The inhumane and monstrous abortion law, currently pending at Committee stage in the House of Representatives, encapsulates the government’s newly proposed philosophy of nihilism, a view that essentially states that traditional beliefs are unfounded and that life is meaningless and useless. Such thinking, though it might be hailed as politically modernising and progressive, is rightfully so not shared universally by the Maltese people, Nationalist or Labourite. But government’s thinking will soon see its new negativity rubber stamped into the Maltese Statute Book that will introduce new unwelcome principles – those favouring death over life – into Maltese Law.
Yet the philosophy of nihilism runs totally counter to the values and moral principles that have inspired the Maltese as a nation who have, since time immemorial, prized life over death, cherished good values and shunned bad ones, always were there to give a helping hand when the need arose, and protected the most vulnerable of society. In line with this positive philosophical approach, various Maltese Laws unquestionably elevate life over death. Maltese Law is replete with such provisions. Yet the new culture of death that government is proposing to start introducing into Maltese Law will inevitably contradict the main thrust of Maltese Law that abhors the philosophy of nihilism and, instead, applauds the gift of life.
The Criminal Code contains several provisions that punish malicious termination of life such as those concerning wilful homicide (murder), the extermination of a whole race (genocide), killing of infants (children under one year of age), taking away the life of the President of Malta, involuntary homicide, and others. Other laws ensure that children are not maltreated, abused or sexually exploited. Corruption of minors and child rape are also criminal offences in terms of the Criminal Code. Paedophilia is a criminal offence in its own right. But not all laws are like these prohibitive.
Other laws celebrate life such as the Embryo Protection Act through which children are born via in vitro fertilisation. The Civil Code establishes the obligations that parents have vis-à-vis their children to educate them, maintain them, cloth them, etc. The discrimination that existed between legitimate and illegitimate children was removed from Maltese Law while adopted children are correctly given the same rights as natural offspring. Curators are appointed by the courts to safeguard the interests of minor children while the Children’s Advocate plays a seminal role in family proceedings to protect the interests of minor children. A curator ad ventrem may also be appointed by the court to protect the interests of a conceived child (in utero) who has not yet been born.
Care orders are issued by the minister responsible for social welfare so that children who are abused or not treated with dignity are removed from the custody of their parent/s and the state takes upon itself the burden of their upbringing.
Maltese Law encourages social solidarity when it provides for the institution of fostering while orphanages house lesser privileged minor children who, unfortunately, do not have the opportunity to be raised within the warmth of a family environment.
Capital punishment was abolished through successive amendments to Maltese Law when first it was removed for all criminal offences applicable to civilians and, subsequently, for all military offences applicable to members of the Armed Forces of Malta.
The law also regulates the kidnapping of children by one spouse to the detriment of the other and of the minor child. Courts are legally bound to place the best interests of the minor child before those of parents. The Juvenile Court affords preferential treatment to minor child offenders vis-à-vis adult offenders. When minor children are victims themselves – rather than perpetrators – of a crime, the law supports them more than it does in relation to adult victims. The identity of a minor child is always protected by the courts in judicial proceedings and restrictions are imposed by law upon the media, so that the identity of a minor child – whether as offender or victim – is not publicised.
The whole edifice of Maltese Law, when it deals with an embryo, foetus, infant, young child or a minor child is built upon the respect that it owes to them to safeguard their dignity, incolumity and person.
The law that will decriminalise abortion that the government is proposing to enact early in the new year runs counter to the whole values and philosophy that the Maltese have cherished throughout time in relation to life and the well-being of minor children, whether born or conceived but not yet born. Yet all of the above will now soon come to an end, to be contradicted by the government’s proposed amendment to the Criminal Code that will introduce abortion into Malta in its most inhumane and extreme form still unknown to humanity.
Hence, the culture of life that our laws have so far celebrated will be subjected to a philosophy of nihilism that despises life and prioritises death over life. And yet this is only the beginning of the concrete materialisation into law of the philosophy of nihilism for more laws would surely follow once the abortion amendments to the Criminal Code are enacted into law. The process appears irreversible.
The latest amendment that the Deputy Prime Minister announced last Wednesday to its own abortion bill discriminates between viable and yet to become viable children in utero. If at all confirmation was needed, this amendment uncovers government’s deceitful past repetitive declarations that abortion will not be decriminalised. In this way, government’s philosophy of nihilism is going to be clearly and indisputably written down into the law through such discrimination.
Kevin Aquilina is Professor of Law at the Faculty of Laws, University of Malta