Mhux sew!

Dawk li ma jaqblux mal-liġi tal-IVF li l-gvern qed imexxi fil-Parlament issa għarfu li hemm maġġoranza fih favuriha. B’dil-maġġoranza, l-liġi tgħaddi u l-linja tagħhom tingħeleb. Hekk jiġri f’demokrazija parlamentari.

Meta qed jaraw dan, l-istess nies – jekk fhimt tajjeb – iridu jagħmlu pressjoni fuq il-President tar-Republika biex hi forsi jirnexxielha trażżan il-liġi.

F’repubblika lajka, il-forzi soċjali li jitilqu minn twemmin reliġjuż jew simili għandu jkollhom kull dritt u spazju biex iwasslu l-messaġġ tagħhom. Imma li jqisu lilhom infushom bħala ddotati b’xi awtorità apparti li taġixxi lil hinn mir-regoli ta’ tmexxija kif imfissra fil-kostituzzjoni ma jagħmilx sens.

Il-President ma għandha tiġi soġġetta għall-ebda pressjoni morali jew politika. Meta jsir dan, kwalunkwe deċiżjoni li l-Presidenza tar-Republika tieħu, tista’ tinftiehem bħala hi wkoll imnebbħa minn kalkoli politiċi. Dan mhux sew.

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ILLUŻJONIJIET

Skont il-Eurobarometer, il-Maltin huma fost l-aktar li fil-pajjiżi Ewropej jaħsbu bħalissa li s-sħubija ta’ Malta fl-Unjoni Ewropea kienet ta’ ġid għall-pajjiż. J’alla jkomplu jaħsbu hekk.

Biss ta’ min jistaqsi jekk das-sentiment hux iggwidat mill-fatt li bir-rankatura ekonomika u soċjali li għaddejjin biha, il-Maltin bħal kull poplu ieħor fl-istess ċirkostanzi, se jqisu li kull ma jinsab għaddej bilfors hu ta’ ġid, inkluża s-sħubija fl-Unjoni Ewropea.

Għax fil-verità, matul l-ewwel snin li fihom Malta kienet imsieħba fl-Unjoni Ewropea, il-lanja tat-tkabbir ekonomiku u soċjali tal-gżira kienet baxxa ħafna.

Jekk issa, taħt gvern Laburista, l-affarijiet stejqru bil-kbir, ħmistax-il sena wara li l-pajjiż daħal fl-Unjoni Ewropea, dan għax irrankajna f’oqsma ekonomiċi fejn l-Unjoni Ewropea tindaħal ftit li xejn – il-bini, it-turizmu, is-servizzi finanzjarji, l-imħatri bl-internet. Ma ndaħlitx: sa issa…

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PHILIP ROTH

Għal nies tal-ġenerazzjoni tiegħi, Philip Roth li miet il-ġimgħa l-oħra, kien il-kittieb li kiser it-tabujiet kollha dwar kif teħles mill-frustrazzjoni sesswali bir-rumanz tiegħu “Portnoy’s Complaint”. Il-ktieb kien suċċess suċċessun. Imma warajh, Roth ippublika għadd kbir ta’ rumanzi li waqt li baqgħu fit-“territorju” ta’ Portnoy, twessgħu u nfirxu f’temi aktar kumplessi għalkemm marbuta b’katina li tinħass bħala awtobiografika.

Bla dubju irriflettew l-esperjenzi ta’ Roth innifsu mal-mogħdija tas-snin, fost oħrajn fir-relazzjonijiet tiegħu man-nisa u fl-iżvilupp tal-kitba. Dejjem baqa’ jagħfas fuq il-perspettiva tal-Lhud Amerikani – dak li jagħmilhom simili għall-bqija tal-komunità Amerikana, u x’jiddistingwihom minn gruppi “etniċi” oħra. Mhux ta’ b’xejn li Roth jissemma fl-istess nifs ma’ John Updike u Saul Bellow.

Jekk ħafna jiftakru fil-kitba ta’ Roth għall-mod kif jittratta s-sess, lili laqatni wkoll fil-kitba tiegħu tal-aħħar, il-mod kif jiddeskrivi “minn ġewwa” ix-xjuħija u l-mewt.

English Version – Not Right

Those who disagree with the IVF law that the government is proposing to Parliament have now accepted that a majority of deputies will be voting in favour. This majority will ensure passage of the law and defeat of their position. That’s how things happen in parliamentary democracies.

Having realised this, the same quarters – if I understand correctly – are trying to exercise pressure on the President of the Republic for her to perhaps succeed in blocking the law.

In a secular republic, social forces whose mobilisation is anchored to a religious faith, or the equivalent, should have full rights and possibilities to get their message across. But it makes no sense if they proceed from that to consider themselves as imbued with some separate authority to act beyond the rules of behaviour laid out in the constitution.

The President should not be subjected to any form of moral or political pressure. When this happens, any decision reached by the President of the Republic, no matter what or which, can be construed as also based on political calculations. This is not right.

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Illusions

According to Eurobarometer, the Maltese are among those peoples in European countries who now believe that Malta’s membership of the European Union was of benefit to the country. May they continue to so believe.

For one may well ask whether this feeling is not shaped by the fact that given the economic and social progress now going on at an unprecedented pace, the Maltese – as would other communities placed in the same position – will consider all that has happened as necessarily beneficial, including EU membership.

The truth though is that during the first years of Malta’s membership, the rates of growth in economic and social terms were quite sluggish.

If now, under a Labour administration, fifteen years after the island joined the EU, there has been a great recovery, this is because we have gained momentum in economic areas where the EU has minimal leverage – such as in construction, tourism, financial services, internet gaming. At least, that minimal leverage exists as at the time of writing. In future… who knows?

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Philip Roth

For persons of my generation, Philip Roth who died last week was the writer who broke all taboos about how to get relief from male sexual frustration with his novel “Portnoy’s Complaint”. That book really made a huge success. Subsequently, Roth published many novels which while staying in Portnoy “territory”, spread out and expanded into more complex themes although all linked by connections that are felt as autobiographical.

Undoubtedly, they reflect Roth’s own experiences over the years, among others in his relations with women and the development of the craft of writing. He always focussed on the perspective of American Jews – what makes them resemble the rest of the American social reality, and what distinguishes them for other “ethnic” groups. So it’s only natural that Roth gets mentioned alongside John Updike and Saul Bellow.

If many still remember Roth’s writing for its treatment of sex, I was impressed by how in his later works, he described “from the inside” old age and death.