At least one Maltese politician has his priorities right
timesofmalta.com, this afternoon
Priority is Libyan ‘massacre’, possibly ‘genocide’ – Simon Busuttil
Christian Peregin
Nationalist MEP Simon Busuttil today said there was no doubt that a “massacre” was taking place in Libya, which could possibly verge on “genocide”.
He said the possibility of an influx of immigration should be secondary to the human tragedy unfolding and he thanked the Maltese public for being mature enough to recognise this.
“My first priority is the massacre going on in Libya. Although we cannot verify everything we hear there is no doubt a massacre is taking place. And if the numbers we are hearing are true, and if the methods being reported are really being used such as jet fighters being used against the people, we are not only talking about a massacre but also about genocide,” he said, during a foreign affairs parliamentary committee meeting.
He thanked the Maltese authorities for ensuring the safety of the Maltese people in Libya and the Opposition for taking a “serious stand” of cooperation on this issue.
“(But) while Malta’s position is what it should be, I feel we should be totally clear about our position regarding the loss of human life and murder of people which is intolerable in today’s world,” he said, appreciating the Prime Ministers condemnation without reservations of the violence.
Although he held back from offering solutions, he wondered whether an end to the massacre would require military intervention, pointing out that such issues were being raised in the EU.
Dr Busuttil said he was recently on a radio programme where he was pleasantly surprised that all of the callers expressed concern about the situation in Libya rather than the threat of immigration.
“As politicians, we should learn from this maturity.”
He said Malta was being exemplary in helping foreigners evacuate Libya.
“But let us not fall into the moral trap of refusing Libyans escaping Libya. We need to help form public opinion so as not to let people think it is ok to help foreigners leave Libya but that we do not want Libyans who are trying to escape the same dangers because they are immigrants.”
Dr Busuttil stressed he was not calling for Malta to open up all its doors. But he expected all those countries currently sending vessels and planes to evacuate their nationals to also help evacuate refugees if the need arose.
Dr Busuttil said he was perhaps an eternal optimist but he truly believed that when push comes to shove, the EU will show the solidarity necessary, even if for now many are beating around the bush.
The European Parliament, he added, called for an urgent meeting next week so that the authorities, including the director of Frontex, can explain their plans in case of such a humanitarian emergency.
He said he agreed with the government and the opposition that Malta should take a cautious approach with regards Malta’s relationship with Libya.
“We have to see how the situation develops and respond accordingly,” he concluded
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And here are two Maltese politicians who don’t.
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20110225/local/tonio-borg
It was important, [Tonio Borg and George Vella] said, that Malta ensured that it had good relations with whoever governed Libya, thus safeguarding its own national interests.
Well, they say a week is a long time in politics. At 12.55pm, Tonio Borg was quoted as saying the situation in Tripoli is calm. And now:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12576427
“Anti-government protesters in Tripoli have come under heavy gunfire, latest reports from the Libyan capital say. Protests in the city resumed as protesters seeking the overthrow of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi emerged from mosques following Friday prayers.”
http://www.rainews24.rai.it/it/news.php?newsid=150417
The most conspicuous brontosaurus in the LP stable dishes out oodles of wisdom on timesofmalta.com. Really thick-skinned and obnoxious.
Joe Grima
So when push comes to shove this Gioernment has no qualms of conscience benefiting from the ill fate if other countries and is not doing anything to stop the flow of money coming into this country as a result fo the disaster that others are expriencing in Libya. Shows how hypocritical GDr onzi was when he denounced Joseph Muscat for voicing an opinion the results of which are identical to thise being reaped by this Government from the Libyan chaos at the moment. Of course, the excuse is solidarity,. The real benift though is in hard cash and so it should be.
Joe Grima
To all PN apologists and spinners. The bottom line for you is that when Joseph Muscat pulls for Malta’s national interest he is condemnable under one guise or another. When Gonzi surreptiously does the same under different circumstances, you are out there applauding like Ghaddafi’s goons. Give us a break.. We have known you since the fifties and sixties. We know how to interpet your devious ways. So let’s let Gonzi continue to coordinate the rescue efforts as he is duty bound to do but dont come and tell us that he is doing it for love or in solidarity. At the end of the day he will be boasting figures and counting cash from,the entire operation. @ EG Forte. They have understood my comment only too well. Remember you are dealing with apologetic, PN spin specialists desperately looking for a future. . @Alex Coppola: I programmed at Net TV because Net invited me to. I distanced from Sant because he was rightist. .I am in consonance with Joseph’s LP . At One TV, I produce INKONTRI, one more successful series. I support Joseph because he is the only hope for the future. Now, entertain us with your own achievements.
Direct message to Joe Grime – You are disgusting.
I’m not sure where to post this, because it is unrelated to the topic in question, but I’d like to correct something I said earlier.
The two Mirage F1 in Malta were not in fact modernised in 2009. They were just overhauled so they could fly again. France had sold 32 Mirage F1 planes to Libya in the 1970s. Of these 32, most had disappeared or where impossible to fly. In 2009, France signed a contract for the overhaul of 12 planes. Of these 12, only 4 were ever serviced. Two of them are in Malta. So that leaves two Mirage F1 planes fit for flying, in Tripoli.
Libya also has some Soviet-made Su-25 and Mig-21 planes.
This is just to put things into perspective. Anyone fearing a Libyan attack on Malta should put their mind at rest. Their armed forces are in shambles. Gaddafi kept them that way on purpose, for fear of a coup. And he knows something about that, having gained power through a military coup himself. The only well-equipped and well-trained troops are the Chadian and Central African militias backed by Libya (the so-called “mercenaries” being mentioned in the media). Even so, they got their arses handed to them time and again in Chad and the Central African Republic.
Now a word on France, Malta’s favourite bogeyman. Yes, France sold planes to Libya. But France was the only NATO or European country ever to have its troops fight the Libyans, or Libyan-backed troops. The most recent flare-up happened a mere four years ago, in 2007, when Libyan-backed rebels attacked Birao in the Central African Republic. Very few details of the French counter-attack emerged. But we can judge the intensity of the fighting by this wee tot of a nurse being awarded the Croix de la Valeur Militaire after the offensive. And she wasn’t even a medic in the infantry, but a nurse from the Service de Santé des Armées, with no combat role. Apparently she spent two days in a slit trench fighting off the rebels.
This little digression is a lesson in foreign policy to our space cadet politicians. Half-arsed gestures will get you nowhere. You can sign contracts and cut business deals while condemning the dictator and fighting him militarily. Because when push comes to shove, you will have kept your options open.
Is it a coincidence that racism and incoherence are usually twinned? On timesofmalta.com…
Joseph Cachia
Your comment right to the highest point.
Countries who are against Gaddafi are short sighted.
Libyans are too naive to understand politics and have no idea what those
who are brainwashing them to demostrate, have in mind.
Tajjeb li nifirxu t-tapit ghal Simon Busuttil. Ikun successur tajjeb ghal Gonzi meta dan iwarrab (baqalu hafna imma hemm).
Agreed.
HP you forgot the SU-24 and SU-22 which do have the range and have been modernized lately with Italian electronics. Regarding the French army it is mostly the French Foreign Legion which has experience in African wars as the french tend to use them and the paratroopers because of their rapid deployment and low political cost.
Regarding details of those operations I would recommend that you join up at ACIG or ARRSE where there is more info.
Daphne, well done for your coverage of what is happening in Libya. More of this please and less pettiness. You can give people what they want or what they need. You know the difference.
Well done, Dr. Busuttil – Prime Minister in the making.