The big deal in China: deja vu all over again. Truly there is nothing new under the Labour sun.
Mintoff did it with China in the 1970s. Back then, Malta was over-run by Chinese coolies with no rights and protected by no labour laws, building the Red China Dock as a gift from Red China.
This morning, we’re told that in terms of this blast-from-the-past agreement, the Chinese communist dictatorship is going to be bearing gifts again.
Not a dock this time, as those days are gone. No, this time it’s a BREAKWATER – presumably to be called the Democratic China Breakwater as now we are progressive, though if you protest we’ll bring out our tanks again.
When Mintoff’s big deal with China began to run out of gas, he turned to another bloody dictator: Muammar Gaddafi in Libya. Before we knew it, Malta was over-run by Libyan Cultural Institutes and ambassadors of Gaddafi culture; Maltese schoolchildren were taken to admire the murderer and cheer on his sporadic visits to Malta, Gaddafi’s Green Book was handed out in Maltese schools, and Arabic was made a compulsory part of the school curriculum.
As I said, back to the future, and I quote Times of Malta’s report from China:
Other areas of cooperation will be culture, tourism and education, including an expansion of the Confucius Institute at the University of Malta. The Office of Chinese Language Council International will be encouraged to set up Confucius classrooms in some Maltese secondary schools to promote the study of Chinese as a foreign language.
Why should teaching of Chinese be promoted in Malta by China? The obvious interpretation there is that it is being seen as something that benefits China and is being done as a favour to them.
If Malta’s education authorities and the business community think that Maltese children should learn Chinese (if they want to) because it would be to their benefit in the world of business and because Maltese industry needs more people who speak Chinese, and if the demand is there anyway and is unmet, then it is MALTA’S EDUCATION AUTHORITIES who should organise and promote the teaching of Chinese, and not the Chinese Communist dictatorship via a satellite presence in Maltese schools.
Confucius classrooms funded and organised by communist dictators, indeed. So now Maltese children in state schools, many of whom can barely communicate in basic English despite its being crucial to their survival, let alone their success, are going to be encouraged to learn Chinese. Can we get our priorities right?
Ruddy Evarist Bartolo needs to get the British Council into Maltese schools and not ‘Confucius classrooms’ funded by gross violators of human rights and perpetrators of hideous abuse.
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http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20140709/local/update-2-malta-china-mou-features-cooperation-in-aviation-energy-new-breakwater-and-monorail-projects.526998
Simon Busuttil says he welcomes foreign investment.
One bloody gives up.
I’m about to as well.
Hopefully, although it does not seem like it, Simon Busuttil has given up. Could it be a case of if you cannot beat them, join them? That is a sure way of losing the next election too so do please wake up PN. Get off your bums and forget about summer holidays, Christmas Holidays, Easter Holidays and so on. Show a bit of stamina please. This is owed to 132,000 people who voted PN. I know it is difficult trying to keep up with as government who is continuously dishing out euros to make the people ‘happy’.
Etil, which PN?
May I spell it out to anyone close to Simon Busuttil who might be reading this, on the off chance that they might pass on the message?
PLEASE. STAND. UP. TO. CHINA.
CHINA BAD. CHINA EVIL. IT IS NOT RACIST TO OPPOSE CHINA.
Sewwa qed tgħid. Il-PN reqdin raqda papali. Qishom qatgħu qalbhom u ma jafux x’se jagħmlu.
Qumu fuq tagħkom PN għax se nerġgħu nispiċċaw bħas-snin 70 – inbaxxu rasna u nobdu mingħajr ma nistgħu nilmentaw jew nipprotestaw.
Bħalissa f’moħħi qed jiġini l-film Tenko fejn in-nisa miżmuma priġuniera riedu ta’ kuljum xemx, xita, bard u sħana, joħorġu barra mill-barrakki li kienu jgħixu fihom u suldati ġappuniżi joħdulhom l-attendenza…jgħajtu lil kull waħda minnhom u dawn ma setgħux jilmentaw…..għax b’rashom idur.
Żmien tal-biża’ jidher ġej fuqna.Il-Bambin biss jista’ jilliberana flimkien magħna jekk nagħarfu ma nibqgħux ċassi.
And the laughs just keep on coming.
I never knew voting Labour would give me so many chuckles.
I do not think there is anything funny about Labour. We seem to have different types of sense of humour.
Għandna biex nidħku! Iktar nista’ ngħid tal-biki.
Couple of points to bear in mind.
The MoU is only eight pages long, apparently, which indicates that is only a broad framework and probably bereft of detail.
http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/40987/gozo_bridge_feasibility_study_first_item_on_muscats_china_visit#.U70rIfQW3LV
“The MoU, eight pages long, recognises the need to establish an agreed framework for future cooperation in the medium-term and acknowledges the understanding reached between Muscat and Li Keqiang in their September meeting.”
