It was in recent news that I heard about the arrival and work of the C Star vessel run by members of the Anti-Immigration NGO Defend Europe. My frustration at its arrival was doubled on hearing that measures taken by the government to keep it away were flouted by the Moviment Patrijotti Maltin (MPM).
My frustration was due to the fallacy of certain goals Defend Europe base their mission on. Defend Europe believes that other NGOs are actually aiding human traffickers and must be monitored and controlled. They also say that should migrants be in danger of drowning, they are to be saved and deported to the nearest non-European port. All this is stated on their Change.Org page.
The humanitarian NGOs work closely and voluntarily with European governments to save immigrants at the cost of much money, time and energy while following strict ethical and political protocol in their work from which they gain nothing. Should they be gaining anything, the price for it is high and the labour hard.
Their close work with governmental immigration missions decreases the probability of any corruption which would benefit the governments based on the sheer scale of the efforts and people involved which includes anti-human trafficking branches of the police. Along the same vein, the governments facing the immigration problem do not want a further influx of immigrants. Indeed, various missions have taken place to reduce it, aided by the EU and Libya. Therefore to work hand in hand with NGOs that involve themselves in human trafficking would be completely counter-intuitive to their cause.
The second point I raise regarding Defend Europe’s goals is a more concerning one. Should migrants be in danger of drowning, they will be saved, which is fine, however, what non-European ports exist around the Mediterranean basin? To the north is central Europe so migrants will not be sent there, to the west is the mouth of the Atlantic Ocean and to the east is Turkey, whose acceptance of migrants is dubious to say the least.
This leaves North Africa to the south which is the exact place the immigrants are fleeing. To return some of the immigrants is murder. They will be punished on sight. Thus, despite saving the immigrants from drowning, Defend Europe essentially throws them from the frying pan into the fire, quite mercilessly and thinly veiled as a humanitarian act.
It is honourable to be against human trafficking and all the various cruelties it entails, with concern about what will happen to the trafficked. However, you cannot blame it on the trafficked as they are in truth the victims and not the culprits. There are a slew of testimonies describing the dangers, tragedies and sub-human conditions faced on the trafficking vessels. In short, it is unjust and cruel to punish immigrants for the crime of hope. The hope of living a better life.
As one Defend Europe vessel is not enough to end the immigration problem, merely to raise a heated point and controversy, let’s say the immigrants make it to Malta. Upon arrival, they are assaulted with a barrage of prejudice and xenophobia. This barrage is sadly typically Maltese, however it is championed by the MPM. The organisation has a variety of concerns summarised neatly by the fear of the common Maltese person losing everything to an invasion of immigrants.
In truth, such prejudice is solely based on fear and an aggressive reaction to it. Principal concerns regard the negative effects of immigrants on the economy, our heritage and national security. This is all understandable. They fear for the future of our society and country. As promoters of open and progressive thinking, I invite them to follow my train of thought to quell some of their fears.
I daresay immigrants are indifferent to our traditions. The true enemy of our heritage is technology and globalisation
The Patrijotti believe the immigrants are taking the jobs of the Maltese. I agree. However the question arises as to which jobs. More often than not immigrants occupy a niche of particularly dirty and back-breaking work that no Maltese person would be happy to do. They may say it is below them.
I have seen the perfect metaphor for my point in real life: an immigrant shovelling sewage as his Maltese colleague watches, eating a packet of crisps. There is always work for the desperate Maltese person, the question is how desperate are they?
No immigrant ever got rich in Malta. While a Maltese worker may be protected by minimum wage legislation, an immigrant is not.
The Patrijotti are concerned about the threat immigrants pose to our national heritage. With the utmost respect I must admit I see no connection between immigrants and decaying Maltese traditions which I agree are deteriorating. I will go so far as to say that it is North African traditions that are in greater danger of being lost due to the dispersal of populations.
I daresay immigrants are indifferent to our traditions. The true enemy of our heritage is, in truth, technology and globalisation. Our mother tongue is being tainted by American inflections. It is more just to take up arms with the mobile or the laptop.
In times of terror, it is only natural that the Patrijotti address the question of national security and the threat posed by illegal immigrants. However I say it was that terror and war that the immigrants fled. Therefore why would they recreate the dangerous living conditions they fled here?
While the question of national security is asked fervently by the organisation, that of national pride seems to have been forgotten. With the help of the MPM, the crew of Defend Europe disembarked and posed mockingly on the seat of Maltese power, Castille.
They allowed far-right youngsters who couldn’t seriously give a care about Malta, but rather about keeping their own countries free of migrants, to humiliate Maltese power. What’s more, the MPM itself contested for the same power it now throws to shame. This in fact leads one to question if their electoral campaign was serious since they seem to hold Maltese power in such low regard.
It is irrelevant who holds the power because in truth he represents the Maltese people. They humiliated us. Nonetheless, I give them the benefit of the doubt as being misled by the crew. If not, they must ask themselves what kind of Patrijotti are they?
Trimming away the racist acts of the MPM, I believe that the organisation has good intentions. They wish to safeguard the Maltese islands yet go about it in an incorrect manner. I believe they can achieve their aims better by aiding historic conservation societies or joining the Maltese Red Cross for example.
Therefore I ask them to quench their fears with reason and put out the reactionary flames of anger. For better or worse, we are in the same country. What strikes the country strikes us all, pure-blooded Maltese or immigrants right off a boat. We can achieve great things together, only if we accept each other with open arms.
Andrea Caruana is a University student.