A proposal by a Birżebbuġa local councillor to adopt a Syrian refugee family has garnered the support of fellow councillors in other localities.
When Hermann Schiavone took to Facebook with his suggestion on Friday, residents contacted him to fund his proposal, while at least three other councillors – one other Nationalist and two Alternattiva councillors – publicly joined his appeal.
“Faced with such a human tragedy we cannot remain passive. I will be doing my part. I will be proposing that the Birżebbuġa council adopts and finances a Syrian refugee family.
“If every local council in our country does the same, we will be sending a strong sign of the solidarity to the rest of Europe,” he said. In a tweet, Sliema councillor Michael Briguglio said he supported the initiative and will propose the same within his council.
Attard councillor Ralph Cassar also jumped on the bandwagon, noting this was an opportunity to show communities really cared. “Good idea. Will propose a similar initiative in Siġġiewi. I’m sure we will rise to the occasion,” councillor Karol Aquilina said in a tweet.
When contacted, Mr Schiavone said his proposal had received mixed reactions, but some had actually contacted him to donate money or adopt child refugees.
However, he clarified that he had only floated the idea, and was in the meantime enlisting experts to build a legally sound proposal that included suggestions on how to fund the initiative.
“I have no intention of financially burdening the local council, but I have no doubt that the Birżebbuġa community – and residents in other localities – will rise to the occasion and help raise funds,” he told the newspaper.
The Syrian family, brought from abroad, could be supported for around a year and be helped to get back on its feet, he suggested.
Dr Briguglio also noted that the legality and means of funding this initiative needed to be looked into, but councils could rope in human rights NGOs to guide them. Apart from asking for a change in the local council’s act, a scheme could be created for local councils to tap into and support a refugee family.
“While we’re discussing how Europe has closed its eyes to the crisis, we have also seen a wave of solidarity. Malta also has a very important role to play, and I hope other councils get on board,” he said.
A similar idea was first floated by UK Labour leadership contender Yvette Cooper, urging her country to take in 10,000 refugees. She called for a conference with local councils to discuss how many refugees each town could take. She later said more than 40 councils were ready to offer sanctuary to those fleeing Syria.
The sheer numbers of refugees fleeing persecution as well as the publication of a photo of a three-year-old Syrian boy washed ashore in Turkey, jolted many into action. Finland’s Prime Minister Juha Sipila was among those who said he would offer his home to refugees.
And while Hungary’s government is adopting a hard line on refugees, the country’s former Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsány is taking in groups of refugees for a night or two at his home.
Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris also offered to buy an island in the Mediterranean to host people fleeing war-torn countries in the Middle East and Africa.