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Structural and refurbishment works, at Peace Lab. (July 2011)

The Peace Laboratory, established in 1971, occupies a site which originally housed a section of the Hal Far airfield. A British construction, the complex comprises a sanctuary and chapel, as well as several associated structures, and is surrounded by extensive, landscaped grounds.

The need for intervention was recognized when damp was noted on the chapel soffit. An in-depth inspection revealed that as the British-period roof membrane expanded, and ponding occurred, water seeped in beneath the protective layer, which consequently detached. Water was eventually absorbed in the voids of the concrete ceiling slab. The major ramification of this was the rusting and resultant deterioration of the steel reinforcement. As oxidization of the steel occurred, the reinforcement expanded, causing the concrete to crack and fall. The contoured configuration of the slab was such that it aggravated the situation and thus the structural stability of parts of the building was compromised.

Remedial measures were taken immediately. Once the soffit and supportive wooden structure were removed, the formwork was flattened and the steel was cleaned and brushed in order to expunge all debris. Following an application of sealant to the damaged reinforcement, Sika Rap material was applied at intervals and in several layers in order to reinstate the concrete cover.

The opportunity was taken to design a contemporary soffit and lighting layout which is complementary to the rectangular configuration of the chapel and representative of the religious values which it represents. As a result, the complex was not only secured structurally but also be given a new outlook which better relates the ethos of the JOHN XXIII Peace Laboratory.

The estimated cost of works on the Peace Sanctuary, the central chapel of the complex, is €46,000.

The Peace Lab is active in a range of initiatives, including interfaith and intercultural education, environmental issues and social work. For funding, it relies on voluntary work and contributions as well as fundraising activities.

John XXIII Kindness Award 2011 (15th. June 2011)

14-year-old Andre' Abela was handed the Pope John XXIII Award for Kindness today in recognition for his dedication to a dying friend who suffered Leukaemia.

Andre', who is from Cospicua, regularly visited his friend at home for nine months and kept him company up to the end.

In so doing he was also an example to his classmates and even organised group visits for them.

"It is people like Andre' with a sense of altruism, who reach out to others, who give the best possible help to people in need," President George Abela said at the award ceremony.

"A strong society is built on the values such as those shown by Andre'" he added.

Fr Dionisius Mintoff OFA, director of the Peace Lab, which organises the award, said that children recognised values and picked them up from everywhere around them.

He said that in teaching children about rights, one should also underline duties and responsibilities.

Andre', he said, represented the many Maltese students who had a heart of gold.

Martin Sheen Visits Peace Lab &The Way Premier
(Mondat , Febuary 28, 2011)

Hollywood actor Martin Sheen was in Malta to watch the national premiere of his latest film, The Way, directed and written by his son Emilio Estevez.

The Apocalypse Now star arrived along with American Ambassador Douglas Kmiec and his wife outside the Embassy Cinemas in Valletta,

After patiently signing autographs for fans – Sheen made his way up to Cinema One, packed with punters who by attending had given a donation to the Peace Lab in Ħal Far.

The event was organised on the initiative of Prof. Kmiec to raise funds for the Peace Lab in Hal Far, which provides shelter to asylum seekers and has never asked for funding since it was set up in 1971.

It is rare for a movie to be premiered in Malta before the US and, in this case, every European country except for Spain, where it was shot, according to Charles Pace, managing director of KRS, which had also been involved in the organisation together with Icon Film Distributors.

Faced with the packed theatre and a Hollywood star, Peace Lab director Fr Dionysus Mintoff, a powerful preacher, was lost for words. “Words fail me to express my gratitude,” Fr Mintoff told Mr Sheen and Prof. Kmiec. “May God shower you with his choicest blessings.”

Introduced by Prof. Kmiec as a “fellow parishioner, a neighbour from California and a distinguished actor”, Mr Sheen said the film was special to him as it was written and directed by his son Emilio, who in turn was inspired by his own son, Taylor, who filled in for his father during the premiere.

“It is a father and son journey across the Camino de Santiago de Compostella in Spain, but it is equally a voyage of the interior. It is an effort to unite the will of the spirit to the work of the flesh,” Mr Sheen, a devout Catholic said, adding: “Buen camino (have a good walk)”.

