Opportunitajiet?

Inħossni ftit skomdu nisma’ diskors dwar l-“opportunitajiet” li tista’ toffri l-Brexit. Ir-realtà hi li l-ħruġ tar-Renju Unit mill-Unjoni Ewropea se jkun mixja diplomatika u ekonomika mill-aktar kumplessa. Qabel jista’ jseħħ, irid ikun hemm ftehim politiku dwar il-mira finali tal-bidla, li jiġi proċess komplikat ieħor.
Hu fl-interess ta’ kulħadd, inkluż ta’ Malta, li jintlaħaq qbil raġonevoli dwar dil-mira ħalli d-diplomazija istituzzjonali u ekonomika timxi ’l quddiem. L-aktar ħaġa li wieħed irid joqgħod attent għaliha fil-passi li jittieħdu, hi li xejn ma jservi biex iqagħbar l-interessi nazzjonali differenti.
Personalment nara li l-akbar problema politika għalina hi kif se jiċċaqlaq iċ-ċentru tal-gravità politikament fl-Unjoni Ewropea bit-tluq tar-Renju Unit. Se jiddominaw wisq aktar il-veduti tal-Ġermanja. Dal-pajjiż għandu taħt it-tmexxija preżenti virtu kbira u difett kbir.
Minn naħa, ma jfajjarx bidliet ta’ malajr fil-politika li jaddotta (bl-eċċezzjoni straordinarja s-sena li għaddiet dwar l-immigrazzjoni).
Id-difett il-kbir hu li jekk jaddotta politika, jibqa’ jsegwiha sal-aħħar b’mod wisq riġidu (bħal dwar l-awsterità fit-tmexxija tal-finanzi publiċi).
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Ideat sbieħ
Matul is-snin, iltqajt ma’ diversi persuni ta’ kull nazzjonalità li jinqalgħu biex joħorġu b’ideat u proposti sbieħ. Tant ikunu sbieħ li kulħadd jaċċetta s-sbuħija u l-interess tagħhom.
Biss l-istess nies ta’ spiss issibhom ftit interessati fil-mod kif jistgħu jitwettqu l-proposti li jressqu. Wisq anqas li jieħdu sehem impenjat fit-twettiq tal-proġetti li jkunu welldu, tal-anqas bil-kliem.
Sadattant ikunu webblu bihom lil ħafna oħrajn li jibdew jistennew it-twettiq tagħhom, mingħajr ma jifhmu li webbluhom b’miraġġ.
Għal dir-raġuni, sirt nibża’ minn kull min jersaq b’xi proposta li tidher sabiħa waqt li dwar kif tista titħaddem jibqa’ sieket.
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Relativiżmu
Taħt il-Papa preċedenti (u anki ta’ qablu), linja gwida ewlenija kienet li fil-prinċipji ta’ twemmin u għajxien il-ħajja, il-bniedem ma setax jaċċetta xi relativiżmu – jiġifieri li valuri jistgħu ma jkunux assoluti.
Dejjem rajtha sorprendenti dil-ħaġa għax storikament hu ċar li anke fi ħdan il-Kristjaneżmu, żminijiet u ċirkostanzi differenti ġġeneraw valuri differenti. Mhux biss dwar kwistjonijiet ta’ sess u żwieġ, imma anke dwar modi oħra kif tqis il-ħajja tal-bnedmin, bħal dwar l-iskjavitù, it-tortura, il-piena kapitali, il-ġustizzja soċjali. Hemm kitbiet ta’ Santu Wistin pereżempju fejn dan ir-“relativiżmu” hu diskuss b’mod intelliġenti ħafna.
Interessanti għalhekk l-iżvolta li ta l-Papa preżenti fejn b’mod uman u sinċier, qed jiftaħ tieqa fuq ir-relattiv: bejn biża’ u biża’, bejn deni u deni, l-għażla morali trid issir ukoll skont iż-żmien li jkun u skont iċ-ċirkostanzi attwali li jiddefinixxu r-realtà tal-bniedem.

Opportunities?

I feel some discomfort when I listen to talk about the “opportunities” that Brexit could offer. The truth is that the exit of the UK from the European Union is going to be a diplomatic and economic dance of the utmost complexity. Before it can be finalised, a political agreement must be reached about the final aim of the change – which will involve another complicated process.

It is in everybody’s interest, including Malta’s, that a reasonable agreement be reached regarding this aim, so that institutional and economic diplomacy can proceed. What should be kept as a priority in the moves undertaken, is to ensure that nothing is done that could affect badly the different national interests.

As for myself, what I see as the biggest political problem for us is how the EU’s political centre of gravity will evolve in the wake of the UK’s departure. Germany’s point of view could become too dominant. This country under its present leadership has one big virtue and one big deficiency.

On the one hand, it does not make abrupt changes in its adopted policies (with the extraordinary exception last year regarding immigration).

On the other hand, when it adopts a policy, it sticks to it till the bitter end too rigidly (as with austerity in the management of public finance).

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Beautiful ideas

Over the years, I met people of varied nationalities who ably produce beautiful ideas and proposals. So beautiful, that everybody agrees how beautiful and interesting they are.

However, you frequently find that such people are less than interested in how their proposals can be carried out in practice. Even less are they interested in committing themselves to the implementation of the projects that they will have generated, at least on paper.

Meanwhile, they will have sparked an interest in them among other people whowithout realizing that they have become enthusiastic about a mirage, will expect that action is taken to implement it.

For this reason, I have learnt to become wary of all those who approach to make proposals that seem attractive while saying nothing about how they could be carried out.

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Relativism

Under the previous Pope (and his predecessor), a leading mantra was that when observing principles that reflect beliefs and ways of living, humanity could not accept relativism, as this fails to enshrine “absolute” values.

I always found this approach a bit odd since historically, even within Christianity, it is clear that at different times and in different circumstances, values were defined in differing ways. Not just by way of sex and marriage, but also regarding other ways by which to consider human life, like with slavery, torture, capital punsihment, social justice. Saint Augustine for instance wrote texts in which relativism is discussed with great intelligence and acceptance.

The turnaround on the matter accomplished by the present pontiff is therefore quite interesting. In a humane and sincere manner, he has opened a window on the relative: between two sorts of fear, two sorts of “wrong”, the moral choice must also be made according to the times and circumstances that define the reality in which people live.