Equality, human dignity and respect for others are values that we should all aspire to uphold and practice in our daily lives. We can achieve these through the way we interact with others such as friends and family, the approaches that we adopt in our workplaces and schools with colleagues, as well as through the legislative process, which informs society.

Learning about the realities of others can take us a long way to challenge our own stereotypes and help us unlearn misconceptions.

As a politician and more recently as a minister, I have interacted with people from all walks of life and continue to do so on a daily basis. Something that I can attest to is that several people have very specific problems that hinder them from achieving their full potential.

Sometimes the issues are unique to these individuals, while in other circumstances they are common to a wider group of people who, even if unrelated or unknown to each other, are victims of similar conditions.

In our role as decision-makers we need to show empathy and ensure that we free citizens from unnecessary pain and suffering.

This was the case of the LGBTIQ community when I took the role of Minister for Civil Liberties in 2013.

Malta was a laggard in Europe in terms of this particular community, having only implemented minimum EU anti-discrimination legislation on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity and included provisions against hate crime on these same grounds.

To turn the situation around I worked closely with LGBTIQ civil society to understand what needed to be done to improve their situation and acted upon the proposals advanced by them and my advisors.

My government’s action was so decisive that in just three years we topped the European LGBTIQ equality chart, and we continue to do so today.

Those who are spreading lies around the impact of the law on the use of gendered terms that we all hold dear, are doing so to try and poison the process

Society reacted positively to these changes, and over the course of time, many individuals, couples and family members of the LGBTIQ community came forward to thank my government for the openness that we brought about, and the rights that they achieved.

However, this process was not without resistance and opposition.

The Civil Unions Bill was especially fought over, and ultimately the Nationalist Opposition chose to abstain in its regard en masse. Among the reasons that they provided to justify their stance, was the claim that society was not ready for such a leap, a claim that has since been proven false.

The tone is slightly different this time round, but beneath the surface, the approach is exactly the same.

Indeed, while marriage equality was included in the PN’s electoral manifesto as it was included in PL’s, as soon as the debate on the proposed law started, a number of its parliamentary exponents started to object to marriage equality publicly.

This, only six weeks after they stated publicly that they would be the ones to introduce marriage equality should they assume power.

To hide the contradiction, they are now arguing that the Bill goes too far and that through it we shall be robbing parents from their ability to be called mother or father, and spouses from the ability to be husband and wife. This is nothing but a lie.

What the law does is bring about equality and make our society even more compassionate and respectful towards diversity and different needs.

Mothers and fathers are parents, as husbands and wives are spouses, so where is the issue?

Those who are spreading lies around the impact of the law on the use of gendered terms that we all hold dear,  are doing so to try and poison the process towards the enactment of the law much in the same way that they tried to do with the Civil Unions Act.

The strategy seems to be, that of speaking to different audiences at once so that the moment the debate is over, they will spin that they were in favour of equality with those who are asking for it, and claim that they disagreed with the proposal with those who are against it.

The Opposition wants to, again, run with the hare and hunt with the hounds.

As today we continue with the second reading of the Bill, bringing it to a close, I can only call on the PN to do the right thing, and listen to the ones who have been neglected and treated as second-class citizens for too long.

Equality, human dignity and respect need to be universal values that apply to all without distinction.

Tonight will be another step towards marriage equality.

Helena Dalli is Minister for Equality and EU Affairs.