Four days after PN MP Justin Schembri’s racist ‘Mimlija ħmieġ, żdingar u Indjani’ comment, the party has not taken any action
Grech, PN ignore questions on consequences after racist comment
The Nationalist Party and its leadership have ignored repeated attempts by NEWZ.mt and other journalists to obtain a statement on possible consequences for Schembri.
On Monday, the PN’s education spokesperson was slammed for leaving a racist comment under a One.com.mt Facebook post where he claimed that Malta was “full of filth, shabbiness and Indians”.
Rule of law NGO Repubblika called the remarks “dehumanizing”, “discriminatory, racist and an explicit threat”. It said that “those who embrace racism do not have a legitimate political role in a democracy”.
“This is a statement that strips people of their human dignity, and puts them in a category with soulless objects”, Repubblika said.
Neil Falzon, director of human rights NGO aditus foundation, harshly criticised the comment and called for the MP’s resignation.
“Mr Schembri, your racist populism is not only repugnant but also detrimental to the fabric of our society. Kindly exit the stage and spare us your toxic presence”, Falzon said.
Schembri has not apologised for his racist language and claimed in a Facebook post that he “in no way wrote that any nation or people are filth”.
However, the PN MP failed to explain why he felt the need to list ‘Indians’ together with filth and shabbiness, and why he singled out people from India.
When asked about the racist comment by Times of Malta‘s Daniel Ellul on Tuesday, PN leader Bernard Grech refused to say whether Schembri would face any consequences.
Members of the Indian community said on Wednesday they are saddened by Schembri’s remarks and concerned the comments could lead people to think Indian nationals were “uneducated and dirty”, Times of Malta reported.
“We are human beings too and we came to Malta legally, with work permits, so how can he say that?”, a spokesperson of the Malta Malayalee Association asked.
The Nationalist Party has since left journalists’ questions unanswered, presumably in an attempt to sweep its racist incident under the rug during a week dominated by the public discussion surrounding the Vitals inquiry.
