Publication Archives - Page 5 of 13

Malta must adopt a rights-based approach to national anti-racism plans

This is the Introduction to our submissions presented to the Parliamentary Secretariat for Equality and Reform for its consultation on the adoption of a national anti-racism action plan. Essentially, we are urging Government to place human dignity at the heart of its national framework by adopting a rights-based approach to national anti-racism plans.

The full document may be downloaded here.

aditus foundation enthusiastically welcomes Malta’s commitment towards establishing a national action plan to combat racism and xenophobia. This step has the potential of dramatically improving the well-being of thousands of persons living in Malta, whilst simultaneously confirming that Malta is truly committed to upholding the inherent dignity and equality of all persons.

It has always been a key concern of aditus foundation that a country becoming increasingly diverse has failed to muster the courage to engage with this sensitive theme. There is no excuse for the inaction of successive Governments. Year after year, hate speech against racial minorities has grown in volumes and intensity, with social media platforms now entirely dedicated to promoting – directly or indirectly – racial superiority, Nazism, fascism and the suppression of minority groups. The incidence of racially-motivated hate crimes is also of serious concern, the 2019 brutal murder of Lassana Cisse a stark wake-up call for the entire nation. Whilst these incidents have generally targeted the African migrant population, several other communities suffer discrimination on the basis of their membership – or attributed membership – to an ethnic or racial minority, including Maltese nationals.

Just published: our Annual Report for our activities in 2019

We’ve just published the Annual Report covering our activities for 2019. This report is a mandatory document for our reporting to the Commissioner for Voluntary Organisations as also a confirmation of our committment to transparency and accountability.

The report provides information on the activities, initiatives and engagements we worked on throughout the year. It also gives readers an insight into the major achievements and challenges we faced in the year. Importantly, it provides information on the human rights landscape of 2019 and our position within it.

The report is freely available on our Publications page, here.

This is my introduction to the Annual Report. We’re more than happy to provide more information on the Report’s content and our activities…just get in touch with us.

2019 will go down in history as one of Malta’s most tumultuous years. On-going investigations into the brutal assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia continued to unveil shocking stories of corruption at Malta’s highest political levels, including the Office of the Prime Minister and other Ministries, as well as in Malta’s most prominent and influential business circles. The impact on the nation was unprecedented, with upset crowds – led by civil society organisations – taking to the streets for several days with loud calls for justice, accountability and resignations. At the end of the year, the disgraced Prime Minister resigned as also the disgraced Minister for Tourism and the Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff.

The scandals are nowhere near resolved and justice for Daphne and for the criminal activities she was in the process of revealing is far from being secured. In a recent opinion piece, I underlined that, as long as Joseph Muscat and Konrad Mizzi remain members of Parliament, Malta will remain besieged by corruption and criminal activity, unable to restore democracy.

Asylum throughout 2019: AIDA report on Malta is now available!

aditus foundation is happy to announce the launch of the 2019 AIDA report.

The Asylum Information Database (AIDA) is a project of the European Council on Refugees & Exiles (ECRE), producing national reports on the situation of asylum in a number of EU Member States. The reports covers key areas such as asylum procedures, reception conditions and detention.

It aims to provide up-to-date information on asylum practice in 23 European countries, which is accessible to researchers, advocates, legal practitioners and the general public. The database also seeks to promote the implementation and transposition of EU asylum legislation reflecting the highest possible standards of protection in line with international refugee and human rights law and based on best practice. The 2019 AIDA report on Malta was researched and prepared by aditus foundation and edited by ECRE.

Together with a comprehensive overview of asylum procedures and updated figures, the report highlights the main issues for the year 2019, in particular the significant increase of migrants disembarked in Malta following Search and Rescue operations leading to a renewed pressure on the reception system and the systematic and automatic detention of all asylum-seekers.

The full report can be downloaded here.

Our 3 fresh policy papers on refugee integration, with Integra & JRS!

On behalf of aditus foundation, Integra Foundation and JRS Malta, I would like to share with you our 3 new publications on refugee integration.

Published in the context of Project Integrated, with the support of UNHCR Malta, the 3 Policy Papers are intended to guide our advocacy with Government on key aspects of refugee integration. In the coming months we will be engaging in dialogue sessions with Ministries and other entities so as to present our views and discuss ways forward.

The Policy Papers, published as an on-going series of policy input, are as follows (click on the names to download in .pdf):

Family Unit: a Fundamental Right highlights our concerns with Malta’s absolute ban on family reunification for beneficiaries of subsidiary protection, and urges Government to grant this right;
Input to the Ministry for European Affairs and Equality on the Migrant Integration Strategy and Action Plan focuses on the newly-adopted national integration strategy and seeks to strengthen its effectiveness by suggesting ministry-by-ministry actions and interventions;
Long-Term Residence and Citizenship by Naturalisation: A Necessity for Integration underlines the challenges faced by refugees as they attempt to secure a more stable presence in Malta, with a series of recommendations on how to make these avenues more accessible to them.

Do not hesitate to contact us should you require further information.

We’ve launched Our Island II: Personal Accounts of Refugees in Malta!

It is a book about integration and the paths that people follow — voluntarily or otherwise — as they slowly make Malta home, their island.
Neil Falzon, aditus Director, talking to the Times of Malta

On Friday, May 10, at the Casino Maltese, Valletta, aditus foundation launched Our Island II: Personal Accounts of Refugees in Malta with the support of the European Parliament Office in Malta, UNHCR Malta and the European Council on Refugees and Exiles. The publication of Our Island II, the second in the Our Island series of migration books, was funded through the President’s Award for Creativity, which is managed by Arts Council Malta.

The launch was a great success, with the upper gallery of the Casino Maltese full of friends and fans of the project, and books flying off the tables. Our guests included civil society colleagues, members of the press and many figures from Malta’s diverse migrant community.

Mary and Ousmane, two contributors to Our Island II, as well as aditus Director Neil Falzon, Senior Communication Coordinator at ECRE Villads Zahle and European Parliament Office in Malta Acting Head Anna Zammit addressed the gathered guests at the start of the evening.

Neil, in his opening speech, contemplated the value of Our Island as a vehicle for the revelation that is migrant voices and first-person migrant stories: new arrivals making Malta their own and explaining how that endeavour continues to unfold in their own words — rather than either being rendered anonymous and invisible by generic news coverage, public discourse and government policy, or being spoken for through the work of their NGO advocates.

In closing, Mary, originally from Sierra Leone, offered humour and encouragement. She arrived in Malta as a war refugee, wife and mother. She is now a Mater Dei Hospital paediatric nurse, homeowner and proud taxpayer studying for a master’s degree — having started her university education in Malta. Mary insisted, “Malta gave me a chance, a second chance at life… So, brothers and sisters, do not be disheartened. To be a refugee is not a disease. You can make it. If I can make it, you can also make it.”