Only selected media will join official trips abroad as it’s official policy. AKA we will only take journalists who say nice things about us or who won’t find out what we are actually up too.
http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2014-07-09/news/selecting-media-for-pm-trips-abroad-now-policy-5772017664/
The newspapers that don’t get their trip dispensed to them as a favour by the prime minister should pay their own way and go just the same. The prime minister can’t stop them. That’s what should happen anyway, because he who pays for the piper’s airfare and hotel calls the tune.
Sure, of course they can and there is nothing to stop them as you say.
The crucial point that you seem to have missed is that they will take selected media only as part of official government policy.
Now, I don’t know about you but I find it appalling that a govt in a democratic country can even think that let alone make it a policy.
It sort of reminds me countries such as, well like… China ….
You can’t get into China as a journalist and operate freely when you are there. If your visa application isn’t refused outright, you’ll find spokes in every wheel, every step of the way and if you manage to step out of line, e.g. by taking an unauthorised photograph or asking an unscripted question, you’ll find yourself on the first plane out – if you’re lucky enough, that is.
This is the government controlling the news and the freedoms of the media, as a policy.
Because really, if news is given on an exclusivity basis to the selected houses, and to the exclusion of others, this is what it is.
Is it not a violation of the prime minister’s constitutional oath of office where it deals with “minghajr pjaciri u favuri”?
I find this to be totally dishonest and scandalous, and I am reminded of “we need to rein in the media.”
Yet, has The Malta Independent published a leader on the subject?
I think the oath of office says “…minghajr biza u favuri.”
In addition to my previous comment, no journalist can get into China as a journalist unless they are invited by the Chinese government.
A monorail project. Now where did that come from?
http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/33081/entrepreneur-revives-monorail-proposal-20140113#.U70nD5SSyig
‘…Explaining that the proposal would cost around €300 million, Xuereb said that the electric cabins or people carriers would take up the lion’s share of the projected cost…’
‘….He said the network would cover 7.5km, including a 2km stretch in Marsa which would be elevated. Xuereb is proposing the creation of four stations in Valletta, Fgura, Marsa and Msida next to Mater Dei Hospital…’
Marsa is where Labour and the GWU have their World headquarters.
Indeed, Mizzi said he’ll build elevated transport sections from St.Lucia down to Marsa Shipbuilding, surprise surprise.
Monorails are perhaps the most expensive technology there is. making sense only where speeds are essential and that in a straight line, the topography particularly difficult or simply showcase rides.
Elevating these to combat costs will be interesting to watch.
http://www.railway-technology.com/projects/chongqing-metro/
The plain truth however, shows otherwise.
http://thisbigcity.net/sydney-las-vegas-springfield-how-monorail-failed-in-our-cities-the-simpsons/
‘…When America celebrated its bicentennial in 1976 we set off some fireworks, opened some exhibitions, and had the Queen visit her former colonies so that we could gloat about our victory over her predecessors. I assume. For Australia’s celebration in 1988, Sydney built a monorail.
Not that a new transportation system shouldn’t be cause for celebration, but the fact of the matter is that the powers that be in Sydney pushed what they considered to be the transit of the future ahead of proven concepts like light rail, a more successful infrastructure with lower capital and maintenance costs. Bad bets happen, but from a distance it looks like Sydney left too much on the table.
But what if it wasn’t so much a bet as much as it was a fix? In an exhaustive article (named, in an almost cosmic coincidence for TBC, “Why Sydney Found Itself Looking Up at a Monorail”) Sydney Morning Herald’s Tracey Aubin documented the entire process—from design to construction—and discovered an alarming amount of political gamesmanship that pushed the monorail forward even as departments tasked with oversight predicted problems:
“[Dept. of Environment and Planning official Helen Reid’s] report shows there were a number of risks to the Government in approving the monorail. These included no control on fares paid by patrons, and its impact on existing transport systems. It shows the legislation enacted for the monorail was, in part, to preclude compensation claims and court challenges associated with the transport system and that the Labor Government expected “large and prolonged opposition to the project.”
For the Sydney city government to ignore such specific and glaring claims is a bit suspect to say the least, especially considering the monorail fares have jumped to AU$4.90 (US$5.20) since 1988, making the Metro Monorail one of the most expensive mass transit trips on the planet. Aubin goes on to add: “[the Sydney government] knew the [monorail] system never had been proved in a comparable urban situation, and worried over the monorail’s environmental difficulties.” Novelty alone isn’t a reason to dismiss an infrastructure project, but mass transit is less Highline and more Big Dig; being effective has to be the prime goal or you end up with a slow-moving—and empty—eyesore.
