The British government: “Citizenship is a privilege, not a right”.
An expert in the field had argued, in a guest post written for this website, that it would be perfectly legal for an incoming Nationalist government to strip of their Maltese citizenship all those who have bought it for cash from Joseph’s government.
Manuel Mallia, an expert only in criminal law, went nuts and bellowed that doing this would be illegal and unconstitutional. His equally misguided boss chimed in with the same tune.
But Simon Busuttil has continued to insist that this is exactly what he will do, and he knows what he is talking about in that he has the law on his side.
Those who watch only Super One television and get their news through Facebook will be unaware that Britain’s Home Office has increased its powers to strip jihadists fighting in Syria of their British nationality.
The British government said in a statement last month: “Citizenship is a privilege, not a right, and the Home Secretary will remove British citizenship from individuals where she feels it is conducive to the public good to do so.”
This, of course, is the flip-side to Britain’s repeated insistence in replying, when asked about Malta’s plans to sell citizenship, that it is up to each country to decide how and when to grant citizenship.
Those who giveth may taketh away.
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http://www.itv.com/news/update/2013-12-22/home-office-british-citizenship-is-a-privilege-not-a-right/
Oh but it happens in other EU countries too. Germany, for example.
German citizenship can be revoked on the basis of specific laws, in the following cases:
1. Upon the persons’s request, if they have been granted or hold citizenship of another country.
2. For conscripts who join another country’s armed forces (whose citizenship they hold)
And here’s the relevant bit for us:
3. Revocation of naturalisation obtained through moral fraud, bribery, deception or incorrect/incomplete information.
Cheers, Manuel. You’re the moral fraud here.
LIKE
Does moral fraud relate to not entering some legal obligation in good faith?
Isn’t that what government is doing?
Moral fraud is a legal term for what I call “pimps, crooks and scoundrels”. In U.S. jurisprudence, it is called moral turpitude and defined as: “conduct that is considered contrary to community standards of justice, honesty or good morals.” It is enough to bar the individual from entering U.S. territory, letting alone from granting them a U.S. passport.
The German definition is the same.
In other words, it allows the German government to revoke the passports of shady characters. I’d say it covers any contingency. Clever, these Germans.
I can understand that Joseph Muscat doesn’t have any idea about legal rights and privileges. But Manuel Mallia should know better. By the way, I would like the to hear the General Attorney’s view now.
Joseph Muscat is trying to sell as many passports as possible before starting discussions with the EU about the scheme. I hope the EU will take position against issuing of these passports.
Too late.Too late.
Why is Joe Mizzi so worried about possible oil spills from the planned oil well to be drilled this year south of Malta, so much that he asked for Norwegian assistance (see web link below)?
It seems that Joe Mizzi has finally realised that the Tony Hayward, the CEO of Genel Energy, the company that will be drilling the well, also happens to be the person responsible for the massive oil spill caused by the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. This was the largest oil spill in US history.
What did US President Barack Obama say in an interview on NBC on 8 June about Tony Hayward? ” He wouldn’t be working for me after any of those statements”, referring to the remarks Hayward made following the Gulf of Mexico spill. Well, now he is working on Joe Mizzi’s pipedream.
http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2014-01-22/news/norway-to-help-malta-strengthen-maritime-pollution-response-3756883969/
Brilliant. they just had to get the one who couldn’t go anywhere else, not with that record.
Let’s get Mugabe to help Franco Debono with constitutional reform shall we?
The oil well that will be drilled south of Malta this year by Genel Energy may well become the Labour government’s only propaganda scoop, especially since everything else ‘programmed’ by this government is heading for meltdown.
Yet, Genel Energy’s claim is that the probability of success of this well is only 20%. Hardly something to party about.
http://www.genelenergy.com/operations/malta.aspx
Justyne flies to Malta International Airport by AFM helicopter. http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20140123/local/afm-helicopter-ferries-labour-mp-catch-flight-to-france.503726#.UuDEtMukqSM
http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2014-01-23/news/pl-mp-helicopter-trip-cost-1200-3762978816/
Updated with Kurt’s tweet. Which part of “In the past only the President and Prime Minister would use an AFM helicopter, and only in very particular occasions when there was simply no other choice…” didn’t he understand?
So what’s the intention here Kurt, drag Lawrence Gonzi into it? Absolutely sure he used the chopper when crossing by boat was out of the question.
Lanqas tibdew hdejn dak ir-ragel.
Kurt, get to the choppah!
Alouette, qisu karawetta….
You think Joey cares?
He’ll have spent the dosh by then.
Is this truth or fiction?
“Chinese Xinhua news agency, which was quoting the Austria Press Agency, said: “despite the controversy surrounding the issue including condemnation from the European Parliament and Maltese opposition parties, Abela said Malta had not been expressly mentioned in the European Parliament resolution. In addition all granted citizenships are first subject to compliance with EU values, he said.”” (The Malta Independent)
Detto del detto del detto.
