I have received a few emails and phone calls asking what I think of the recent decision to ban the play "Stitching" which was due to be put on recently. Now, without getting into the details of the script or the play – I haven't read or seen it – it is incredulous that in this day and age we are still concerned with banning plays – however avant garde or distasteful they may be. I sometimes wonder if we are really in 2009.
From the media reports I've read about this whole sorry saga it seems the play is shocking, provocative, and doesn't really sound like something I would be particularly interested in seeing. But the fact remains that we cannot ban the play because we may not agree with it, not like the underlying themes or think that it's too much for Maltese to handle. It's simply not on.
The answer would have been to ensure that it is open only to adults – raise the viewership age if really needs be - and that every person is warned in advance that the play is provocative and that some scenes may shock. Then everyone would be free to decide whether that was something they were interesting in watching – by themselves and not by some higher authority.
Of course if the Government doesn't want it put on on their property then they also have a right not to allow it – but who is anyone to say what can and can not be shown to informed adults on private property?
I hear the latest news is that the play will be shown in defiance of the ban – I hope the authorities don't make a mountain out of a mole hill and attempt to shut it down - the irony of such a move is that it will only increase the interest in the show meaning more people will want to watch it...
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Jobs, Jobs, Jobs
The turbulent international and financial climate we live in continues to throw harsher challenges at us. Living up to these challenges will need a continued strong leadership, and the government's 65 electoral promises linked to creating 'more work, better work' provides a solid platform of commitment to address these challenges pro-actively in very difficult circumstances.
Victims of the global economic crisis, cause us all to worry and lose sleep. I constantly meet people who live in fear of losing their jobs and it is plain to see that their and their family's lives are in turmoil. We need to band together to ensure that these people are given the very best chance of finding new employment quickly, we need to ensure that re-training opportunities are given to those who require it, we need to up our efforts to increase foreign investment and mostly we need to ensure that these people do not have to face these hardships alone.
From within the European Parliament much can be done to boost our competitiveness in this area. The objectives envisaged by the European Commission and Malta in their employment strategies need to be reached. Attracting investment, continued training and skill diversification for workers in a large range of categories and age groups, coupled with adequate planning of EU and national programmes to make sure we continue to invest in the jobs of the future need to remain a high priority.
I believe that an MEP's role in terms of employment should cover two separate aspects, namely:
- Providing a strong voice in the EU institutions to ensure that citizens in the Member States can benefit from the right kind of employment conditions and ensuring the correct implementation of EU programmes such as the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (that provides help in situations when there have been downsizing due to reasons attributed to globalisation with the aim of providing additional support to workers made redundant), and the PROGRESS Programme (that helps national authorities in developing new national programmes to reach the Lisbon Agenda targets).
- And keeping the national government on the right track and at the right pace in ensuring that it lives up to its commitments, and delivers on its promises.
Read my full position on employment at the link below:
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
