Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1213458
14 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 23 FEBRUARY 2020 NEWS At 100 years, is Labour in labour once again? THE Labour Party has emerged from the implosion of the Mus- cat government, its numerous corruption scandals and a lead- ership contest, unscathed in opinion polls. With a new leader keen on reaching out to critics of La- bour's track-record on govern- ance, the party has a big oppor- tunity to consolidate its hold amongst middle-of-the-road voters. But can the party also retain the progressive edge and sense of purpose, which charac- terised its history; or is it des- tined to become more moder- ate, bland and "normal"? MaltaToday caught up with Labour Party president Daniel Jose Micallef, the former depu- ty mayor of Marsaskala Desiree Attard, and sociologist and LEAD participant Maria Brown, asking them to map the party's priorities in five key sectors and to take the liberty to make a few suggestions. Civil liberties: unfinished business? Under Joseph Muscat, Labour spearheaded a social revolu- tion which turned Malta from a laggard in international rank- ings into a 'beacon of hope'. But lately the party showed more caution on regularising sex work and recreational mar- ijuana, and has been overtaken by civil society groups testing its limits on abortion. What's the next frontier in the party's civil rights agenda? Daniel Jose Micallef: The last 12 years marked a huge turna- round for our country. Even from the Opposition we put on the na- tional agenda issues, which were considered taboo. In nine years, our country introduced divorce, civil unions, and equal marriage. Legislatively a lot has been done; I still think we need to focus much more on education even from early ages, and tackle head-on a culture of visible hatred in the age of social media. The right to privacy, the right-to-disconnect and other labour market relat- ed rights are some of the topics I anticipate will be on top of the agenda in the near future. Desiree Attard: The country needs to have a mature discus- sion on sexual health and repro- ductive rights. Government has already launched several cam- paigns on sexual health, but we need a cohesive approach to ed- ucation, especially for teenagers. Society needs women and men who know what a healthy sex life should be, what contraceptives are available, what respect for one's partners entails, and that their bodily autonomy is inalien- able. Maria Brown: The priority should be that of strengthening existing civil liberties in a holis- tic manner. For example, while live-cams and biometric pass- ports contribute to safer and better-organised communities, these also pose unprecedented challenges to privacy and data protection. Investments in mul- ti-disciplinary working groups that research how to capitalise on such technologies with eth- ical expertise, are key. Labour should springboard quality as- surance and devolution of the ex- isting provision of legal aid, also through collaboration with local councils. The MaltaToday view: Judging by the polls, abortion remains a no-go area for any party aspiring to power, but Labour can still distinguish itself by allowing full freedom to its members and ac- tivists to debate this issue, thus passing the message that being pro-choice is a legitimate posi- tion. The recreational use of can- nabis should be legalised to break the link between illegal mafias and many law-abiding adults. Sex work should be decriminal- ised in a way that these workers benefit from full legal protection as all other workers, while action against human trafficking should be stepped up. Gender equality Joseph Muscat had promised the 'most feminist government' in Maltese history but female representation in parliament and public boards remains on the low side. The government now wants to increase female MPs through a corrective con- stitutional mechanism. But beyond institutional changes, the government is also expect- ed to tackle the gender pay gap and deeply entrenched sexism. What's the next step? DJM: Labour was, and still is the main political force advocating for gender equality in Malta. On a number of aspects, our country seems to have hit the pause but- ton decades ago. Our focus as a party is to see enacted without further delay, mechanisms which address the lack of gender bal- ance in the political realm, which would then undoubtedly serve as a catalyst for further change at all levels in our country. DA: Government must address work-life balance. Conservatives will say that the issue is not legis- lative, and that patriarchal men- talities cannot be changed over- night, but this is only partly true. Government must introduce measures which change the role of men when it comes to caring responsibilities, as well as give all workers their right to personal, quality time. That is how you de- stroy archaic mentalities. MB: One priority here is to re- frame the discourse into one of gender equity. There are imbal- ances that would benefit from allocating more resources to women, such as gender main- streaming and electoral gen- der-corrective mechanisms. Pol- icy and incentives that resource men, LGBTI+ identities and families need to be developed, in dialogue with social partners: ex- amples include increased mater- nity, paternity and parental paid leave, including sick leave to take care of dependents; increasing state aid to support health needs of LGBTI+ persons; disassociat- ing state-funded childcare and after-school services from em- ployment, to eliminate pending discrimination between children entitled to these educational re- sources (by virtue of their par- ents' employment status), and those who are not. On the occasion of Labour's centenary, weeks after a crisis which rocked the party's foundations, JAMES DEBONO asks Labour activists and thinkers on where they see the party heading over key issues which shape the party's reformist identity JAMES DEBONO