By Nikita Alamango
Anyone who is familiar with William Shakespeare’s writings would compare Malta’s current situation with a Shakespearean tragedy. Tragedy for Shakespeare had two sides, either “love” tragedies like Romeo and Juliet which involve a pair of lovers torn apart by fate and society; or tragedies which are defined by their relationship to Aristotle’s theories of dramatic tragedy, likeMacbeth or Hamlet.
Divorce
Going back to the former example of “love tragedies” it seems that a part of our society still feels the urge to control the fate of couples whose first marriage does not succeed. People who oppose divorce have not managed to come up with any significant reasons why divorce should not be available in Malta or what is the alternative. I cannot fail to mention Martin Scicluna’s recent Talking Point on The Times “Three presidents, hypocrisy and divorce” which highlights the importance of the separation of powers between the Church and State on these kind of issues. While it is understandable that the church wants Malta to remain a ‘re-marriage free territory’ since the indissolubility of marriage is a church doctrine, it is unfair and unreasonable that this affects the workings of the State.
While the laws of the Catholic Church hold true for all those who wish to abide by them, the state must take note of the wide spectrum of beliefs and interests that exist in our country. It must respect other beliefs, including that which says that the rule of law is paramount. That is of course unless you take the view of the Attorney General who claimed that “God is above everything and everybody“. Malta is no longer a place where we can live and let live – the tragedy of ultra-conservatism is that it ends with Orwellian mind-control.
Stand Up 