personal appeal to the Prime Minister to be sensitive to what is deeply and widely cherished in our country’s character.