Godfrey Farrugia is leading a Maltese delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly within the Organisation for Security and Development in Europe (OSCE PA) which is taking place in Helsinki, Finland from 5 July to 9 July. He is accompanied by Anthony Agius Decelis and Frederick Azzopardi.
On Sunday 5 July, Farrugia attended the Helsinki +40 Seminar to mark the 40th anniversary of the Helsinki Final Act, which is the final act of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe signed by 35 Participating States in 1975 in the Finnish capital with the aim of improving East-West relations. In the afternoon, Godfrey Farrugia participated in the Standing Committee Meeting preceding the Annual Session. The discussion was taken over by the decision of the Russian delegation not to attend this year’s OSCE PA Annual Session. During the Standing Committee meeting, the Budget Proposal for the year 2015-2016 was approved and Dr Roberto Montella was confirmed as the new Secretary General of the OSCE PA, whose term will start on 1 January 2016. The Maltese delegation supported Dr Montella’s candidacy.
In this year’s OSCE PA Annual Session, unlike the session held in Baku last year, more importance is being given to Mediterranean issues thanks to the insistence and hard work of the Maltese delegation and their Mediterranean counterparts. France intervened in the Standing Committee to argue that the Mediterranean Forum needs to be revived and given more importance in the light of the recent attacks in Sousse, the extremely serious situation in Syria and Iraq and the reigning instability in North Africa and beyond. Despite the worrying problem of terrorism and extremism, no supplementary items on terrorism were submitted before the June deadline. Therefore, the President agreed with the French suggestion to discuss these serious issues and include them on the agenda of the Plenary Session on Wednesday. The Maltese delegation supported this proposal.
Between 6 July and 9 July, a number of meetings of the three General Committees of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly will be held: the first General Committee on Political Affairs and Security; the second General Committee on Economic Affairs, Science, Technology and Environment and the third General Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions. A number of Supplementary Items and Amendments on irregular migration have been co-sponsored by the Maltese delegation and these will be discussed at length in the General Committees. Furthermore, Godfrey Farrugia submitted an amendment, supported by the French, Belgian, Italian and Cyprus delegations, to the SI on ‘Calling for Urgent Solutions to the Tragedy of Deaths in the Mediterranean’. The comprehensive amendment focuses on the importance of immediately and effectively addressing the particular and specific needs of children on the move, infants and the unborn child in order to safeguard their physical, mental and social wellbeing.