Prior to the screening, Mr. Sheen toured the Peace Lab in Hal Far and met migrants. He was shown around by the founder-director, Fr Dionisius Mintoff OFM and the US Ambassador Douglas Kmiec.

The event marks two firsts: the first time the Peace Lab in Ħal Far, which provides shelter to asylum seekers, has ever asked for funding since it was set up in 1971 and the first time international film stars are attending a local premiere in over 30 years.

Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948) (Sunday 30th. January 2011)

The Indian - Maltese community gathered at the Peace Lab, joining a Maltese crowd to honour this great prophet of Peace and to record his words of Solidarity, Non violence and Peace.

Mr. Barwani, head of the Indian - Malta community laid a wreath of flowers near the momument of Ghandi located at the entrance of the Peace Lab.

Fr. Mintoff espressed his appreciation of this event and appealed to one and all to discover the greatness of this man whose life was a message for everyone to follow and to participate in his world wide project.

Women from One World - Peace Lab, Hal Far, Malta

(Thursday 23rd. September 2010)

An international group of women (and a few men) gathered at the Peace Lab in Hal Far to unite in celebration of diversity and humanity.

The special event, named Women from One World, was organised by MSF (Medecins Sans Frontieres) and was an opportunity for the Somali women from the Open Centre, Hal Far to share their culture with women from Malta and other countries. They had prepared a wonderful spread of food, including delicious Samosas and Cous Cous. Soon the party was in full swing; our hands were hennaed with beautifully intricate patterns and we were led by the Somali women to dance with them to the beat of music from their homeland. Those of us who were initially a little shy, were gently coaxed by these women as they stretched out their hands in friendship. Before long, all women were dancing together in one big circle.

It was more than amazing to see the women living in Hal Far, who face such huge difficulties, laughing and enjoying themselves. In fact, when organising the event, MSF did not impose anything on them and everything was done in accordance with the women’s suggestions and wishes.

Also in attendance was Katie Gonzi, wife of the Prime Minister. Who warmly embraced and chatted with the women, her genuine affection and openness a lesson to all.

It was also a chance for everyone to thank MSF for their wonderful work in Malta over a 2 year period.

Hopefully, this event will be just the beginning of a longer process of unification and will bear fruit for all involved.

Science of Peace was formed in a Maltese laboratory
(The Catholic Times - Sunday 16th. May 2010)

Profile:
Fr Paul Bonnici meets Franciscan Fr Dionysius Mintoff in Malta’s ground-breaking Peace Lab.

Franciscan priest Fr Dionysius Mintoff, 80, shows me round the Peace Lab which he established almost 40 years ago in Malta. He takes me straight to the chapel which also couples as a hall and conference room.

‘You can tell he is a Franciscan. All sorts of cages with pets and canaries are placed in the sanctuary.’ ‘See that altar there.’ He says as he points with his stick. ‘That was where World War II was planned. Yalta was planned from there, Churchill, Roosevelt and other allied leaders met here five times during the Second World War. A stone’s throw away from the airfields, this was the nerve centre where all the organisation of the air campaigns took place.

He shows me the murals which depict the history of humanity, the beatitudes and several people who in recent years have worked for peace.

Pride of place is given to Pope John XXIII, the Good Pope, who wrote the encyclical on peace addressed to all people of good will. Pacem in Teris. The Peace Lab is named after him. The main inspiration is St Francis of Assisi.

‘But how did you manage to lay your hands on this property?’ I ask. A skilled media communicator, who has been broadcasting for over half a century he gesticulates away in silence, turning his hand round in a semi-circle, as if to say: ‘Well it just happened!’

Fr Mintoff quickly changes the subject. He tells me how as a former British forces base with some 4,000 men living in it, with no females about the place, the locality quicly became a hot spot for prostitution.

He continues: ‘Prostitution in this district was very highly organized. It took me years of hard work and a lot of suffering to get rid of it and wipe it away from here for good’.

Fr Mintoff sips black coffee and eats sugar-free biscuits as he explains how Malta had one of the highest incidences in Europe for Leprosy or Jansen’s Disease and how because Hal Far is a bit cut off from any of Malta’s towns or villages, it served as a base where patients suffering from leprosy where sent off to be far away from other people. Leprosy was finally eradicated from Malta in 1976.

Fr Mintoff then takes me back to the mental in colonial Malta. He says: ‘ At the time, Malta was a colony and relied on the British . people who were given privileges were those were those who were awarded an OBE or an MBE by the British government.

