Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1487299
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 4 DECEMBER 2022 OPINION 11 - such as, say, Moira Delia – were to do the equivalent: by 'laughing out loud', at the sight of cute, fluffy little kit- ten being slowly tortured to death…?) Funny, huh? But wait, it gets even better. For the leader of the Neanderthal Party did not stop at merely 'mocking' both Andrea Pru- dente, and the foetus that was unfortunate enough to die within her uterus… but he even suggested (tak- ing his cue from that other comic genius, Jason Azz- opardi) that Prudente had somehow 'engineered the entire miscarriage herself', to begin with! In other words: that the whole affair was, from be- ginning to end, some kind 'stunt'; and that, as such, it must have been somehow been 'contrived', 'orches- trated', or… well, 'staged'. Erm: sorry to have to ask, but… HOW, exactly? How does Bernard Grech pro- pose that someone like An- drea Prudente could possi- bly have managed to induce a (potentially life-threaten- ing) miscarriage… with the result that her waters broke, while she just happened to be 'riding a bus, in the mid- dle of a holiday in Malta'? The mind boggles, doesn't it? Because as far as I can see, there are only two possible explanations, to account such 'extraordinary' biolog- ical circumstances. Either Bernard Grech is openly accusing Andrea Prudente of having - to quote Article 241(2) of Malta's Criminal Code – "by any food, drink, medicine, or by violence, or by any other means whatso- ever, […] procured her own miscarriage"… … in which case, it is tan- tamount to the Opposition leader accusing Andrea Pru- dente – in Parliament, no less - of having committed a serious crime, that is "liable to imprisonment for a term from eighteen months to three years." (Sort of makes you wonder why Bernard Grech isn't also insisting on an extradition order: so that she can be brought here from the United States, and put on trial for 'witch- cra'… I mean, 'wilful infan- ticide'…) Or else, if we abandon that hypothesis altogether: we are left to conclude that women like Andrea Pru- dente must somehow pos- sess the innate ability – as several (non-human) mem- bers of Animal Kingdom do: cats being the most notable examples - to simply 'termi- nate their own pregnancies, at will'. In which case… erm… do I even need to go on? Sor- ry, but if Andrea Prudente – or any other woman, for matter – was all along ca- pable of 'procuring her own miscarriage', at any time she liked, then: a) why the heck would she have chosen for it to happen ON A BUS, of all unearthly places? (I mean: wouldn't it have been so much more convenient – not to mention a heck of a lot safer – to arrange for her waters to break, while in the comfort of her own ho- tel-room bed?) Much more importantly, however: if all women do indeed have this ability – as cats, and other mammals, apparently do – to simply 'absorb' their own unborn offspring, internally - just like that: by pure volition alone - then… erm… why the bleeding hell are we even discussing the issue of abortion in this country, in the first place? Face it, folks: there would be no such thing as 'abor- tion', to even discuss. No law to even amend. The entire concept of 'abortion', as we understand it – that is to say; a medical procedure to terminate pregnancies, under any circumstances whatsoever – would simply not even exist, anywhere on the face of this planet… if women could simply spare themselves the bother of ever using a coat-hanger; by just 'spontaneously abort- ing their own offspring, like cats'. But, well, there you have it, I suppose. There is only one way we can possibly make sense, of every single aspect of Bernard Grech's entire 'barbaric' speech in Parlia- ment last Wednesday. And that is to recognise it for the crude, crass, and disgust- ingly misogynistic joke it all along was… and LAUGH. A roof on your head is a right, so is affordable housing Justin Anastasi Justin Anastasi is director of We Consult You ARTICLE 25(1) of the Charter of human rights lists adequate housing as one of the fundamental human rights, crucial to ensure a fair stand- ard of living for all persons. In today's day and age however, development is being regarded as a commodity and a form of investment, rather than an essential factor in ensuring physical and mental well-being. Despite being listed as a human right, more and more individuals and family units are faced with the fears of eviction, high maintenance cost of property and the generally high pric- es of property. Eurostat figures show that rent rates have increased by 18% during the last 10 years, while the price of property has soared by 48% during the same time period. Malta is no different and follows most European countries. The in- crease in gap between wages and property prices is transforming basic accommodation into an unafforda- ble luxury for most. The problem lies primarily for youths. Studies have shown that most times their incomes barely reach half the mortgage capi- tal needed to buy basic accommoda- tion without taking into account the generally impossible amounts they are asked to cover deposits and ini- tial expenses. From basic research, it results that for a person to be eligible for social accommodation, the indi-vidual must not earn more than €10,000 an- nually and not have personal wealth exceeding €28,000. Average salaries in Malta reach almost €19,000, but what happens when people earn more than €10,000 but less than the average wage as projected by statis- tics? Many will agree that none of these persons and even those who earn just above the average salary bracket, still cannot afford to buy property. The rental market is likewise be- coming unaffordable. Current rent rates take up more than half the av- erage national salary. We now have situations where rooms and even beds are rented out to foreign work- ers. With the current Government's plan of inflating the economy by allowing more non-EU nationals to work and reside in Malta, there is no immediate possibility of rent prices ever decreasing. While such an eco- nomic model may be good news for speculators on the property market, the same economy tramples upon the fundamental human right to fair accommodation. The search for housing is a concern for many and reaching unacceptable stress levels. Most indi-viduals tend to work multiple jobs in order to af- ford a reasonable standard of living for them-selves and their families. This puts strain on relationships, both personal and professional. The knowledge that no matter how hard you work and how hard you try to make ends meet will never better your situation is resulting in a dis- gruntled workforce for the Maltese Islands. We now live in a situation where the rich are becoming richer and the poor are becoming poorer. No COLA adjustment, tax rebate or in- vestment incentive seems to be im- proving the situation of those who cannot and never will be able to af- ford suitable housing. It is strange that while supply of housing units is widely exceeding demand, the prices remain steadily on the increase. The Gov-ernment must address this is- sue right now, without further await. A serious strategy must be put in ac- tion to ensure that Maltese citizens regain a status they have long and historically enjoyed, that of being home owners. I am sure the government itself is aware that the effort towards a healthy and striving economy must rest on the pillar of a population which enjoys an adequate standard of living and which feels rewarded for its efforts. The strategy must also ensure that the interests of investors are protected and that their invest- ments continue to yield as they have done in recent years. The key to success is ensuring and enforcing value for money and fair pricing, waging war on abuse and re-investing proceeds from develop- ment into social benefits for those who stand in the lower ranks of the economic ladder as well as putting social housing at the core of polit- ical prom-ises and manifestos but most importantly a revision of the thresholds for those who may ben- efit making this more accessible for more persons, be they individuals or family units.