Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1489264
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 1 JANUARY 2023 8 INTERVIEW Raphael Vassallo rvassallo@mediatoday.com.mt 'Qatargate' is about more than As an MEP, you have raised sev- eral complaints about discrimi- nation against Maltese citizens by European Institutions. Ex- amples include the case of Mar- tins Zemitis: a Latvian national, appointed as policy-advisor to Malta's EU Representation, without the necessary Maltese language qualifications. Do you feel that, at a certain level, the European Union treats Mal- ta differently from other mem- ber states? And if so, how do you account for the discrimina- tion? That 'Malta is treated differ- ently from other EU member states' is, I think, very clear and self-evident. Just look at the situation con- cerning DGs (Director-Gen- erals), for example. It is a very important role in which to have [Maltese] nationals, because – within the structures of the Commission - it's an equal- ly powerful position, as that of a European Commissioner. Yet to date, we have not had a single Maltese DG: despite the fact that we've had Mal- tese nationals working within the Commission's civil service, since way back in 2004. This, on its own, just doesn't make sense. As for the appointment of Martins Zemitis: I raised that issue, because it was a classic, clear-cut case. But if you look at all the other appointments, and vacancies, at the EU's Malta rep- resentation office… you will find that this is actually happening on a regular basis. There were a lot of Maltese candidates for other posts, many of whom were already contractually engaged by the Commission, who were like- wise totally discarded [in favour of other nationalities]. And this is something that just doesn't happen anywhere else. We looked into similar ap- pointments in other EU mem- ber states: in France, Germany, Spain, etc… and in all those countries, it would be consid- ered 'unthinkable' to appoint, say, a Maltese candidate for a similar role: even at much lower levels… let alone, as a policy-ad- visor to the EU representation (as was the case with Zemitis in Malta). Bear in mind also that the po- sition itself is very sensitive: the Representation Office is the Eu- ropean Union's direct link with all Malta's ministries, govern- ment departments, NGOS and civil society; and at the end of the day, its function is to col- lect data and information that will ultimately be used in the Commission's assessment of the country as a whole… Your last point, however, may also explain precisely why the EU prefers to appoint foreign- ers. Could it simply be that the Commission doesn't trust Mal- tese citizens enough to occupy such a sensitive role: especial- ly, given all the 'rule-of-law' is- sues that have arisen in recent years? That's not the reason I was giv- en, myself. I was told, by some people, that there were a num- ber of Maltese officials who had occupied similar roles in the past – going back to well before 2013: some had been working within the Commission's civil service ever since we joined - who, I was told, 'did not perform their job very well'. Now: even if it's true (and this is debatable) that some past Maltese officials, for whatev- er reason, may have performed their job in a less-than-satisfac- tory manner… it cannot be used as a pretext to permanently deny that position to ANY Maltese citizen, in future. That would be a classic case of discrimination, right there. But I consider that to be just an excuse, myself. After all, there are many Maltese officials who are trustworthy enough to be given high-level appointments, in other European institutions… including the office of the Com- mission presidency itself. Was that the official reply you received from the European Commission, though? No. Let's just say it was an 'in- formal' explanation: something I was told behind the scenes. The official answer I got from the Commission, on the other hand, was that 'the Maltese language was only one of several require- ments, that they based their as- sessment upon'. Now: if we were talking about a minor require- ment, that wouldn't make much of an effective difference… I would more or less understand. But the requirement we are talking about here, is 'having a good command [of the Maltese language]'. And the person they appointed is a Latvian national, who, quite frankly, cannot speak even a single word of Maltese. So to me, the language requirement cannot be regarded as 'just one of several requirements', to be simply 'discarded' at will. It is a fundamental necessity to even be able to function at all, in that particular role. Even less can I accept the Commission's official answer, however, when they also tell us – informally – that: "Listen, we can do without Maltese, because your second language is English'. To me, that is totally unaccept- able. Maltese is one of the offi- cial languages of the European Union. We can't just ignore that fact… How long will Maltese re- main an official EU language, though? Let's face it: the coun- try has struggled to provide all the logistical infrastructure – interpreters, translators, and so on – ever since we joined in 2004. And from what you're now telling me: it seems as though there are efforts to strip Maltese of its 'official' status, altogether… Let me put it this way: Maltese will, I think, remain an official EU language… but only for as long as we keep using it our- selves. And I'm not just talking about Malta's six MEPs – myself Labour MEP ALEX AGIUS SALIBA acknowledges that the Qatargate scandal has dealt a crippling blow to both the European Parliament's credibility, and also that of his own political grouping: the European Socialists. But he argues that other groupings – the EPP in particular – have serious questions to answer, too