With weapons in hand, we cannot make peace

Owen Bonnici (Minister for National Heritage, the Arts and Local Government.)

As I write, EU leaders are preparing for an important Summit in Brussels. On its agenda, the war in Ukraine, the developments following the diplomatic incident between President Trump and President Zelensky at the Oval Office, the US suspension of military aid to Ukraine, and Ursula Von der Leyen proposal for a Euro 800 billion defence plan. 

These are worrying times for world order. I have had the occasion to visit Ukraine two times in the past two years and could see with my own eyes the devastation of war. Malta has supported Ukraine following the Russian aggression.

But we are now at a crucial and sensitive stage whereby peace must be made unless we want this war to drag further and spread beyond the two countries wreaking havoc in Europe and beyond. No one wants that to happen. That is why we must promote peace, as did Prime Minister Robert Abela and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism Ian Borg a few days ago when the latter suggested that Malta hosts peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. This is the right way forward.

Make no mistake, with weapons in hand, we cannot make peace. Rather than talking about weapons, Europe should be talking about peace. Peace comes through dialogue and intense negotiations - which won't succeed overnight but must commence if they are to succeed. It is a fact that three years of upping the ante on war and the provision of weapons only made matters worse. New solutions must be found, and they won't be found through the barrel of a gun.

Maltese at the EU

Labour Deputy Leader and Member of the European Parliament, my colleague Alex Agius Saliba, slammed the removal of the Maltese language course for EU institution employees. In a letter addressed to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Alex expressed concern after being informed that the Maltese course would not be offered this year due to a low number of applicants.

I am at one with Alex on this matter. It is shameful that rather than promoting member state languages, not least unique ones as is the Maltese language, the European Commission takes the easy way out and chops off language courses for which there is 'low demand'. Honestly, I would have expected the EP President, Robert Metsola, to support Agius Saliba's request. At the time of writing, there is no word from Metsola's office on this important matter for Malta and its people.

On being Maltese 

I had an interesting and wide-ranging interview with this newspaper, which was published in last Sunday's edition. One of the most thought-provoking questions was how, with Malta becoming increasingly multicultural, can the government ensure that Malta's cultural heritage and identity remain protected. "By investing in what makes us Maltese," was my reply, citing the success of Muzika Muzika as an example of a show celebrating the Maltese language and talent.

I explained how the UNESCO recognition of Malta's festa as part of the country's intangible cultural heritage, alongside the ftira and the Maltese għana, are a step in safeguarding what makes us Maltese.  Traditional events such as Carnival are all receiving increased government investment These are but a few ways to invest in what makes us Maltese. I am humbly proud of the success we are making in this respect.

Carnival 2025

It was an extraordinary success. 

The main events held in Valletta from Friday till Tuesday were a massive success. We had promised that Carnival 2025 shall be one of the best ever. We kept that promise.

Thousands of Maltese and tourists alike flocked to Valletta to watch the beautiful carnival floats and the hundreds of dancers making merry, making the Maltese Carnival unique and special. 

In various towns and villages across Malta, local councils - 42 in all - organised their own events supported by DLG funding, and they were all very well attended by residents and tourists alike. 

I had the pleasure of attending to a number of them.

The Gozo, Nadur, carnival was another resounding success attended mostly by thousands of young people. 

I am truly grateful to Festivals Malta and the thousands of carnival enthusiasts who once again made Malta proud.

A party in disarray

It is up to the Nationalist Party to put its house in order, and I have no business with that. 

However, my parliamentary colleague, Nationalist MP and PN stalwart Dr Carm Mifsud Bonnici couldn't have been clearer when in an article in the PN newspaper il-Mument, of last Sunday, he warned his party colleagues and the party's leadership that the events in Parliament the week before, that is when PN MP Karol Aquilina lashed out, hysterically, at Speaker Anglu Farrugia and at the Prime Minister, did nothing to convince the electorate that the PN was a better alternative than the Labour government. 

The PN has become increasingly extremist in its way of doing politics. Rather than discussing policy and disagreeing vociferously, as is its right, and duty, as an opposition party with the government whenever it disagrees with it, the handful of MPs that took hold of the PN, and seemingly its leader too, hit out personally against members of the government, of the Labour Party and even against civil servants and public officials.

Dr Mifsud Bonnici has warned the PN for its extremist way of doing politics in the recent past. Unfortunately, he was ignored. Will he have better luck this time? I sincerely doubt it.