The Pact on Migration and Asylum published last week by the European Commission has a lot to chew on, not least by way of the almost five hundred pages of documents that have been issued. Obviously the Commission sought to reach a compromise that all could agree with. The risk is that it ends up satisfying nobody.

Among EU member states, the strongest disagreement arises around two fundamental points: Should the burdens of irregular migration be carried by all members, who would receive arriving migrants on a shared basis? And secondly: Should incoming migrants remain in the country where they first arrive till a decision is taken about what should be done with them (which might take a long time)?

It does not seem as if the countries concerned have changed their position much over the months and years. The Commission is now trying to create structures to monitor, manage and finance migration that would give some respite to frontline countries like Italy, Greece (and Malta) without antagonising countries like Hungary and Poland. I doubt whether it has succeeded.   

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THE MILL

It is sad to observe how projects which at some time or other were assuming a useful and interesting role would later close and end up forgotten. Most frequently this happens with old buildings like chapels.

I wonder about this everytime I pass by the mill on Naxxar Road, at the limits of B’kara. It had been restored, presented a permanent artistic display and was well looked after by the artist Gabriel Caruana. Once he invited me to visit and I was impressed with what I saw and with his enthusiasm to convert the building into some kind of creativity hub.

Two years after his death, it is now frequently shut down, as if in a state of abandonment.  

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CONGO

“Congo” by the Belgian Flemish author David van Reybrouck is a doorstopper but the book deserves to be read from beginning to end. It tells the story of how the Congo, at Africa’s heart, a country the size three quarters that of Western Europe, was grabbed by the Belgians. They wanted simply to extract from it the rich raw materials they needed, doing so as cheaply as possible while exploiting in a most brutal fashion the African peoples inhabiting the territory. German and American companies among others also got to the scene, and they had no qualms about adopting the same methods as the Belgians.

Over the decades, mimimal attempts were made to set up a public administration, an educational system and a public health infrastructure. The different regions which had their own different languages were nudged towards mutual antagonism. Independence was granted all of a sudden, without much preparation. The result was chaos, deadly conflict and wanton destruction. The long years then during which Mobutu ruled were characterised by a waste of resources and corruption. Meanwhile the multinational companies  of the West continued to drain away the Congo’s raw materials...

It is a most unsettling story and puts the reasons why so many Africans migrate towards the north in perspective.