‘There were not always the greatest friends of the Maltese people. This award was given in what is now the President’s Palace in Valletta. When the British left there was no such award to be given any more.

‘We then instituted a new kind of national award and called it ‘The John XXIII award for kindness.’ For many years it was the only national award available on the island. It is given to young people for unusual acts of kindness, for example, caring for a fellow student at school who is handicapped or has acute learning difficulties.’

In his younger days Fr Mintoff was employed by the Maltese Government as an education officer. Her continues that in the aftermath of World War II, when Malta suffered so much at the hands of the Germans, the Maltese were very anti-German. ‘In this context.” He adds, ‘we started a programme of peace education in our schools on a national level and now there is peace education from kindergarten to sixth form. We were the pioneers in this field.’

He stresses the Peace Lab’s educational role and talks about a monthly newspaper for youth which was published for 30 years before going on-line, as well as weekly 90-minute broadcasts on the state broadcaster PBS.

Fr Mintoff continued: “ We also carry out research on peace and have invited well-known personalities including Abbe Pierre, Michel Quoist, Cardinal del Caro and Mother Theresa of Calcutta.”

He then takes me to the various outbuildings within the compound which forms the Peace Lab.

Just outside the compound is Lister Barracks where more than 12,000 illegal immigrants had been detained for up to 18 months over the past 7 years. At the moment the barracks is empty.“I have 50 of these immigrants living with me” the Franciscan explains.

He leads me to a shed and he knocks on the door and asks for Mohammed. The shed was converted a couple of years ago into an internet café where the migrants spend an hour each evening.

“The café is open until midnight. They spend an hour each and it has been a wonderful success. Mohammed runs it every efficiently!” explains Fr Mintoff.

It was nine o’clock at night and it was time for him to go round the various dormitories, say good night and do a cleanliness inspection.

“While they are in detention,” he says “soldiers do not care about cleanliness or about anything else. All they care about is that the migrants do not escape. Here they have a programme. This place is run entirely by volunteers and providence. There are about 30 volunteers who come in everyday to help out and each one of them has got a specific task to carry out: doctors, teachers, IT, refuge work, broadcasters…

“We teach them English and local culture. We try to empower them. They do their own cooking and prepare for the world of work. These people come from Somalia, Nigeria, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Mali, Ghana, Sudan – basically the whole of Africa.”

We go in to the male dormitory where people from Senegal were living. He calls all the other young men in from the other dormitories and puts his arm on the table as if he is going to arm wrestle them. Instead they all their hands on his fist, one on top of the other and say several times: “We are all one family.”

Fr Mintoff tells me how when these irregular migrants first appeared on Malta, the Peace Lab successfully started proceedings in the Maltese Law Courts to prevent the state from forcefully sending the first bunch of migrants to their war torn homeland. Since then no irregular migrants were forcefully repatriated.

He shows me a white corridor full of foodstuffs. “How do you fund this?” I ask him. Again he gesticulates in silence but does not answer. Providence seems to be at work.

Before I leave he takes me to his office and shows me a Crucifix. “That is the refugee”, he says. “His face looks like someone from Congo but he does not have hands because he is not allowed to work and does not have feet and legs because he is not allowed to move about.”

Bring the Immigrants out of the Shadow (Times of Malta 26th. June 2010)

Fr Dionysius Mintoff OFM, director, John XXIII Peace Lab, Ħal Far

The idea that Unions in Malta would endorse legalising immigrants strikes some as absurd. Malta has a hard enough time competing with cheap foreign labour. Why undercut them within our own borders? Especially with a good number of Maltese citizens losing their jobs?

These questions deserve an answer since the bad economy will only strengthen the stiff winds of opposition that the Government and Opposition will have to fight. Legalisation is already politically treacherous thanks to the tireless works of restrictionists who have spent years denouncing illegal immigrants as harmful to the country’s health. They have long compared the undocumented to invaders and parasites.

To understand why that view is misguided helps to remember that Malta has largely brought that argument and spent energy to seal the border as tightly as possible. It has done everything it can to make illegal immigrants miserable in the hope that they will abandon the idea of arriving here, and tell everyone back home to forget about Malta. And how has that worked? It hasn’t.

