Ratification of Protocol 12 commits government to raise the bar on equality - Helen Dalli

Equality Minister Helena Dalli said that the ratification of Protocol 12 of the European Convention on Human Rights will strengthen the government’s commitment to keep on raising the bar and ensuring that everyone is treated equally.

Speaking during a final conference on a project entitled Developing a Culture of Rights through Capacity Building organised by NCPE, Minister for Social Dialogue, Helena Dalli emphasised the importance of having a society that not only upholds, but strongly fights for the protection of every individual’s human rights.

She explained that once the ratification gets into force on 1 April 2016, the prohibition of discrimination under the Convention will not be limited to the exercise of the rights enshrined under it, but will extend to all the rights and services by any public authority in Malta.

Dalli referred to the two new Bills that were launched last week by the Ministry and which will be consolidating Malta’s human rights laws – the Equality Act and the creation of the Human Rights and Equality Commission. This Commission will be a completely independent body with the necessary powers to protect and enforce human rights in Malta. Furthermore, it will be going beyond the structural limitations of the NCPE and be a strong new framework for all of society.

Helena Dalli also mentioned how three new structures were set up during the past two and a half years with the aim of bridging certain gaps in the national framework. These include the LGBTIQ Consultative council, a Forum for Integration Affairs made up of representatives of community leaders from various non-EU nationalities that live in Malta and the Human Rights and Integration Directorate that was set up last month.