University dean slams Identity Malta’s ‘bigotry’ over deportation appeals

The Dean of the Faculty for Social Wellbeing, Prof. Andrew Azzopardi, has slammed Identity Malta’s practice of sending letters to non-EU families appealing the deportation of their children, in which they are asked to leave the country “as soon as possible” as “administrative bigotry.”  

The letters, which could constitute a breach of the Immigration Act, have reportedly been sent to six children, whose parents live and work in Malta.

In his reaction to press reports on the matter, the Dean said he found the action of the responsible authority “unacceptable and an attempt at incensing pressure during one of the most vulnerable moments that the Country, and the World have ever faced.”

Azzopardi said he censured “without reservation” what he referred to as “the immoral timing” of such a letter, which could, in addition to the psychological and social damage caused, expose the children and their families to additional health vulnerabilities due to the COVID-19 situation.

“This is nothing but an act of administrative bigotry towards foreign workers ‘worthy’ of relatively low-paying jobs,” Azzopardi said. “From where I stand such individuals should still be provided with benefits and the protection of the State that all tax-paying workers deserve, particularly during this singularly sensitive moment.”

He urged the State authorities to not only to postpone indefinitely all appeals but “positively sanction these individuals especially those with families.”

“Let us do what our Country is so good at, place humanity and common sense before twisted administrative cost-benefit analyses and show camaraderie in such a critical time. We know that most of the people, especially those with families, who come to Malta do so because the situation back home is not conducive to them raising their children. We are duty-bound as a Nation, based on the principles of collegiality and communion, to be the State we really are, rather than be the death-knell of these human beings,” Azzopardi concluded.