Updated at 4.20pm with PM's address
Although the stand-off relating to migrants on two NGO vessels was resolved on Wednesday, President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca lamented on Thursday that it had dragged on for as long as it had.
The President acknowledged Malta’s intervention, and thanked the European Commission for its endeavours to bring together the eight member states which have agreed to help in the reallocation of the 49 people, but added: “How can we, as European nations of goodwill, have allowed the mental, physical, and emotional distress of innocent individuals, to take place, over such a long period of time?”
She was speaking during the traditional exchange of New Year greetings with heads of the diplomatic missions accredited to Malta – the last of her term.
The President emphasised that human dignity, especially of the most vulnerable, should be the cornerstone of all endeavours, and said that the phenomenon of migration should be faced by sharing responsibilities among European member states, in a dignified manner which also respects fundamental human rights, and not in an “ad hoc” manner.
She also referred to the upcoming European Parliamentary Elections, describing them as an opportunity for Europeans to show what kind of institutions they aspired to have.
“Social Europe is becoming more of an economic Europe. Data tells us that 1 in 4 Europeans is living in poverty, and is thereby excluded from the social identity that used to make Europe so proud,” she said.
Ignoring migration will be detrimental to future of Europe as a union - Muscat
Photo: Jeremy Wonnacott, DOIMalta embraced a sensible migration management policy that was humane but which still gave peace of mind to the security concerns of people in the host country, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said in his address to the heads of diplomatic missions.
Dr Muscat said the issue of migration continued to dominate and there was a lack of understanding by a number of European countries of what was happening at the southernmost part of Europe.
The solution for the 49 migrants who had been at sea on NGO vessels for a number of days was by no means final and immigration would remain an issue for Europe in the weeks, months, and years to come.
“Ignoring it will be to the detriment of the future of the EU as a union,” he said.
Dr Muscat said Malta supported the Global Compact on Migration because it believed a global dimension which went beyond the EU border was needed as this could assist in managing migration in a safe way.
Unfortunately, the Compact became the first high profile international agreement to fall victim to fake news and misinformation.
“Many asked why Malta was endorsing it. I asked them one simple question: Have you read this simple document? None of them had. How can a non-binding statement of intent end up at the centre of controversy? But it did. And how can anyone oppose the concept that migration is not a phenomenon that can be tackled nationally, but one that needs an international solution? Some did. But I do not believe this is a world of extremes where you either open your doors to everyone and get flooded, or you build a brick wall not to let anyone in.”
Dr Muscat said there could be a sensible migration management policy which was humane, but still gave peace of mind to the security concerns of people in the host country. This was what Malta embraced.
This was why, he said, Malta was reaching out to Africa in terms of solidarity and in terms of trade. It would soon open a High Commission in Ghana, one of the largest economies within the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas), as well as a Commonwealth member.
The High Commission in Accra would provide Malta with a platform to engage more directly with Ghana, as well as the whole of Ecowas. Malta had also nominated a non-resident ambassador to Ethiopia and the African Union, who would focus on the Horn of Africa in the east through Addis Ababa, the seat of the African Union. It also aimed to engage with African partners throughout the continent.