Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/234240
6 2013 in review maltatoday, SUNDAY, 29 DECEMBER 2013 From poetry to Before the election he presented himself as the progressive reformist standing aloof from petty tribalism. JAMES DEBONO explores Muscat's balancing act, between tribal expectations and the 'Malta Taghna Lkoll' slogan JOSEPH Muscat, the young prime minister who clinched the reins power in a spectacular landslide victory in 2013, has been keen not to lose his reformist sheen. He stood up as a the principled emancipator piloting legislation that will give same sex-couples the same rights as married heterosexuals, including that of adopting children. But he also gave us a taste of a very different kind of leadership: a hawkish strongman who contemplated pushing back a group of migrants to war-torn Libya days after inviting European Commissioner Cecilia Malmström to take some of the migrants in Malta, to her home country Sweden. Only a few months after calling on Europe to "wake up and smell the coffee" on Malta's challenge to cope with migratory influx during summer – the numbers of which remain a far cry from those that Spain, Greece, Italy and even Sweden itself cope with – Muscat found himself marketing the Individual Investor Programme in Miami, offering a fast-tracked Maltese citizenship and EU passport to anyone willing to pay €650,0000. Muscat had placed Malta under the international spotlight, for reasons that will have other countries watching us carefully, with some tut-tutting at the new prime minister's guile. And when he turned meritocracy into an electoral battlecry, in which he used the Nationalists' shoddy 'evil clique' image to his benefit, it was his government that eventually staffed numerous boards with Labour candidates, supporters and campaign volunteers, while balancing this out with a few meritocratic appointments, like that of veteran journalist Reno Bugeja as PBS head of news. Ever conscious of the power of political theatre and symbolism, he was The government acted swiftly on other fronts: abolishing prescription in corruption cases and introducing a Whistleblower Act. One may safely say that on these fronts Muscat did more than the PN ever did in 25 years. Still, Muscat has so far failed from presenting a party financing bill. Before the election Muscat had promised that the whistleblower law and the law on party financing would be the first two laws the new government would introduce. Moreover Muscat's reformist zeal is conditioned by a conservative streak in a number of other issues. In this way he appeals to three different audiences all at the same time: the liberal audience by taking up issues like gay rights; the redneck vote by sounding hawkish on immigration and warming up to the hunting and fireworks lobbies; and the pro-business audience by preaching a trickledown economics doctrine. Victorious: Prime Minister Joseph Muscat (centre) flanked by deputy leaders Louis Grech (left) and Toni Abela (right) magnanimous enough to appoint one of Labour's pre-electoral pet hates: Lou Bondì, on a board responsible for celebrating Malta's 50th anniversary of its Independence, effectively turning the self-serving media merchant into a walking advert for the 'Taghna Lkoll' campaign slogan. Excelling in balancing acts, his government clamped down on the previously untouchable Charles Polidano, while changing the goalposts in favour of land speculation through policies relaxing building heights and allowing even more development in the countryside. And in yet another gesture of political theatre his government awarded environmental crusader Astrid Vella a national honour on Republic Day, just a week after she launched the first national protest against his government's tottering environmental record. But even this strategy of grand gestures can backfire, as demonstrated by author Alex Vella Gera's refusal to play the game when he refused a national honour on Republic Day that was originally meant to underline Labour's liberal credentials (see pages 10, 11). Muscat the reformist One consistent trend in Muscat's politics was his determination to push forward a secular agenda that inevitably contrasts with his predecessor's conservatism. While the previous government failed to deliver a pledge to recognise ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! cohabiting couples first made in 1998, after only nine months of Labour government, legislation was presented to parliament which creates an equality of rights and obligations for both married couples and who tie the bond in a civil union. Muscat himself has shown a remarkable evolution from a declared opposition to marriage and adoptions by same sex couples in 2008. Muscat's reformist and progressive inclinations came to the forefront in his first days in office, when he announced that he was writing to the Vatican to ask for a revision of the Church-State agreement, which gave State recognition to annulment decisions made by the Church's Ecclesiastical Court. Moreover in the budget speech, Muscat also signaled his intention to commence a national discussion on the decriminalisation of drugs, a suggestion that the PM will continue to appeal to a more liberal constituency by taking a liberal stance on a number of social issues. Muscat was also keen to emphasize this particular aspect of his agenda by including transsexual Joanne Cassar and anti-censorship campaigner Mark Camilleri among those included in the national list of honours. Not all minorities are equal While he has clearly steered the country in a liberal direction on a number of social issues, his hawkish stance on immigration culminated in an attempt to push back migrants to Libya in July (which was only stopped after the intervention of the European Court of Human Rights), blemishing his progressive credentials. His rash action suddenly legitimised xenophobic sentiments like those expressed by Labour's equal opportunities officer Rachel Tua who with reference to "illegal immigrants" she wrote on Facebook: "if they have no respect for the citizens of Malta, who [sic] on earth should we respect them... Our people come first and foremost." Ironically, Muscat's major success on the migration issue was not achieved by his belligerent "wake up and smell the coffee" antics but by the creation of a common front with southern European nations like Italy in the wake of the Lampedusa tragedy, which saw Muscat adopting a more rational stance in calling for greater EU cooperation. While in Opposition, he supported Italian right-wing minister Roberto Maroni's decision to blockade a Maltese patrol boat from delivering rescued migrants; now he might have well discovered the value of solidarity amongst nations who cooperate with each other. The Malta Resources Authority (MRA) would like to announce that the scheme for the Grant for the purchase of Photovoltaic Systems in the domestic sector under the European Regional Development Fund ! ! has been extended to the 31st March 2014 ! ! ! Further details may be obtained from the Authority's website: www.mra.org.mt ! Operational Programme I – Cohesion Policy 2007-2013 Investing in Competitiveness for a Better Quality of Life Project part-financed by the European Union European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) Co-financing rate: 85% EU funds: 15% National Funds !"#$%&'"()'")*+,-).,&,-$! So far Muscat's major success has been his ability to retain tax cuts foreseen in the last PN budget without introducing any new taxes or cutting expenditure Also pictured: deputy leader Louis Grech (left) and Finance Minister Edward Scicluna