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13 NEWS maltatoday | SUNDAY • 23 JANUARY 2022 Pro choice groups welcome Metsola support for Simone Veil Pact as an opportunity for Maltese and EU lawmakers to follow through with laws Pro-lifers toast Metsola in the morning, then reel back in horror LAURA CALLEJA PRO-CHOICE campaigners in Malta have welcomed de- velopments in Brussels where newly-elected president of the European Parliament, the Na- tionalist MEP Roberta Metsola, has agreed to uphold safe access to abortion for women after signing the Simone Veil Charter. The pact is the creation of Re- new Europe, the former liberal democrats group in the Euro- pean Parliament. Dubbed the 'Macron baby' as the political family of Emanuel Macron's En Marche party, the pact especial- ly important now as France cur- rently holds the European Union presidency. Indeed, critics point out that Macron hopes to use this as a platform campaign for the upcoming French election in April 2022. The pact is named after Si- mone Veil, the first female Euro- pean Parliament president, the Holocaust survivor was a French health minister who advanced women's rights in France, with the 1975 law that legalised abor- tion today known as the Loi Veil. Independent MP Marlene Far- rugia, who filed a historic bill in parliament to decriminalise abortion in Malta back in May 2021, said she was thrilled that Metsola has agreed to sign the Simone Veil pact. "Even though I think it will take time for this to have an im- pact on a local level, you can see the reaction to the Bill I tabled in parliament: it was ignored. "However, having conserva- tives such as Roberta and myself come out in favour of legislation hopefully will inspire those who have always closed their eyes to the subject to accept it and also make them realise that legisla- tion is not the same as promot- ing." Farrugia said Veil herself ac- knowledged that abortion was a topic that was difficult to pitch right, because it was emotional and complex for people to talk about. She referred to Veil's own 1974 speech in which she called abortion "the exception, the last resort in a hopeless situation". And while signing the pact was only a part of Metsola's duty, Farrugia said it could still strive to create a Europe where wom- en have the right to decide when they want to get pregnant. "This is through better education and access to contraception; it's vio- lence against women that is ta- boo, not abortion." Doctors for Choice member Isabel Stabile said the NGO wel- comed Metsola's announcement that she will follow through with the EP's effort to ensure all women in the EU have access to contraception and safe, legal abortion. "Regardless of one's personal views on these topics, the scientific evidence is clear that access to contraception and safe abortion keeps women and girls safe and are essential in any healthcare system," Prof. Stabile said. She urged Maltese politicians to stop dragging their feet and ensure that women in Malta can access the same reproductive health services as women else- where in the EU. "Adding the right to abortion to the EU's Charter of Funda- mental Freedoms will send a clear message to Metsola's party in Malta that they should follow suit because women in Malta should have the same rights as women do elsewhere in the EU," Stabile said. Moviment Graffitti Christine Cassar said the Veil pact in- cludes principles Graffitti is still fighting for, including sexual and reproductive rights, com- bating violence against women, equality at work, political rep- resentation and improving fam- ily life. "We cannot have a just and equal society without these fun- damental principles. We are eagerly awaiting the implemen- tation of this Pact at a national level so that women in Malta can enjoy the same sexual and reproductive rights as women in other European countries do," she said. Cassar hoped Metsola and oth- er European leaders understood the urgency of signing this pact with a commitment of following through with appropriate legis- lation. "Having said that, no legisla- tion will bring about true equali- ty without a commitment to also challenge the patriarchal and misogynistic culture that still persists today. It is unacceptable that legal structures and cultural norms continue to hinder wom- en, which means restricting the economic and social freedom of half the population. Women's rights are human rights!" Cassar said. Women's Rights Foundation board member Andrea Dibben said the Simone Veil pact solid- ified the EU's commitment to- wards gender equality. "Metsola is known for her conservative politics, but there is no doubt that she is commit- ted to gender equality. She has shown leadership and courage in adopting the Parliament's direc- tion on sexual and reproductive rights without reservation, and her pledge to sign the Simone Veil Pact solidifies this commit- ment." Certainly not in support of Metsola's support for the Renew pact was Life Network Founda- tion, the anti-choice group that on Wednesday morning greet- ed Metsola's election as an "an- ti-abortion president" with glee. That same evening following Metsola's meeting wwith Ema- nuel Macron, the group issued a different message on its social media. "Disgraceful! Dear Roberta Metsola, we remind you that you also represent the rights of all the baby girls in the womb." lcalleja@mediatoday.com.mt Miriam Sciberras, chair of the Life Network Foundation, celebrated the election of Roberta Metsola, but then called out the President of the EP after signing the Simone Veil Pact Attard says that the Criminal Code already provides for an increase in punishment for ag- gravated or motivated crimes, so the concept already exists. "Once again, the problem I see is the lack of its application, which is occurring for many reasons, including the lack of awareness on these provisions, or the lack of knowledge on how to apply them and suc- cessfully prosecute them," At- tard says. Istanbul Convention Dimitrijevic calls for a more accurate and faithful transpo- sition of the Istanbul Conven- tion "What we have at present is a watered-down version of the convention that has elim- inated any specific reference to violence against women. The criminal code recognises gender-based violence or vio- lence on the basis of gender or gender identity; however, this is clearly not enough," Dimitri- jevic says. She adds that by taking a neutral approach, Malta is de- tracting from the reality of the suffering women and girls have to sustain due to harmful prac- tices and attitudes that Maltese society has towards them. Education is key Dalli believes more needs to be done to get to the root of why violence against women and ultimately femicide oc- curs, and that the only way to do so is through education. "Malta requires a cultural and educational renewal so that people stop objectifying wom- en and start treating them with the dignity they deserve," Dalli explains. She points out that more needs to be done to teach women that violence is not a private matter and to recog- nise the red flags. "Certain aspects need to be fostered through education, now more than ever. Girls need to be taught to leave at the first sign of violence, and not to stay even if it's something that when you see it, your stomach churns in doubt," she adds. No act of violence should be tolerated and this message needs to come across, Dalli in- sists. The country needs to talk about aggression in its many different forms, she says. "This is not talked about enough and this is part of the problem."