DIVORCE BILL DOOMED

What God has joined together, not even Joseph Muscat can put asunder

If Labour leader Joseph Muscat presents a private member’s bill to introduce divorce and allows his MPs a free vote, the motion will almost certainly be shot down by the current parliamentary set-up.
This emerges from an in-house survey conducted by MaltaToday among members of the House of Representatives yesterday, in the light of Muscat’s proposal to initiate a parliamentary debate on an issue which has traditionally set Church and State on a collision course.
The Malta Labour Party appears to be divided on this particular issue, with a small number of committed anti-divorce MPs, as well as a large swathe of undecided or non-committal parliamentarians.
There were six Labour respondents who claimed that they would vote against divorce legislation, and although outnumbered by pro-divorce MPs in the same party (13), the MLP’s “No vote” would certainly be enough to doom any divorce bill to failure, unless there is a radical shake-up on the Labour benches after the next election.
As for the government MPs nearly all opted to reserve judgement on an issue which has for decades been fiercely resisted by the Christian Democrat ruling party. Six Nationalist MPs declared their outright opposition to the bill, and none came out officially in favour. But it is debatable whether their party will allow them the luxury of a free vote to begin with: a fact which, added to the clear division within Labour ranks, strongly suggests that the bill proposed by Labour leader Joseph Muscat will not garner majority backing in the House.
Recent surveys suggest that popular opposition to divorce is dwindling among younger generations, and MaltaToday’s Sunday survey also revealed that the proposal enjoys more backing among Labour voters (58.3%) than Nationalist (34.2%).
The same survey revealed that although a slim majority (50.2%) opposes divorce on a national level, 60% expect divorce to be introduced within the next 10 years.

Muscat’s decision to float the idea of a free vote on the issue of divorce appears to have unsettled many within his own party, placing the MLP at loggerheads with a growing portion of its support-base which now actively supports their leader’s proposal.
Categorical in their opposition to any divorce law were Carmelo Abela, Silvio Parnis and Joe Debono Grech: the latter two citing personal beliefs to justify their position.
Anthony Agius Decelis said that while he was still uncertain, he would “definitely vote with a Catholic conscience”, while Joe Mizzi said that while he was a Catholic, he was “aware of the problems that exist”.
Elsewhere, MPs Adrian Vassallo, Justyne Caruana and Marlene Pullicino have already declared that they would vote against the bill.
In favour of Muscat’s proposal are veteran MPs Evarist Bartolo and Leo Brincat, who wrote unequivocal opinion articles to this effect in recent weeks, as did Luciano Busuttil in yesterday’s l-orizzont.
Contacted by MaltaToday, Helena Dalli, Michael Farrugia, Gavin Gulia, Roderick Galdes, Anthony Zammit, Karmenu Vella, Chris Cardona, Chris Agius and Owen Bonnici all emerged unconditionally in favour.
Roderick Galdes commented: “The way Maltese society is developing I think it would be unfair to deny this civil right to citizens who may need it.
“On the other hand we have to evaluate the conditions attached to this bill. On principle, I think I will vote in favour given the opportunity.”
The rest expressed reservations to varying degrees. Former deputy leader Charles Mangion told this newspaper that it was too early to take a clear position on such a complex issue.
“It would be premature to comment on a bill when I don’t yet know the wording of the proposed law,” he said. Declaring himself sympathetic to the notion of divorce as a civil right, Mangion nonetheless preferred to reserve judgment until the matter was debated in parliament.
His former partner in the MLP triumvirate, Michael Falzon, expressed a similar opinion. “We will have to see,” he said. “Personally I understand people who find themselves in these situations, but at the same time it depends on the type of legislation we are talking about. There are different types of divorce legislation in different countries. If we are going to emulate the situation in certain states of the USA, where divorce is obtainable at the drop of a hat, I don’t think it would be fitting for our country. If, on the other hand, we come up with a law which respects the rights of all parties concerned it would be a different matter.”
Deputy leader Anglu Farrugia refused to commit himself to an answer. “I have my own opinion in the matter, but as I am deputy leader for party affairs, I would prefer to wait until the issue is discussed in the parliamentary group before expressing my own views. This way I will not prejudice the discussion.”
Former Prime Minister Alfred Sant, who commissioned a study on the impact of divorce in 1997, declined to participate in the survey.

Non-committal Nationalists
Over to the government benches, and most Nationalist MPs told MaltaToday that they would have to study the proposed law in detail before making up their minds on the issue.
However, Finance Minister Tonio Fenech, Gozo Minister Giovanna Debono, parliamentary secretaries Jason Azzopardi and Chris Said, as well as MPs Edwin Vassallo, Louis Deguara and Frederick Azzopardi, were all firm in their opposition to any divorce law.
“I would vote for actions that sustain, strengthen and enhance the stability of the Maltese family,” Azzopardi told MaltaToday. “Since I do not believe that a divorce law reaches such aims, (if anything, it actually runs counter to this) I would vote against.”
Azzopardi emphasized that his decision was not motivated only by religious or spiritual reasons, but also out of a concern with social issues.
Fenech, Debono and Said did not elaborate on the reasons for their opposition to the bill, while former minister Edwin Vassallo, who recently wrote a book on the subject of public morality, said simply that he would vote against.
By and large, the rest claimed that their position depended on the wording of the proposed law.
“I would want to see the bill. For me, it’s not a blanket for or against divorce,” Robert Arrigo said: echoing sentiments expressed by backbenchers Censu Galea, David Agius, Michael Gonzi and Jean-Pierre Farrugia.
“In all honesty, I can only express myself in favour or against a bill once I go through it and convince myself that by voting for it the whole society, and not just part of it, stands to benefit,” Charlò Bonnici said, adding that a discussion on what steps to take to strengthen the Maltese family should precede any discussion on divorce.
Former ministers Ninu Zammit and Francis Zammit Dimech concur. “I will decide at the appropriate time,” Zammit Dimech said. “A free vote is a free vote.”
For his part Social Policy Minister John Dalli – who recently suggested that the time was ripe for a national discussion on the subject – told MaltaToday: “I would prefer to let the debate on the issue evolve in a healthy way, without influencing its outcome.”
Elsewhere, parliamentary secretary in the health ministry Mario Galea claimed he would “support every initiative that would protect the children and the family”, without adding how he intends to vote on the subject of divorce.
Of all the government MPs, only Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando hinted that he might vote in favour under certain conditions.
“It is about time this issue is discussed,” he told MaltaToday. “A report into the issue of broken families should be drawn up, and if (this report) finds the need for the introduction of divorce, I will vote in favour.”

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