The refugee work force is still overwhelmingly undocumented as are the workers doing the other dirty or dangerous jobs in places like hotels, care-workers and restaurants. Soaring unemployment has hit both skilled and unskilled workers hard. But laid-off workers have not been lining up to pick potatoes and a hidden population of one thousand (?) undocumented immigrants has not begun a mass exodus anywhere.

Nor have the forces of global economic migration magically adjusted to fit the Maltese mood. Workers still cross the border. Although the numbers are low – a sign of the downturn particularly in home building. When the economy recovers, the flow will revive. Economic forces are dynamic, even if our immigration policies are not.

The Unions, at least, understand that here is a better way. They see the immigration situations. Despite the huge burden our country provides basic social services to many displaced Africans. It is true that other countries should share the burden. We should not be punished for our generosity. It is true that many are left on the verge of homelessness and hunger. Even in humanitarian crises no one should be satisfied with mere hospitality for homeless Africans to become homeless Maltese.

The Unions must look at this situation as an issue of worker employment. If undocumented immigrants undercut wages and job conditions for Maltese – and many do, by tolerating low pay and abuse and bolstering an off-the books system that robs law-abiding employees and taxpayers – it is because they cannot stand up for their rights.

“Workers do not depress wages. Unscrupulous employers do.” Unemployment in many an industry is above 12%. Many young people are out of work. So what should we do? Unions must suggest a reform that allows immigrants to legalise.

It is true that the Government temporary shelter and aid give little comfort to the refugees who are highly vulnerable to contagious disease and violence. This help acknowledges the scale of the crisis but ignores the hundreds of available spots that go unfilled every year.

Unions should do more and they have a particular responsibility to those displaced by war and hunger which caused them to be driven away from their homes. Unions must work hard to find a way that allows immigrants to legalise.

The Peace Lab believes that if we can free them so that they can come out of the shadows, we can not only improve their lives, but all workers’ lives.

US Ambassador Visit to the Peace lab. (24th. June 2010)

Fr. Dionysius Mintoff together and a number of volunteers were pleased to welcome the US Ambassador Douglas W. Kmiec to the Peace Lab.

He was taken around the place and was given an insight of the work and activities which is carried out at the JOHN XXIII Peace Laboratory of Malta.

It was explained to him how this site, which was originally part of the Hal Far airfield involved in intensive air combats during World War II, has been turned into a sanctuary with a number of associated buildings, surrounded by extensive gardens was changed from a War station to a Peace Centre.

Today this is a living practical example of the role that a non governmental, voluntary organization can play in shaping the conscience and opinion of the majority.

During his visit met several of the immigrants who are given shelter and hospitality at the Peace Lab, and heard from them their worries and aspirations for the future.

John XXIII Kindness Award 2010 (23rd. June 2010)

For the forty seven years running the organising committee of the Peace Laboratory asked for the co-operation of all Heads of Schools and person in charge of Institutions and Organisations in the selection of a boy or girl who deserves this award.

The Award apart from seeking a winner will also emphasise the innate kindness that one finds in the vast majority of children. The award is granted on the basis of love, kindness and generosity towards others.

Dylan Caruana a Form IV Student who attends St. Michael School Qormi has been selected for the Award of Kindness John XXIII - 2010.

Dylan has been studying at ST Michael School for the past four years. In that same scholastic year the school admitted Saviour Pace who suffers from Downs’ Syndrome.

Dylan was often offering all kinds of help to Saviour, staying next to him during those lessons that Saviour could cope on his own such as during PSD, Drama, Art and Physical Education. Dylan went even further, he tried to do his best not to let Saviour be bullied or in any way “abused” by other students.

Dylan is also an all rounder, good at his studies, excels as a sports man especially in football and has an excellent record in his behaviour.

After examining carefully the applications from fifty four schools the Peace Lab selected Dylan Caruana to be the winner of the 2010 edition and asks the President of the Republic to present him the gold medal bearing the image of John XXIII to mark the anniversary of the death of the good Pope.

The award was presented by President George Abela and is given every year, by the Peace Lab, to commemorate the anniversary of the death of Pope John XXII.

World Refugee Day: An Appeal by the Peace Lab (20th. June 2010)

Joe Abela, Peace Lab Co-ordinator

The advance of science and technology has in many ways made our world smaller, and turned it into a single village. But in this globalised era, not all people have similar opportunities and quality of life. The global village is full of contradictions and discrepancies.

