I am afraid that Albert Cilia-Vincenti (Neutrality In ME Conflict, January 12) has the wrong idea of neutrality and its meaning in the face of prolonged injustice and oppression.
His concept of neutrality on which the argument is based is at the least very naïve. We ought to approach the concept of neutrality thoughtfully. We need a different approach.
Three come to mind: There are the mind-sets of the naïve (which is a way of avoiding critical thought), the cynical (who are paranoid against the other side(s)) and the critical. The distinction between the cynical and the naïve is not as sharp as it may seem - and wherever possible we need to avoid that kind of thought.
In my letter First Anniversary Of Israeli Offensive, as a representative of the Movement for Peace and Justice in Palestine, Malta, I did not advise Maltese politicians to support blindly and without question the Palestinians at the European Union, but instead we advise the Maltese people to be critical.
Being critical does not mean being negative or hostile - it is not cynicism - it means using dialogue and expressing one's views in a peaceful and critical way rather than pretending to be invisible in world politics.
When dealing with the concept of neutrality we have to avoid the extremes of both the naïve (looking away) and the cynical rejection of one side or the other.
Instead, a critical and neutral country like Malta should evaluate the basis of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which in our view is the illegal occupation of a country by another country, and construct its own position on whether the deaths of 1,387 Palestinians, half of whom were women and children, were worthwhile or not. I have to remind Mr Cilia-Vincenti that Malta is part of this world and like all other countries it has an essential role to play.
Ironically, in his last few sentences he wrote: "As President Obama has stressed, it is up to Israelis and Palestinians to work out how they can have two adjoining states living in peace." Malta can start being neutral yet critical by advising President Obama that there will be no peace between Palestine and Israel if the US won't stop selling arms to Israel.
In this context I would like to share this quote by Paulo Freire: "Washing one's hands of the conflict between the powerful and the powerless means to side with the powerful, not to be neutral."