MGRM calls out PN MP Conrad Borg Manche for false claims and 'anti-equality rhetoric'

The Malta LGBTIQ Rights Movement (MGRM) has called out Nationalist MP Conrad Borg Manche for his statements on realities faced by queer people, calling them misleading and damaging. 

"We refuse to let our organisation's name be weaponised to justify homophobia or legislative backtracking," MGRM said in a statement published on Monday.

The condemnation followed an interview by MaltaToday in which Borg Manché claimed that heads of organisations like MGRM had agreed with his view that Pride events show how "unequal" the queer community is. MGRM said this was false, adding that it had never agreed with any statements that undermine or oppose Pride.

While the organisation had previously criticised elements of overcommercialisation and pinkwashing at events such as EuroPride, it said it continued to defend Pride as a celebration of queer joy and resilience. It added that, were it opposed to Pride, it would not organise safe spaces for the LGBTIQ+ community, coordinate activities during Malta Pride Week, or march in the streets.

MGRM also pushed back against Borg Manché's comments on children's education, in which the MP said young children should be shielded from learning about sexual orientation.

The organisation said that denying children access to inclusive education does not stop queer children from existing, but ensures they grow up isolated, unsafe, and shamed, while also depriving their peers of the tools needed to fight discrimination.

On Pride itself, MGRM said the MP's comments revealed a fundamental misunderstanding of why the event exists. For decades, it noted, LGBTIQ+ individuals were forced to hide who they were, and many still are today due to conservative or religious pressures.

Pride, the organisation said, is a celebration of survival and visibility that belongs to everyone, including rainbow families, drag artists, and people of all ages.

MGRM backed its position with data from the 2024 Fundamental Rights Agency survey, which found that 59% of LGBTIQ+ persons in Malta experienced harassment in the year prior to the survey, above the EU average of 54%. It also found that 22% avoid certain areas out of fear of physical assault, 36% avoid holding hands with their same-sex partner in public, and 26% have been subjected to conversion practices, despite Malta being the first EU country to ban them by law.

The organisation also noted that Borg Manché's remarks directly contradict the LGBTIQ+ inclusion proposals outlined in the Nationalist Party’s own electoral manifesto, which he claimed he was not fully aware of.

MGRM said it formally awaits an official statement from the PN leadership clarifying whether the MP's views align with the party's official position.