Many injustices are visible and tangible. Every day some people make fortunes, while just as quickly others are reduced to poverty. Some people live in peace and comfort. And rubbing shoulders with them are many others who have no peace and no comfort. There are people living in splendour and opulence, while many others cannot make ends meet.

The globalisation game has winners and losers. Tourists and vagabonds; merchants and slaves; consumers and objects of consumption. Bought and sold just like any other commodity in the global market.

World Refugee Day leads us to look at these ugly truths that we seldom reflect on in the rest of the year. In our hurried lives, filled with work, shopping and entertainment, there is precious little time to spare for those who have nothing to eat, who cannot work, cannot buy, and cannot live in peace; for those people who are persecuted and have to flee their town or country, for those who have no rights. For people living in comfort, such thoughts are just a waste of time. Every year, several thousand people are forced to flee with just the clothes on their back, launched unwillingly on a journey with no clear destination, in the hope of finding somewhere to live in peace. This reality affects us heavily in Malta, thanks to our location in the middle of the sea between Africa and Europe.

We have got used to the sight of boatloads of immigrants, especially in summer, packed like sardines, in search of safety. We are used to complaining about them, and throwing at them any accusation we can think of. Some of the most common allegations are that they bring disease with them, that they're taking up scarce funds, that they are invading our country. Our politicians find it convenient to tell us how much time and money and effort is taken up because of immigrants, and that they're doing their utmost to deliver us from this plague.

We have no time to listen to their stories. We don’t care much that the unjust rules of the global markets turned their lives upside down, destroyed their jobs and their economies, and left them with no hope for a better future. The global markets leave them no option but a slow death if they stay in their country. The weak, the poor and the vulnerable have no other choice.

What led to all this?

Millions of people around the world – men, women, young and old – die from hunger, infectious diseases, war, terrorism and other conflicts. Those with enough strength and money do not resign themselves to this cruel destiny, but leave their country clandestinely, hoping for a better future when they reach the countries that control the global markets. The markets that brought them so much suffering. The same markets that brought weapons and conflict to their country, that slaughtered their children and ripped their communities apart. The same markets that made their crops worthless by giving subsidies to the already rich agricultural businesses of Europe and North America.

There is a market that puts a heavy price on the voyage to Europe. All these markets see them only as objects, and not as individuals; they give them no value, and no rights.

Solidarity

In this day that the United Nations has dedicated to refugees, the Peace Lab in Ħal Far stands in solidarity with the in the globalisation game. In solidarity with those people who still believe in life, and therefore rejected the destiny of death and decided to undertake the voyage to Europe in search of a better life.
olidarh individ who lost their life on the voyage between Africa and Europe. In solidarity with those individuals who are locked up in detention centres, their only crime being that of looking for a better life.

An Appeal

On this day, we appeal to the Maltese population to show mercy to the immigrants and refugees, and to look at them not with suspicion, but with love and understanding. Finally, we appeal to the authorities to implement a policy of integration. We appeal for 'integration' to be more than just a word bandied about in reports and conferences and then promptly forgotten.

Together we should work to make our country a place where immigrants can live their life with dignity.

Photographic Exhibition ‘Africa’ in Parliament (March 2009)

In March 2009, the Parliament hosted the Photographic exhibition ‘Africa’ in its Committee Room. After travelling through various cities in Italy, the exhibition was brought to Malta from Assisi on the initiative of Fr. Dionysius Mintoff, Founder and director of the PeaceLab (Laboratorju tal-Paci), and Hon Galea, Speaker of the House of Representatives.

The exhibition comprised 50 portraits by Cesare Pippi. The photos showed a diversity of African faces, mainly of children and young people from Mali, the Ivory Coast, Zanzibar, Kenya and Senegal, amongst others.

In his speech during the opening of the exhibition, Hon Galea said that this exhibition should help the visitors to understand that Africa is not just about poverty, dictatorships and was, often leading to illegal immigration into other countries. Although these aspects feature prominently in the news, Africa is also a continent full of opportunities wherein lies a great part of the future of the world. Mr. Speaker noted too that the exhibition was taking place at the same time that the House was debating for aid.

