Campaign for National Independence chairman Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici has accused the MLP parliamentary group of only debating its position on the EU Constitution ratification, rather than having an open and free discussion on the issue.
Dr Mifsud Bonnici said that the Malta Labour Party parliamentary group was only putting forward for discussion its own line – that is to ratify the EU Constitution treaty.
“That should not be the case.
“There should be an open discussion, not discussion about only one opinion. There has been no proper discussion on any of the MLP media, including Super One television and radio or the newspaper Kulhadd,” he said.
All writing or broadcasts involving the EU Constitution are in favour, he said, “so, in reality, there is no debate at all.”
Dr Mifsud Bonnici said that the MLP should stick to its promises to debate the subject openly. “I appeal to both Super One and PBS to broadcast an open public discussion on the subject.
The former depends on the MLP and the latter is obliged to organise a debate in accordance with the Maltese Constitution, which says that they should do so if the matter at hand is controversial,” said Dr Mifsud Bonnici.
He said that no matter what the situation was, the EU Consti-tution treaty was “dead”. The people of France and Holland had seen to that. The “no” votes in their respective referenda made it clear that the Constitution cannot come into effect. “If the French and the Dutch do not change their opinion on the issue, then the EU Constitution cannot be adopted as it is,” he said.
He pointed out that in this case, it was foreigners who were deciding for the Maltese. Those referenda were binding, he said, it is not an issue that depends on us.
“If there is one referendum country that refuses to adopt it, then it will not be adopted – that is what they agreed at the Athens summit,” he said. “At least I am no longer an isolated madman, there are millions of others who think like I do,” he said referring to the referenda results.
He said that the objections of the French and Dutch people also applied to Malta. “They realised that voting in favour of the EU Constitution would give more power to the union, while at the same time whittle away at international sovereignty,” said Dr Mifsud Bonnici.
He said that the document contained nothing to stimulate employment or investment, while at the same time it downsized social services and pensions.
“We are not against the EU, but we are against the EU Constitution. The member states, obviously including Malta, deserve a better deal. Malta should not become trapped in a vice by ratifying the treaty,” he said.
Referring to the MLP parliamentary group’s position on the treaty, Dr Mifsud Bonnici said: “At present, the EU does not have executive powers, and they are trying to gain them by pushing the EU Constitution through. The Athens treaty referred to by the MLP parliamentary group is not binding. It is all the treaties since the inception of the union that are binding.”
Dr Mifsud Bonnici said that the powers of the Maltese government are regulated by the Maltese Constitution. “If the EU gains executive powers, it would have the final say on certain issues, over and above national government,” he said.
He labelled the MLP’s reasoning about the Athens treaty as mistaken and confused. On the subject of neutrality, Dr Mifsud Bonnici said that the MLP group’s decision was flawed.
“Nothing excludes Malta from having to intervene if there is aggression or a terrorist attack against another member state. That already dismantles our neutral state. The MLP said it would rescind its decision if Malta’s neutrality was compromised,” he said.
“What is there to rescind? If the EU itself is not neutral, then Malta would be going against the union’s common foreign policy,” he pointed out.
Dr Mifsud Bonnici also criticised the fact that Malta did not organise a referendum. “France and Holland were not obliged to, yet they did,” he said.
Responding to claims made by Alfred Sant that the CNi was a committee made up of six people, he merely laughed and shrugged it off, saying: “No, that is definitely not the case.”
Asked whether people could perceive him to be the author behind anonymous letters that have recently been sent to MLP delegates, Dr Mifsud Bonnici said: “No, I am not worried. People who know me know that I would not do such a thing.”
In conclusion, Dr Mifsud Bonnici reiterated that the MLP parliamentary group’s line was not that of the MLP. “That still has to be decided and there will be many Labourites who will vote against ratifying the Treaty,” he said.
Asked whether he felt he was fighting a losing battle, Dr Mifsud Bonnici said: “Of course not. I believe that most party supporters are against the Treaty. I will recommend that the MLP should abstain from voting on the Constitution,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Malta Arise Front has congratulated the people of both France and Holland for rejecting the Treaty. They said that the people of Malta should take a leaf out of their books and reject it.
The Front said that the issue was even more pertinent when one looked at the issues of sovereignty and neutrality.