Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/331448
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 18 JUNE 2014 News 5 JURGEN BALZAN WITH the 50th anniversary of Mal- ta's Independence fast approaching, PN leader Simon Busuttil said yes- terday the party will not hold any celebrations of its own and make way for national celebrations. Government sources told Malta- Today that the Opposition had ac- cepted the government's offer to find a solution which would allow "both the PN and national festivi- ties to mark the 50th anniversary celebrations". Moreover, the Opposition will be given space to hold its own celebra- tions without hindering the national festivities. The agreement between the gov- ernment and the opposition was reached last week, the sources said, adding "until yesterday, the two par- ties were finalising the last techni- cal details of the events". In the morning yesterday, Busut- til tweeted that the festivities "must unite us as a country", adding that the PN will move party events to make way for national celebrations on 21 September. PN sources said that the party will hold its traditional celebrations be- tween 16 and 19 September, leaving the eve of the holiday and 21 Sep- tember free for national events, in which the PN will also participate. Traditionally the PN, which holds 21 September 1964 as the key turn- ing point in Malta's modern history, organises a week-long festival on the Granaries in Floriana preceding the national holiday, however this time around party events will make way for events organised by the Founda- tion for National Festivities. In February, the opposition had announced the creation of a com- mittee to organise the 50th anni- versary of independence. Moreo- ver, while launching the slogan '50 Years of Nationhood,' deputy leader Beppe Fenech Adami had said that the party would organise a series of cultural and political events, adding that the PN had not yet decided on a definite programme, to ensure that these would not clash with other events organised by the govern- ment. TIM ATTARD MONTALTO HELENA Dalli, Minister for Social Dialogue and Civil Liberties, has re- acted to a proposal by human rights NGO Aditus to give voting rights to migrants during local elections, by saying that the political partici- pation of migrants was "not a pri- ority", there being "other pressing issues" with regard to improving the integration of migrants in the country. She was commenting on the doc- ument issued last week by Aditus which, among other recommenda- tions, proposed that third-country nationals (TCNs) residing in Malta be provided with better opportuni- ties for political participation. Malta is one of 11 EU countries which do not provide TCNs with any electoral rights. Recommenda- tions outlined in the report include allowing TCNs to vote and stand in local elections and the removal of any obstacles to their civic and po- litical participation. "The report presented by Aditus puts forward various recommenda- tions, where the point about politi- cal participation at local level was only one of them," Dalli told Malta- Today. "We will review the recom- mendations and discuss which sug- gestions could be taken on board in a forthcoming integration strat- egy, taking into account the current situation and the immediate needs of both migrants and the Maltese population. "Specifically, with regard to the possibility of opening the right to vote to third-country nationals, I do not believe that it is a current priority, as there are other press- ing issues that need to be dealt with first," she said. "In any case, we will be meeting Aditus for an exchange on the various recommendations put forward and their vision of in- tegration in Malta." Indeed, Dalli admitted that there was a need to address means of im- proving the integration of TCNs in Maltese society, with a lack of awareness in what the rights and obligations of migrants are often leading to misunderstandings be- tween the Maltese and TCNs. "Malta is currently working to- wards an Integration Strategy to meet this need," she said. "Right now, there is no centralised infor- mation for migrants on their rights and obligations while in Malta. As a result, frustrations and misunder- standings arise both in the migrant community and the Maltese popu- lation. "Our ministry engages with hu- man rights NGOs to learn more about the needs of migrant com- munities," Dalli said. "We also work with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) to develop in- formation material for migrants, as well as a website containing infor- mation about rights and obligations that will be launched next week. In our view this represents an impor- tant step towards better integra- tion." Dalli's comments somewhat echo those of President Marie Louise Coleiro Preca who on Monday said that while it was important to help migrants integrate in Maltese soci- ety, allowing them to vote in local elections would be " jumping the gun" and implementing such a re- form would "stir more controversy than do good." On her part, the Opposition's spokesperson for civil liberties, Claudette Buttigieg said that she, as well as the Nationalist Party as a whole, endorsed the position taken by the President on the matter. "On this issue, the President of the Republic has spoken and we en- dorse her position," Buttigieg's curt reply to MaltaToday read. Government and PN agree on national festivities marking Independence The Opposition will be given space to hold its own celebrations without hindering the national festivities Migrants' political participation 'not a priority', says civil liberties minister Then prime minister Gorg Borg Olivier at the Independence celebrations on the Floriana granaries in 1964 PN leader Simon Busuttil tweeted that the festivities must "unite us as a country"