Fr. Mintoff also referred to the fact that the exhibition was being hosted in the place where decisions are taken, enabling visitors to look at Africa from a different perspective, not solely as a continent begging for aid.

Franciscans International Inaugural Award of Human Rights 2010 (6^th April 2010)

Rev. Fr. Dionysius Mintoff OFM, of the Franciscan OFM Province in Malta, was awarded with the ”Inaugural award of Human Rights 2010″ at the Franciscans International in Geneva. The celebration was held at the Franciscans International Offices in Geneva on the 9th April 2010.

Fr. Dionysius was one of two Franciscans who simultaneously shared their dream of Franciscans working for justice at the United Nations (UN), in 1982. The seed that he planted with Sr. Elizabeth Cameron OSF (RIP) grew into what is now known as Franciscans International, (FI), the first collaborative ministry of the whole Franciscan Family.

Extracts from messages of congratulations :-

I know very well that you spared no effort and continue your hard work to help suffering humanity especially with your activities in the Peace Lab. You certainly deserve the award.
On behalf of myself and all the people of Malta I send you my congratulations with my wishes for good health, peace and many years to carry on your work for the benefit of all.

Dr. George Abela - President of the Republic of Malta

Fr. Mintoff's past has been a life dedicated to other. In spite of his advanced age he remains active and alert;

by no means is he ready to rest on his laurels; his energy is legend and so it remain.

Dr. Tonio Borg - Minister of Foreign Affairs

The Award presented by Franciscans International to you is a living witness of your hard and long work in the Peace Lab for the past forty years, in a variety of actions in favour of peace, justice and solidarity among the poor.

Dr. Joseph Muscat - Opposition leader

Really the Award is in the exact place. You deserve more then one Award. Your known effort to help the needy, the refugees and the troubled people and your love and tolerance regarding the people of other faiths, one great example for the leaders of all religions.

I am sure that with motivate you to do more good deeds, charity and sacrifices.

Imam Mohammad El-Sadi - Head of the Islam Community Malta

Franciscan Minister General visits the Peace Lab (28^th October 2009)

Fr Hosè Rodriguez Carballo O.F.M. is the re elected Minister General of the Franciscan Order. Together with Fr. Francis Walter o.f.m. he visited Malta on the 28^th October 2009. The aim of his visit was to appeal the local Franciscans to preach peace and love to a society where wealth and power are regarded as the most important things in life. He could sense the “peace” that Francis possessed in all the convents run by the friars in many parts of Malta and Gozo. Modern Maltese appreciate this aspect of Franciscan spirit. He is subject to so much pressure and tension from racing against the clock.

Fr. Carballo the minister general accompanied by Fr. Sandro Overend the Provincial of the Franciscans visited the Peace Lab. During his stay he joined the volunteers in prayers and later inaugurated the Minores/09 an internet service in order to alleviate the anxiety of not only the Asylum seekers but also of their families. Fr Carballo stated that this service functions and gives great mental support to its users.

Today the Franciscan Order is still one of the largest and most vital religious Orders of men in the Catholic Church. This Order numbers some 25,000 members throughout the world. Of these, 6,000 work as missionaries in third world country territories.

Nuclear Bombing on Hiroshima (August 2009)

Message to the United Nations

On the occassion of the 64th Aniversary of the Nuclear Bombing on Hiroshima, 6th. August 1945, Peace Lab (Malta) has delivered a message to the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

In his message Fr Dionysius Mintoff, founder and Chairman of the Peace Lab, expresses his organisation’s admiration and support for the Secretary-General‘s five-point plan to acheive a nuclear-weapon-free world, calling for greater progress towards achieving this aim.

Humanity still faces serious threats from this global scourge nearly 20 years after the end of the Cold War. Nuclear treats result from various sources including nuclear deterrance, weapon hoarding, nuclear testing, the constant development of long-range missiles and concerns that more countires and even terrorists may be seeking nuclear capability.

Recalling Pope Benedict’s Pentecost speech the message expresses a hope that all heads of states and other parties concerned pursue negotiations in ‘good faith’ pushing formost in their agenda the value of life and peace as a human right.

For the attention of new MEPs (Times of Malta Tuesday, 7th July 2009)

Fr Dionysius Mintoff OFM, director, John XXIII Peace Lab, Ħal Far

While congratulating the MEPs on their election, I take the opportunity to share with you the following reflections.

