Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1254350
5 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 3 JUNE 2020 NEWS George Floyd murder in US a reminder of Lassana Cisse's brutal killing in Malta MATTHEW VELLA THE US protests sparked by the racist murder of George Floyd at the hands of a white police of- ficer have been marked in Malta by a message of remembrance for Lassane Cisse, murdered in a drive-by shooting by two former AFM soldiers. Cisse lost his life in April 2019 2019 while walk- ing home to Hal Far, when two young army sol- diers, driving in a car, shot at him and two other black men. Lorin Scicluna and Francesco Fenech stand accused of having shot Cisse dead in cold blood, but were granted bail eight months later. "If you are shocked at the protests in the US and worldwide, take a moment to bring it home," hu- man rights organisation Aditus Foundation said. "Remember that in 2019 Lassana Cisse was killed in Ħal Far. Remember that two soldiers, duty-bound to protect the nation (all of it) re- main charged with his murder. Remember that the best we could do as a nation was order an internal inquiry. "Remember that in 2020 the inquiry by the AFM about the AFM found no sign of racism in the AFM. Next time you express shock, disbelief, anger or sadness about George Floyd, remember Lassane Cisse." 46-year-old George Floyd suffered a cardiac ar- rest while being restrained by Minneapolis po- lice. His death has sparked outrage and protests across the United States. The video showing a white police officer kneeling on Floyd's neck even after he pleaded he could not breathe has reignited deep-seated anger over police killings of black Americans. The officer, Derek Chauvin, has been charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter and will appear in court next week. Three other po- lice officers have been fired. The riots in Minneapolis coincide with the start of Pride season for the gay community, a fact that has not gone unnoticed by the Malta Gay Rights Movement. The MGRM said pride was an occasion to cel- ebrate all diversities – the keyword used here is intersectionalities, that is, diversities of race, orientation, gender identity, and more. "It's not pride if it is racist... Pride was born as a result of the refusal to police brutality and sys- temic oppression. Never forget, the uprising of Stonewall in NYC was led by a black, trans wom- an, Marsha P. Johnson. "The LGBTQ+ community in Malta has also faced persecution by authorities and homopho- bic/transphobic violence over the years, and on- ly our collective and organised action challenged the dominant discourse and earned us the right to marry whomever we love, to form a family and to be protected from harm, hatred and dis- crimination. "As an unrepentant part of a proud minority, we must not forget the plight of those who are still oppressed. Our fight for justice, equality and freedom can and will never be over." The MGRM said that it was undisputed that people of colour in Malta are a minority that still suffer from oppression and racism. "Faced with even more hate, are the refugees and asylum seekers, from African countries, living in Malta. Unfortunately, COVID-19 has exacerbated rac- ism from all fronts and Human Rights are being gambled for the sake of gaining political mileage and populist victories." Whilst Malta's LGBTQ+ community is pre- dominantly white and European, the MGRM even this group had to recognise its white privi- lege and learn from the discrimination they had themselves suffered "and transform our strength into compassion and solidarity. It is our turn to be allies for a minority which has been suffering for too long. Pride is an occasion to celebrate all diversities with all our intersectionalities. There is no place for hate, only love." Lassane Cisse, murdered in April 2019 KARL AZZOPARDI NATIONALIST Party MP Jason Azzopardi has called on the act- ing police commissioner to in- vestigate parliamentary secretary Clayton Bartolo's interest in the government's prefabricated hos- pital tender. The PN MP said in parliament tonight that he had received "in- criminating information" which suggested the parliamentary sec- retary had taken interest in the tender. Government had issued a call for the purchase, delivery and in- stallation of a prefabricated hos- pital capable of caring for over 90 patients at the start of the COV- ID-19 pandemic in March. The government later an- nounced it would not be pursuing the idea, as the number of COV- ID-19 patients remained low. Azzopardi had claimed back in March that the hospital was "a scandal in the making", a state- ment that prompted Health Min- ister Chris Fearne to order an investigation into the claims of wrongdoing. Jason Azzopardi said that the health minister had avoided "not without reason" a parliamentary question asked by himself, which looked to understand Bartolo's role in the prefabricated hospital. "I alleged that a Parliamentary Secretary, not within the Health Ministry and who does not have anything to do with health mat- ters and contracts, took a par- ticular interest in a tender worth many, many millions," he said. He also said that Bartolo did this without informing both the health and finance minister. "Will the Police Commissioner now take an interest to investigate the interest that this Parliamenta- ry Secretary took in a public call for a prefabricated hospital which has now been abandoned after I outed it as a sham?" he said. Azzopardi wants Clayton Bartolo investigated over prefabricated hospital