Organizzazzjonijiet ċivili

Qrajt dwar il-miżuri li jinsabu viġġenti meta numru ta’ nies jinġabru flimkien biex iwaqqfu jew isostnu bejniethom organizzazzjoni ċivili. Biex iwasslu messaġġ soċjali, kulturali jew ieħor; jew sempliċement biex iżommu kuntatt.

Jekk fhimt tajjeb, iridu jirreġistraw mal-Kummissarju inkarigat mill-organizzazzjonijiet mhux governattivi u jsegwu ċerti regoli biex jindikaw id-dħul u l-ħruġ finanzjarju tagħhom.

Bqajt ftit mistagħġeb li hemm għalfejn din is-sikkatura kollha.

Jekk grupp ta’ żgħażagħ iridu jingħaqdu flimkien biex jippromwovu teatru ta’ ċertu tip, se jkollhom għalfejn joqgħodu jirreġistraw? L-istess jekk grupp ta’ anzjani se jingħaqdu biex jistinkaw ħalli jinbidlu l-liġijiet tal-pensjoni?

Nifhem li dan għandu jsir jekk fin-nofs hemm ġbir ta’ fondi sostanzjali. Biss, jekk le, x’inhu l-punt?

Jekk fhimt ħażin, lest nammetti bi pjaċir li ħadt falza stikka. Imma wieħed ma jistax jaħrab mill-impressjoni li qed jiżdiedu ħafna r-regoli biex jissorveljaw liż-żgħar, mentri qed jitħallew imċarrta l-ixbieki diġà eżistenti suppost, biex jikkontrollaw lill-kbar.

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BOEING BOEING

Għal xi ħadd bħali li jivvjaġġa ta’ spiss bl-ajru, l-kraxx doppju tal-ajruplan Boeing “il-ġdid”, l-ewwel fl-Indonesja u mbagħad fl-Etjopja, bilfors ikollu interess mhux ċkejken.

Titjiriet bl-ajru saru fost l-aktar faċli u nieqsa minn kull saram li tista’ tagħżel bħala mod kif tivvjaġġa. Ħafna anqas perikolużi bħala medja minn vjaġġar bil-karozza, bil-vapur jew anke bit-trenn. Dan jinħass stramb meta tirrealizza li nkunu għaddejja xi ħames kilometri jew aktar ’il fuq mill-art. Statistikament madankollu, is-sitwazzjoni hekk hi.

Minn hawn li jqum l-imperattiv biex tal-Boeing jiċċaraw iċ-ċirkostanzi li wasslu għaż-żewġ kraxxijiet u jkunu sinċiera ma’ kulħadd dwar għaliex inqalgħu. U dwar x’se jsir biex jiżguraw li ma tinqalax diżgrazzja oħra.

Nittama li x’qed nikteb hawn ma jispiċċax fil-kategorija tal-“famous last words” – l-aħħar kliem li jirnexxilek tgħid qabel jilħqek xi għawġ.

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KAMPJUNI EWROPEJ…

L-istati membri tal-Unjoni Ewropea jgħidu li jridu jippromwovu kompetizzjoni sħiħa u trasparenti fi ħdan is-suq wieħed Ewropew.

Fuq il-kriterji li s-soltu jinżammu ħalli l-kompetizzjoni tkun imħarsa, il-Kummissarju Vestager responsabbli mill-kompetizzjoni, waqqfet kumpanija kbira Ġermaniża milli tingħaqad ma’ oħra fi Franza; it-tnejn jibnu l-infrastruttura tal-ferroviji. L-għaqda ta’ bejniethom kienet issir waħda wisq dominanti fis-suq Ewropew.

Il-gvernijiet taż-żewġ l-akbar pajjiżi fl-Unjoni Ewropea xejn ma qablu ma’ did-deċiżjoni u kkundannawha. Skont huma, l-Ewropa jeħtiġilha trawwem kumpaniji tagħha biex isiru kampjuni fis-suq mondjali. Biex dan jiġri, trid tippermettilhom jingħaqdu ħalli jikbru u b’hekk ikunu jistgħu jirbħu swieq akbar mad-dinja billi jegħlbu l-kompetizzjoni li ssirilhom minn kumpaniji transnazzjonali Amerikani, Ċiniżi u Ġappuniżi, fost oħrajn.

English Version – NGOs

I read about the measures now in force covering how a group of people can come together to set up a civil organization or to keep one going, in order either to transmit social, cultural or other messages, or simply to maintain contact among themselves.

If I understood well, they now need to register with the Commissioner in charge of NGOs and follow certain rules while publishing their financial income and outgo.

One cannot but feel surprised that there is a need for such a stringent approach.

If some young people wish to get together to promote a certain way of doing theatre, why would they need to register? Similarly, why would a group of elderly persons need to also do this if they decide to unite and push say, for a change in pension laws?

One understands that registration should be required when the collection of substantial funds is being prospected. However if not, what’s the point?

I may be misunderstanding what’s going on, in which case I’ll admit my mistake quite happily. But one can hardly escape the impression that while measures to monitor ordinary people proliferate, existing rules which supposedly are there to control what the mighty do, are allowed to remain a dead letter.

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Boeing Boeing

For somebody like me who travels frequently by air, the two crashes of the “new” Boeing airplane, in Indonesia and then Ethiopia, certainly were of special interest.

Air travel has become the easiest and least complicated option you can choose to go from place to place. And it is the least dangerous on average, compared to travel by car, ship or train. This does sound strange when one realizes how much of it happens at some five kilometres if not more up in the sky. Yet statistically, that’s the picture.

Which makes it imperative that Boeing clarify the circumstances that led to the two disasters and that it be open with the rest of the world in explaining how and why they occurred. As well, they will need to make clear what is being done to ensure there won’t be a further repeat.

Actually, I hope what I’m writing here does not end up as an entry in the “famous last words” category…

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European champions

Member states of the EU claim they want to promote full and transparent competition within the European single market.

According to the criteria that usually get employed when competition rules are being enforced, the Commissioner reponsible for the sector Vestager, prevented a huge German company from merging with a similar one in France: both specialise in building hardware for railways. Their merger would have made them a dominant force in the European market.

The governments of the two largest economies of the EU strongly disagreed with this decision and roundly denounced it. In their view, Europe needs to promote its own companies which can become champions in global markets. For this to happen, it needs to let them merge and thereby grow sufficiently to be able to win larger segments of global markets by beating the competition coming from transnational companies based in the US, China and Japan, among others.