Immigration has been a major topic during the last electoral campaign. Unfortunately, intransigence and parochialism, rather than humanity, empathy and sense, were the characteristics that mostly transpired in speeches and manifestos. Now that the campaign is over, it is appropriate that issues are discussed in a sober and intelligent manner.

Unlike what was suggested by some during the electoral campaign, the issue of immigration may not be resolved through patrols and repatriation. Apart from aggravating the victims' ordeal, these simplistic proposals fool the local electorate into thinking that a solution may be obtained in a high-handed, unilateral and insular manner. We know, on the other hand, that the problem will remain as long as we do not consider the reasons that induce people to leave their country of origin. Most of these reasons are related to the unjust economic, cultural and political relations that hold between Europe and Africa.

As members of a Parliament that represents one of the world's major political and economic blocs, they ought to work for a comprehensive solution to the problems of Africa and the third world. They need to be daring and creative in their initiatives. In this regard I take the liberty to suggest that, with fellow Parliamentarians, they promote initiatives like:

1. An embargo on the sale of arms to Africa.

2. The promotion of fair trade.

3. Sanctions against European multinationals that are blatantly exploiting the African continent and devastating communities and landscapes.

4. Incentives to Africans and Third World governments that promote democracy and human rights.

5. A common and human European policy concerning immigrants who manage to arrive in Europe; a policy that turns detention centres into training camps that prepare these immigrants to enter the European workforce.

6. Common European policies that banish the exploitation of immigrant workers and promote the rights of the latter.

I trust that their performance in the European Parliament will be characterised by concern for the good of the oppressed and the promotion of human rights

John XXIII Kindness Award 2009 (June 2009)

The annual John XXIII Gold Medal is an annual award to children in Malta and Gozo who have shown kindness and generosity to less fortunate people in need of help.

Eleven-year-old Amy Zahra has been awarded the Pope John XXIII Kindness award for helping out her friend and classmate Jessica Bezzina who suffers from a rare developmental disorder.

Amy and Jessica are both students at the Sta Monica Primary School in Birkirkara and, for the past four years, Amy has been helping Jessica who has problems communicating.

Jessica suffers from Cornelia de Lange Syndrome and can only communicate through gestures and loud noises. But Amy manages to understand her friend and calm her down.
Every morning Amy waits for Jessica at the school doors and accompanies her to class where other students also give a helping hand.

“I’m very happy that the help I have been giving to Jessica had been rewarded. I did not help her for the reward but its nice to get some credit,” Amy said with a smile.

She added that, before Monday, she had never heard about this award and was very surprised when she was informed she had been chosen.

The award was given to her by President George Abela and is given every year, by the Peace Lab, to commemorate the anniversary of the death of Pope John XXII.

Hiroshima Survivors Visit (November 2008)

The Peace lab has since its founding in 1970, been very active in raising awareness among the Maltese public about peace issues especially Nuclear Disarmament. It has collaborated with international peace organisations to organise and conferences on this subject both in Malta and other European countries.

The horror of nuclear war was very clearly shown by the destruction of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Every year the Peace Lab commemorates the bombing of these cities in the local media.

The Peace Lab warmly welcomed and sincerely thanks some of the survivors of these bombings for accepting our invitation to come as guests of the Peace Lab to deliver us the truth that war knows no law except that of might.

UNHCR visit to Peace Lab Halfar (April 2008)

The UNHCR delegation from Geneva and Rome visited the Peace Lab to hear the views of this non governmental organisation on the present situation of asylum seekers in Malta.

The UNHCR delegation led by Mr. Walter Irving met fr. Dionysius Mintoff o.f.m. director and Mr. Joe Abela co-ordinator of the Peace Lab and many youths.

Though the government is spearing no effort to help these youths to secure an independent future, fr. Mintoff explained that many difficulties are cropping up each day especially for the rejected cases.

At the moment there is no repatriation policy in Malta; however it will come some time in the future. The problems in Africa are too big and complicated to address here but it has to be realised that this situation will not go away. Simply sending someone back to the same circumstances means that they will likely try again. They could end up in Malta a second or third time.

Rejected people are given the permission to remain in Malta for three months at a time. They are provided accommodation at an open center and the daily allowance at a reduced rate. They can enter legal employment if they find an employer to complete the work permit application form.

