From Mr M. Mifsud

Faced with a developing fascist threat in Malta, it is important to be thorough and draw the political demarcation lines once more, since the traditional left-right divide seems to be insufficient to contain this fierce and destructive attack.

We have to identify the source and underlying factors that have brought about this situation.

In my opinion one aspect of this political situation is that the United States has assumed undisputed global political power and is discrediting

all theoretical alternatives to its hegemony.

In the theoretical field this has brought about the waning of the influence of the transcendentalists and increased the influence of the immanentists.

The former accept a class structure in society and therefore may be said to favour liberalism, human rights and peaceful resolution of disputes. They

assert individualism. Religionists who accept modernism congregate in this area. Socialist and communist parties inspired by the heritage of the enlightenment also assemble in this area.

The post-WW2 settlement, the creation of the United Nations, decolonisation, and the ecumenical movement in the Catholic Church, all these were inspired by the transcendentalist position.

However, since a couple of decades ago, a different force is gaining momentum – the force of immanentism. This force belittles the transcendentalist rival and exalts the use of power, ergo its added

influence after the dismantling of the Soviet Union and the socialist block.

To confuse the issues this trend is being called neoliberalism when in fact it is nothing but super-imperialism.

The immanentist position vaunts solutions brought about by the use of force and war since it propagates a holistic, unipolar world.

In the field of religion its influence is felt in the rise to prominence of fundamentalism. Islamic fundamentalism is now pre-eminent in many countries with a Muslim majority. However, fundamentalism is not limited to Islam, it is to be found also in the Jewish and Christian religions. One brand of Christian fundamentalism is that propagated by the Catholic organisation Opus Dei.

We cannot be bystanders in this ideological battle, we must take a position. There is no third way. We should join forces and form a national Peace Movement.

Mario Mifsud

VALLETTA