News • 17 November 2002

Curia-bashers are employed with PN ministers says Karmenu

By Kurt Sansone

Blata L-Bajda - Former Prime Minister Dr Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici never fails to surprise. Yesterday he alleged that individuals who had smashed up the Curia during the mid-eighties at the height of the Church schools saga, are now employed in the secretariats of certain ministers. He did not specify who the people were or with which ministries they are now employed.

During the morning programme, Ghandi Pjacir on church radio RTK, Dr Mifsud Bonnici faced a string of irate callers demanding an apology for the violence that characterised his time as Prime Minister. The apology never came but the former Prime Minister admitted that the methods used by the Labour government in 1984 to enforce the principle that Church schools should be free, were wrong.

"I stand by the principle we were campaigning for, it was eventually accepted by the Vatican and the Church authorities in Malta but I admit that the methods used were wrong and we paid a heavy price for using them," Dr Mifsud Bonnici said.

"I paid the political price for the smashing up of the Curia. I do not approve of what happened and if I had known who the people were I would have taken action," the former Prime Minister insisted, contradicting what he had just said. The Curia is just across the road from the police headquarters.

Responding to accusations of doing nothing about the violence that occurred during his time, Dr Mifsud Bonnici defended himself by pointing an accusing finger at the Nationalist Party.

"I condemn all the bad things that occurred when I was Prime Minister but I can never be blamed for inciting or approving of violence. However, we must not forget the bombs that used to explode week after week in a bid to destabilise the country and that were the work of the Opposition of the time," Dr Mifsud Bonnici reiterated.

Prompted by the programme presenter to clarify what he had just said about bombs being orchestrated by the Opposition, Dr Mifsud Bonnici stuck to his guns.

On the violence that occurred during the Nationalist Party mass meeting in Zejtun Dr Mifsud Bonnici defended his decision to ban Nationalist mass meetings in Zejtun, Cottonera and Paola. "The violence that occurred at Tal-Barrani happened because of the Zejtun Labour supporters who thought that they should not allow the meeting to take place there, but I also blame the Law Courts for granting the permission for the meeting to take place there when both the army brigadier and the police commissioner had said that they were not in a position to ensure security." In fact neither the army nor the police lifted a finger to remove obstacles blocking the route of the lawful PN demonstration. They also failed to repress the armed and dangerous opponents to the demonstration and actively repressed the lawful demonstration.