Malta – where it's OK for some politicians to mix business with politics
Published:
October 23, 2011 at 11:24pm
In the wake of Liam Fox’s resignation, we get this in the newspaper:
This is Mr Dalli’s first public response to news of Gaddafi’s death – over the years the former Maltese Finance Minister had carved for himself a prominent niche in Maltese-Libyan affairs both as a politician and a businessman.
– The Sunday Times, today
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The least said the better
The Times, 23 October 2011:
“Mr Dalli was referring to several bits of footage that have emerged on the internet which contradict claims that the former dictator died of wounds he sustained in crossfire during capture.
Despite the shaky images, Col Gaddafi can be clearly seen being dragged along alive amid chants of Allahu Akbar (God is great), only to then re-appear dead with apparent gunshot wounds to the stomach and chest areas.
“There are international agreements on how prisoners of war are treated. You cannot argue that this applies to some people but not to others. It has to apply to everyone and this is why the United Nations is asking for certain investigations,” Mr Dalli said.
“There are legal structures that go beyond emotions and which the UN needs to protect. We cannot close our eyes to this case because what happens then with other cases? You will lose your consistency.”
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20111023/local/Dalli-welcomes-Gaddafi-s-elimination-questions-execution.390261
The Times, 5 March 2011:
“European Commissioner John Dalli cast doubts on footage coming out from Libya, suggesting some of it may have been staged for television cameras.
“Sometimes, seeing somebody who speaks perfect English with some 30 people behind him to seem like a crowd… doubts creep into my mind as to whether it is staged for journalists and cameras,” he said, when asked about Libya during a breakfast meeting on EU competitiveness, organised by the Malta Business Bureau yesterday.
Condemning the violence, Mr Dalli said he did not rely on media reports of the unrest to know what was happening on the ground.”
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20110305/local/john-dalli-casts-doubt-on-libya-footage.353168
“There are legal structures that go beyond emotions and which the UN needs to protect. We cannot close our eyes to this case because what happens then with other cases? You will lose your consistency.”
Consistency indeed, Mr. Commissioner.