With all its frequent challenges, our working schedules can however take us further inside the bigger world. The global village is where we meet our counterparts and seek further knowledge for planning the necessary policies and structures. It is where we measure our performance while sharing our experiences and acquire the required support to further develop them to higher levels.
As Parliamentary Secretary, as far as I am concerned such visits provide great opportunities to keep abreast with international standards and innovations. Considering my responsibility for the elderly and disabled people, such meetings also help me establish stronger contacts worldwide with a view to ensuring that our actions are in line with international conventions and exploring all possible avenues to be a step ahead.
This was my line of thinking during the past week, while attending various meetings, particularly important ones at the United Nations headquarters in New York. This time around, apart from discussing issues relative to my portfolio, I was also representing my country in my role as Head of Malta's delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM).
The Mediterranean and the world
Last Friday, in fact, I had the honour of addressing the United Nations Alliance of Civilisations' Focal Points Meeting in my dual capacity as representative of the Government of Malta and of PAM, when I stressed that the main objective is to forge, political, economic and social integration among member states through parliamentary diplomacy, in order to find common solutions to the challenges facing the Mediterranean. I reiterated that, for decades, Malta maintained the importance of having a secure Mediterranean, claiming that there can be no security in Europe if there is no security in the Mediterranean.
This strong belief dates back to Mr Mintoff's stand in Helsinki in 1973 which led to the CSCE Final Act in August 1975. For many years after, successive governments have stressed the concept in Madrid, Stockholm, Barcelona, Havana, New Delhi, Athens, Strasbourg, Lusaka, Melbourne, New York and other world capitals. It is common belief that Malta's stand led to many international declarations, including the setting up of PAM itself in 2005, following years of debate towards further cooperation among States of the Mediterranean region.
Aware as we all are of recent and current international events, it was my duty to explain that Malta is particularly concerned about the developments unfolding in the Mediterranean region, which is being severely put to the test as we are facing a huge influx of people who are fleeing terror and oppression, among other reasons. It is common knowledge that the fall of dictatorial regimes has led to a power vacuum in various countries. Terrorist groups are taking advantage of the current political instability in countries such as Libya, and their activities have also increased the threat of terrorism in other North African countries.
A global response to extremism
Recent terrorist attacks clearly demonstrate that terrorism requires a united and global response. To this end, Malta welcomes all initiatives that seriously address the issue, knowing well that international turmoil impinges on internal affairs and socio-economic concerns in each country. Although we strongly believe that political solutions must respond to political challenges, we also affirm that other avenues can be of considerable help: education, good governance and the rule of law are crucial.
In this regard, the International Institute for Justice and the Rule of Law in Malta, founded in June 2014, has been very active in convening practitioners from different parts of the world to provide training based on the rule-of-law for law-makers, police officers, prosecutors, judges, correctional services officers and others involved in the justice sector on how to address terrorism and related trans-national criminal activities within a rule-of-law framework.
We also regard social media as playing an important role, but understand that it can be used in both a positive and negative manner. Recent events prove that it is certainly being used to recruit young people to engage in violent extremist acts. This narrative needs to be effectively countered through this same media, in parallel with cross-border security measures. It necessarily follows that policy-makers in all countries need to ensure that the voice of civil society is better heard and respected when it comes to policy-making and implementation. Such processes need to be open and inclusive and the engagement of civil society, which is often very close to the disaffected and the most vulnerable, is surely more constructive and significantly more effective.
Education and employment - key remedies
A predominant feeling during the various UN Meetings, which coincided with the UN Secretary-General's annual announcement of this year's priorities, was that in our fight against intolerance and violence, we must unite our efforts and engage all of society - from political and religious leaders to academics and civil society, and forge a multi-faceted response that respects international human rights and humanitarian law. Communities must not be left alone in the fight against violent extremism: we must listen to their concerns and work together to create behavioural shifts and changing mind-sets.
With today's demographic changes, brought about by greater life expectancy, older people are more determined to remain increasingly active. This encourages us to fully accept them on board, as we need to address every sector of our population. Their wisdom and experience should be sought to add value to our efforts.
On the other hand, the young are both the primary victims of radical ideologies and the main target for recruitment by violent extremist groups. We must show them a better way through efforts to end poverty, inequality, exclusion and lack of opportunity, by education. Malta and Gozo can claim that through, the Youth Initiative and other economic measures adopted by the Labour Government, we have achieved positive employment figures. Education and employment are the key response to young people's aspirations in their energetic quest for fulfilment within society as opposed to procrastination and inertia.
Social inclusion for all vulnerable people
This government is committed to social inclusion and I feel honoured to be responsible for those considered vulnerable in our society, promoting and ensuring equal opportunities for them. It was, in fact, another fruitful occasion in this regard when, last week, I had another meeting with Ms Daniela Bas, the director of the Division for Social Policy and Development of DESA at the UN Secretariat building and her formidable team of experts. Daniela, who is confined to a wheelchair, is such a charming person and she inspires me in everything that needs to be done locally. She is not only an invaluable source of information but is also an invaluable guide for encouraging policy-makers worldwide to adopt the necessary structures towards full social inclusion for people with disabilities.
Last week's meeting was yet another occasion for me to relate to her all that is being done by my Parliamentary Secretariat in these fields, besides acquiring further support in all our ventures and strengthening reciprocal commitments towards cooperation with this important office. My busy schedule in New York, apart from speeches and participation in various high-level political fora, also included the characteristically fraternal meetings with the Maltese and Gozitan communities that we all appreciate. They were all so welcoming that I really felt at home. And last but not least, my heartfelt thanks go to our permanent mission in New York for their excellent and indispensable assistance to ensure that this visit yields the planned results.