Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/241771
3 News maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 15 JANUARY 2014 Finance Minister says rate of unemployment stable, as Fenech insists otherwise MIRIAM DALLI UNEMPLOYMENT figures were being incorrectly interpreted by the media and politicians, Finance Minister Edward Scicluna declared in parliament this evening. Referring to news reports which appeared in PN media and other independent media, Scicluna said "the real picture" was not being correctly depicted. "Unemployment is not on the rise but it is stable. It stood at 6.4% during 2012 and remained the same last year," he said, adding that in the past the unemployment rate had hit the 7%. In attempts to placate concerns that unemployment was on the rise, Scicluna said that 40% of those who registered for work were employed. But in a reaction, former finance minister Tonio Fenech said no one was contesting the fact that the "current economy" was creating jobs. "It's a fact that jobs are being created. But reality is that not enough work is being created so that the unemployment rate as we were used to it being so low, is retained," Fenech said. He said that Malta was used to a rate of unemployment decreasing, "while now we are seeing it on the rise". "Have we reached an alarming situation? Is it a crisis or a panic station? No one is saying that. But we are seeing a government which is not as concerned as it should be that unemployment is on the rise." Fenech's comments come as the government reported an average increase of 19 full-time jobs created on a daily basis. However, the former minister said that while the government was "more focused on the percentage points", it should also understand that people in search of a job were not numbers. "Information by the national statistics office on the gainfully occupied shows that the registered unemployed have increased by 636. And while work is being generated, the biggest increase was within the public sector." According to statistics issued by the Employment and Training Corporation, there was a 1,060 increase in the public sector. According to government, 710 of these were employed between November 2010 and February 2013 – at the thick of a political crisis and an electoral campaign. However, Fenech insisted that the Nationalist administration had implemented a programme whereby jobs within the public sector decreased by 1,000 from the 41,000 that Finance Minister Edward Scicluna were employed in 2011. "Under the Labour administration, the biggest increase in employment was registered in the private sector. Statistics for August 2013 show that employment in the private sector grew seven times more than the previous year," the government said. Fenech argued that jobs created have to be "more productive". Welcoming the fact that the financial services sector, online gaming and administrative sectors were still a source of quality jobs, other sectors such as construction had registered a decline. In a dig at the cash-for-passport scheme, Fenech said the Nationalist administration didn't need to sell Maltese citizenship to attract investors who invested in the Maltese economy and created work. Fenech also described Finance Minister Edward Scicluna as "an agent" for the implementation of the European Union's country specific recom- mendations. "We had a clear 'roadmap' for the creation of work. On the other hand, Scicluna speaks about CSRs. Since when have finance ministers become agents to implement what the EU says? Of course it's important to implement them, but what the EU says is generic." By way of example, Fenech said the CSRs say that a country has to be competitive, but then it's up to the member state to determine the how. Guidelines needed for police, medics in fight against genital mutilation MIRIAM DALLI FEMALE genital mutilation (FGM) is child abuse and children at risk of FGM should be placed under care order if need be, Labour MP Chris Fearne said yesterday. Fearne has piloted a private members' bill which calls for the criminalisation of FGM. The motion enjoys the support of the Opposition. FGM comprises all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. With FGM, most women in labour would find it problematic to give birth as the closed vagina would tear up. The practice is mostly carried out by traditional circumcisers, who often play other central roles in communities, such as attending childbirths. However, more than 18% of all FGM is performed by health care providers, and this trend is increasing. As a result of immigration and refugee movements, FGM is now being practiced by ethnic minority populations in the countries they migrate to. Whether or not this is already the case in Malta is unsure, but doctors have witnessed cases in pregnant asylum seekers arriving to Malta, that required extreme care. Addressing parliament, Fearne argued that the act of female genital mutilation formed part of African culture, and it risked being introduced to Malta through the migrating communities. Although there appears to be no documented evidence of FGM being practiced in Malta, Fearne referred to a UNHCR report which showed that 90% of the female refugees who came to Malta hailed from countries where genital mutilation is practiced. "This means that children of these migrants' communities are at a higher risk of undergoing the procedure. It is therefore important that this bill becomes law as soon as possible," Fearne said. He said that solid guidelines and policies were needed to safeguard those at risk of the act, but not exclusively. "We need to have proper guidelines for NGOs and government agencies who work with the migrant communities; we need guidelines for the healthcare professionals and guidelines for the police force on how to manage such a delicate situation," he said. Fearne however also recognised the importance of educating not only the public about the procedure, but also the communities which carry out the practice. He conceded that at times, despite being against the practice, women would be forced to carry the procedure on their daughters due to rising pressure from the elders... or simply because they had been brought up that way. For these reasons, Fearne said that a culture change may be required. He also acknowledged that females who underwent genital mutilation would require psychological support. In certain instances, women who had just given birth would ask to be sewn up again. "We are criminalising the act and therefore police have to be guided on how to deal with such cases. Doctors also have to be educated on how to tackle such cases, especially when the mother who has just given birth asks to be sewn up again," the MP said.