But the monorail was built down under, and the concerns that presented themselves in 1988 appear to be slightly more than clairvoyant: prices jumped ahead of inflation, ridership estimates were badly overshot. The Sydney monorail is a floating reminder of municipal mistakes. In a recent interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, the city’s former public works minister and monorail champion Laurie Bereton said it best: “allowing private interests to run public transport is a crappy concept and a recipe for disaster.”’
Jozef, this is the truth about Sydney’s monorail:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-06-30/sydney-monorail-to-make-final-journey-before-demolition/4789916
“Sydney’s much-maligned monorail will loop around the city for the final time tonight after nearly 25 years of service.
The New South Wales Government is tearing down the track to build a new convention centre.
Sydney’s Lord Mayor says the demise of the monorail, which has eight stations along the 3.6 kilometres of track, will eventually lead to improved public transport in the city.
Clover Moore says the monorail was never efficient…”
Sydney has consigned its monorail to history.
The truth is that monorail is, at best, for Asian countries, like Japan or South Korea, where complex technology impresses people and people are willing to pay for it.
As can be seen from the present public transport situation, the Maltese public prefers to own a car, rather than use public transport. This should give a clear indication that the monorail will be a failure, and at best, it will be used by tourists and will only kill off the sight seeing buses.
Meanwhile, the clowns at the Auberge de Castille continue on their project to turn Malta into an amusement park – so a monorail here is likely to be a major attraction.
https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/189/505391670_6d2e57def8.jpg
I know, why a monorail which leaves no possibility of crossings and junctions in a maze this small?
I can understand an urban light rail network, rails integrated into the street surface or an independent semi-underground, but not the disadvantages carried by both.
Let’s elevate the damn thing then.
For sale; Sliema seafront apartment, perfect to board the monorail, balcony carrying necessary permits.
Seems like the manufacturers of monorails have lost their customers in the important cities, and someone is trying to offload a monorail system onto the Maltese government led by Joseph Muscat.
Joseph Muscat gives me the impression that in terms of mental development, he is stuck in his teen age, where everything new is like “wow, one day I will have one of those.” So he thinks he can Malta like Dubai or Singapore, with his grand ideas of a monorail, land reclamation, high rises…
Qisu qatt ma hareg mid-dar.
Instead, what we want here is an authentic Malta. Not one covered with concrete and steel. But one which truly reflects the colour of the natural Mediterranean stone and rock formations under the clear sun shine.
If the Piano project was a “kapricc” according to Muscat, what is a monorail?
Ciccio, l-armar tal-festa ta’ Burmarrad nofs tuzzana qsari tal-plastic fuq travetti tal-injam.
X’ridtu jara meta hareg mid-dar?
The prime minister gave a brief comment to Times of Malta – see the video in the link posted by admin. He refers to Angela Merkel’s visit to China.
Why does he have to go that low to make his arguments?
Why does the Prime Minister have to criticise the mission of the head of government of another EU country in this way? It’s not a competition.
Angela Merkel is working on concrete joint ventures involving real firms from the German private sector. She is not in China to sign a piece of paper containing a wish list which may mean anything and may mean nothing.
Look at the headline here, now, before they change it:
“Possible Chinese investment in Marsamxett breakwater”
http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/40987/gozo_bridge_feasibility_study_first_item_on_muscats_china_visit
So is it only “possible,” or is it definite?
100% correct on the English thing. He (the minister of education) knows only too well. The fruit of 4 decades of misguided “educators”.
Using the Chinese recent dealings with African puppets and South American dictators, the return for China is much much more than the pennies (even if in millions of Euros or a grandiose project built by slave labour) they spend.
China is also planning to set up a new development bank to rival the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, which they cannot fully control (i.e. force them to use the authoritarian rules that are normal in China).
Well, they better hurry, Goldman Sachs, RBS, every German bank and more are in a frenzy to get their trillions out of China’s national institutions.
Seems they waited too long to see some returns on projects which it seems were never going to make money anyway.
And that’s what happens when you scramble onto a regime riddled with officials, technicians and experts all out to make the fastest buck in the East.
What’s crystallising is a regime no longer capable of controlling its own party officials and a population on the verge of social collapse.
When one of your problems is the absolute contamination of a sub-continent’s groundwater, no checks, no quality, just fast bucks, even the one dry swell can reduce extensive provinces into deserts.
Imagine having to abandon a ‘miraculous’ industrialisation process to combat its consequences to be able to feed a nation.
The whole place is literally coming apart.