They are free to leave the open center and find accommodation in Malta, become self sufficient and find employment, but again this is primarily in the illegal market place.

Thought should be given to equipping rejected people with skills relevant to their home situation thereby encouraging them to stay and build a life for themselves and their families.

Before leaving Mr. Irving wrote a shore message to the Peace Lab director and residents. It runs as follows ‘Thanks for your hospitality. Another visit to the Peace lab which never changes!, the wonderful gardens, the welcoming atmosphere and the many refugees who have obtained strong support. Always grateful to call on fr. Mintoff and to get a little of the magic and dynamism of your centre and home.

Ghettos on Malta - by Marika Azzopardi
{Published in The Malta Independent 24th. January 2009)

It is the same story over again. People who want to go to Europe end up in Malta and become embroiled in a situation that sees them unwilling captives on an island that hosts them unwillingly, whilst some legal, international, European or African, technicality is being resolved elsewhere. And in the meantime war goes on in their country, their family members grow older and further apart, time is lost and lives stand on hold, in oblivion. Yet, we have to pause and think before blurting out haphazard statements - if the perilous weather conditions of a wintry Mediterranean sea cannot deter these migrants from risking a crossing, things must be really bad where they come from.

Fr Dionysius Mintoff tries hard. He works unstintingly with the poor people of Hal Far, the poor people who visit the Peace Lab each and every day asking for help, for support, for supplies. They are the poor people of Africa who are even poorer, even in Malta. He knows the Maltese people cannot support this situation for very much longer and he knows the people of Africa are pawns in an international gamble that cannot be resolved any time soon and which very few really care to solve. Yet, he keeps trying to find solutions.

He does his best to organise events that will keep communication levels high and its channels wide open. Last Sunday, World Refugee Day, the Peace Lab organised a successful repeat of last December’s Open Day when Asylum Seekers congregated with members of the Maltese public who were interested in sharing moments of African and Maltese culture.

Dance, laughter, talk. Some tea and music – tribal sounds from Africa, folklore dance from Malta. Fr Dionysius recalls the words of one of the organisers who coined the whole event a ‘spontaneous fusion’. It is merry-making that tries hard to ward off ill-feelings and to somewhat dispel the harshness of reality.

A reality which surfaces during Holy Mass at the Peace Lab, when images of distressed people who land here on boats, are shown on the big screen within the tiny chapel and the words of a Somali man reverberate in tandem… “There was an island in front of us, it was Malta. I didn’t want to go there, nobody wanted to go there; we all knew it is a small island and that so small a country cannot give shelter to all the people escaping from Africa because of war and famine.” But ultimately when fear of stormy waters takes over, when the boat is intercepted by law and order, there is really no choice.

The Somali man laments, even whilst knowing that detention of its very nature, must be tough. “I would like simple things – sleeping in a bed, not on a mattress on the floor; a door for the women’s showers when my wife is washing herself; hot water, electricity…. We are too many people in so small a space and we cannot wash properly our clothes and our blankets. It is so dirty here.”

As I sit writing, I watch the rain dismally. It’s been raining all day – a long, wet, dull day. My feet are cold, my hands are cold, but I have a de-humidifier and a heater for company and at least I am dry. I wonder about the people returning to the tents this afternoon and finding all their possessions, probably, soaking wet.

I listen to the news – Gaza is burning, the British are trying to save their banks, Obama is being inaugurated as president soon. And then I read a news article on a recent issue of The Guardian Weekly which talks about how ‘Malta grapples with influx of immigrants’. Perhaps we should look closer at our own shores to discover what Aidan Jones refers to as being “ ….2,000 (men & women) in ramshackle camps” and “…two cramped, unsanitary open centres that are effectively African ghettos.”

Ghettos on Malta? Yes. Jones writes of the Maltese reality and the fact that the Maltese are hardly to blame for the situation they’ve been handed, even though Malta’s 18-month-long detention policy is being openly criticised. It is easy for an outsider to speak up about such a problem. Yet no outsider has well and truly come up with any real solution to the problems of the Africans on Malta, to the Maltese problem. After all, this African problem that is also a European problem, has well and truly become a very real problem of the Maltese and one which won’t be disappearing very quickly.

Meantime, Fr Dionysius worries and frets.

For the very same reasons that Jones recites in his article.