Blogs
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Not fully human
"Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home -- so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. [...] Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without...
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Human Rights – a literacy ‘must
The Welsh poet, Dylan Thomas once wrote: ‘A good poem helps to change the shape and significance of the universe, helps to extend everyone’s knowledge of himself and the world around him’. The Czech lawyer and activist Milada Horáková wrote ‘Man...
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‘Jaqaw liswed li qeda mijew...
I only forged ahead with writing this blog post after consulting the ‘target’ in question – a colleague at Times of Malta who happens to be guilty of association simply because her partner is black. The journalist was guilty of reporting a study...
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Who elected NGOs?
Who needs NGOs or civil society organisations? And, in whose name do they speak? When government does its job well, responds effectively to citizens’ rights and needs, delivers quality services, a secure and sustainable environment and an economy...
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Signs from the after-life
When Daphne Caruana Galizia was still alive and giving us a near-daily commentary on the ills, scandals and horror stories of this blighted land, she wrote one blog-post which is still referred to by many of her various enemies as justification...
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Damned by numbers
Some consider numbers meaningful. So meaningful that they could be the language of God, the hidden code of the universe. Like everything else, all this could be a load of hogwash. But numbers in this little fish pond of ours, which many of us...
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Maltese cheerleading ugliness
I came to teach in Malta some 15 years ago, ended up staying and have now lived in Gozo for 10 years. I have been struck by just how many positive things the Maltese have going for them – the geography of the place, its location (in one of the...
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Call me 'Lilly' all you want, but...
Of all the sexual harassment and sexual violence that women endure, I dare say that catcalling ranks very low on the list. Yes, being called "aw ġisem" by a sleaze might irritate or offend, but the damage inflicted on the "victim" most certainly...
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I disagree with Matthew, but...
A lot has been said about what X-Factor competitor Matthew Grech said about rethinking his own homosexuality when he “found God”. Some have argued that this kind of declaration should not have been broadcast, particularly on national television.
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I disagree with Matthew, but...
A lot has been said about what X-Factor competitor Matthew Grech said about rethinking his own homosexuality when he “found God”. Some have argued that this kind of declaration should not have been broadcast, particularly on national television.
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The light that will never be extinguished
Beyond our shores people pay tribute to Daphne. While here, on this blighted rock, Owen and his sad lot spew rubbish to defend the indefensible. They pontificate about the money spent to clean a memorial, saying more trash than the cleansing...
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The Irish are great fun until they’re not…
The Irish are great craic (the old stereotype goes) until they’re not (the new stereotype insists). As many times before in the history of our two islands, Ireland comes to the fore in thwarting the ambitions of Britain (or more accurately,...
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We are “women”, not “girls”.
There are approximately 177 students in second-year Law this year, 112 of whom (a whopping 63%) are women. I have not yet had the opportunity of acquainting myself with all of them, but most of the ones I have befriended seem insightful, capable,...
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Self censorship after Daphne's murder
Self censorship is healthy. Since I started writing I followed one piece of advice. Do not wait for inspiration to strike. Write as much as you can, as soon as you can and inspiration will eventually come. Following such advice will leave you with...
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We need an inquiry into dangerous foreign influences in Malta
We urgently need a full-scale magisterial inquiry. Its central terms of reference are to find out what on earth the Pakistanis and Bangladeshis ever did to Adrian Delia. One of our foremost leaders clearly knows something about the dangers of...
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Life is not a football match
In his speech at the opening of the forensic year at the Law Courts, Chief Justice Joseph Azzopardi chastised lawyers who open "unnecessary" constitutional cases, going so far as to recommend their disbarment. He further said that final court...
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Muscat's progressive thinking
Prime Minister Joseph Muscat's address to the United Nations Assembly gave food for thought, for reasons that go beyond the statesmanship qualities that many have praised. As relevant as the leitmotifs of "cooperation", "dialogue" and "unity" may...
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Leave that child alone
'Parental alienation' was first defined by Dr Richard Gardner as a syndrome in which one parent (the alienating parent) teaches the child to reject the other parent (the target parent) via conscious and subconscious techniques like...
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Who benefits most?
It just doesn’t read right, look right or feel right. Linking a holiday in one of Kenya’s top resorts with doing voluntary work with ‘kids in need’ locally while teaching them hygiene, tree planting, tailoring and construction, is clearly...
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Where modernity has never been
While the debacle over the so-called Pembroke Towers unfolds, and where crowds and opinions have been literally bussed in, residents have no choice but confront powerful developers, while environmentalists are countered by the vested and political...
