The Maltese Language as a Badge of Distinction

I was saddened today to become aware (once again!) of the weak status we Maltese often give to the Maltese language. These feelings were re-ignited this morning by the somewhat apt comments of Joseph Eynaud, Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Malta.

In an exclusive interview to MaltaMedia.com, Eynaud points out that "in the last plenary session of the EP in Strasbourg only one Maltese MEP spoke Maltese." I wonder who of the 5 current Maltese MEPs spoke Maltese: John Attard-Montalto, Jason Azzopardi, Josef Bonnici, Mario De Marco, or George Vella?

This should undoubtedly make us (those who love the Maltese language) stand up and take note of the candidate pool for the upcoming MEP elections. In this regard, I am less inclined to be concerned with politics (in the partisan sense) and more with thinking about who of the candidates is likely to embrace the Maltese language during their interventions at the EU Parliament.

Next week I'll come back with a short-list of the candidates for the June election I believe hold the Maltese language as a badge of distinction.