Moviment Graffitti has said that the presence of the USS Kearsarge in Grand Harbour showed that Malta’s security and sovereignty was not at the top of the list of priorities for the two main political parties in Malta.

The Kearsarge was also in Malta some three years ago.

Graffitti did not confine their criticism solely to the political parties. Another target was the Information Resource Centre at the Maltese embassy in the USA, as were the ecclesiastical authorities.

The movement said the Resource Centre had invited representatives of student and youth organisations to discuss peace and security on board the warship, a war machine that had taken part in the Iraq war, which was still being fought. Representatives of Maltese youth were urged to keep away from the Kearsarge and Graffitti praised the National Youth Council’s decision not to take part in ceremonies on the assault ship.

Graffitti also said it could not understand how the ecclesiastical authorities in Malta could agree to “so-called Christian choirs” from warships taking part in religious functions.

It also appealed to institutions not to accept voluntary work offered by the crew. Such work was pure propaganda, the movement said.