If you watched the vote live, you’d know that it’s not true.
Take a short cut: this is Xinhua you’re quoting. Why believe what a Chinese state news agency says?
Are you asking whether it is true that Abela had the gall to say those things? The answer is yes.
If you are asking whether the things you mentioned are the truth, then the answer is no.
Apart from finding it quite strange that you should believe a Chinese News Agency, I would suggest that you follow the EP’s debate, where you would hear for yourself that yes, Malta was expressly mentioned, and furthermore, we have learnt from Ms Reding herself that the scheme goes against compliance with EU values as it is. So pray tell, how could the granted citizenships be compliant with EU values?
What is the link to the UK with this scheme. There are to many parallels at the moment. Are we still under the British. $70 billion worth of trade made with China last year and the Home Office is saying nothing about it.
The link is that citizenship is within the gift of the state. Just as it can be given, so it can be taken away. Not so with citizenship by birthright. No one’s birth can be qualified as illegal in the way that purchasing citizenship can be qualified as illegal.
http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2014-01-23/news/president-abela-defends-citizenship-scheme-3761963008/
Every little helps.
Here we go:
http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2014-01-23/news/eu-commission-prepares-legal-challenge-on-malta-passport-sales-3762585600/
And, incidentally, the President keeps producing evidence that he no longer represents either us or our interests: http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2014-01-23/news/president-abela-defends-citizenship-scheme-3761963008/
He never did.
I realised that early on in his term, but I was just being polite and/or diplomatic.
I have no doubt that Simon Busuttil’s interpretation of the law is the correct one – not because he is a better lawyer than Manuel Mallia (they specialise in different areas of the law) – but because I am sure he did not shoot from the hip, just like Manuel Mallia.
However, with the secrecy clause still in force, how can Simon Busuttil know who the passports have been issued to? We already know that they are being issued (Chinese billionnaire case) – so how will the PN government ensure that all these dodgy passports are withdrawn?
Passports are only useful if they are verifiable. For that to happen, their issuance must be on record. If they are, then they can be traced.
Let us not compare ourselves to Britain for heaven’s sake.
The oldest parliamentary democracy with a fourth-world island of peasants.
Yesterday evening on Sky News Anna Botting had a great almighty showdown with Assad’s leading English-speaking adviser Bouthaina Shaaban.
Botting came out of the debacle as a journalist of the first order.
Her impeccable genes and training served her well.
If only Malta had one journalist possessing a fraction of her professionalism it would be a much better country.
It’s rather rude of you to say that here, of all places.
‘rather rude’? Very rude.
Hear, hear.
On Thursday last week, Identity Malta chairman Joe Vella Bonnici said on TVAM that Minister Manuel Mallia has all rights to strip any individual and his family members of their Maltese citizenship awarded by our “Noted, but no thanks” government if anyone of them is associated with, for example, terrorism, even if this happens after they pass the “stringent” due diligence and they had already been enjoying their new citizenship for years. Why didn’t any of our journalists pick that up?
http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2014-01-23/news/pl-mp-helicopter-trip-cost-1200-3762978816/
Heqq hux, ahjar mill tqabbez queue jew tregga’ vapur lura.
Revocation of “purchased Maltese citizenship” after 5 years would not matter for those who, within the next 5 years, use Maltese citizenship to reside in a EU country thereby possibly acquiring (another) citizenship in that EU country by naturalisation. Nor would it matter for those who within the same period use our citizenship to temporarily stay in another EU country and purchase that EU country’s citizenship.
It is not possible to purchase any EU country’s citizenship. That fiction has been put about by the Labour government. Earning support by deceit is a Labour hallmark.
You’re wrong. You may purchase citizenship in a number of EU states as long as you reside in such member state for a specified period and satisfy investment criteria. My point is that one who purchases Maltese citizenship may use that same citizenship to legally reside in another EU member state that offers such citizenship after a number of years residing there.
[Daphne – You may not purchase the citizenship of any EU member state except Malta. You are badly misinformed.]
DGatt, Daphne is being kind. You are not just badly misinformed, but need to restart your law degree.
There is no country in the EU in which you can apply – key word here, APPLY – for citizenship simply by virtue of 5 years of residency.
The closest you get is France, but even there, residency is not enough. During those five years you need to have held a job with a permanent contract. In any case, citizenship is at the government’s discretion, and no private company is ever involved in the application process.
…or join the French Foreign Legion. But you need balls of steel for that.
You need to be fit, with over eight applicants per post. There are, or were a couple of Maltese citizens in the Legion. One of them was an ex-police officer who got caught selling drugs.
Labour, trying to erase (adverse) history:
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20140123/local/cabinet-minutes-to-be-made-available-for-study-1970s-minutes-missing.503825#.UuEXPRRwbIU
Justyne, Joseph gives you wings.