Farrugia calls for Dalli's resignation over defence of Debono Grech

Government whip admits to disagreeing with Speaker's ruling over clash between his partner Marlene Farrugia and Labour MP Joe Debono Grech • Busuttil reverses call for Debono Grech's suspension after request by Farrugia • Muscat urges MPs to debate more constructively in Parliament, but social policy minister later allegedly tells Busuttil that 'he is suffering from dementia'.

Independent MP Marlene Farrugia has called for the resignation of civil liberties minister Helena Dalli over comments condemning women who “play the victim” after “provoking” men into a violent response.

“Those shameful words have undone all the positive work that Dalli has performed as minister of civil liberties,” she said in a parliamentary debate on an Opposition motion calling for the reversal of a Speaker’s ruling and the suspension of Labour MP Joe Debono Grech from the Chamber.

Dalli had ostensibly passed those remarks in defence of Joe Debono Grech, who had told Farrugia during a debate on Friday that he will “come and beat her up”. Labour MPs have alleged that Debono Grech only passed his comments in reaction to Farrugia calling him a “simpleton” and “corrupt”.

Opposition leader Simon Busuttil had similarly condemned Dalli’s reaction, arguing that she would have to resign had she been a minister in the UK.

However, Dalli retorted that she has been misquoted in the media, and that she never said that domestic violence could ever be justifiable.

“What I said was that verbal violence must be taken in context, and that women who insult men should expect a verbal reaction, and not claim that the insult was due to her gender,” she said. “We shouldn’t play the victim card if we don’t act civilly amongst each other.

Parliamentary secretary Justyne Caruana and Labour MP Deborah Schembri also offered words of support to Debono Grech, effectively meaning that all three female Labour MPs got to speak out in a debate that was preceded by a call from the Malta Confederation of Women Organisations to Muscat to take the appropriate action against Debono Grech as a sign of zero tolerance towards violence against women

In a controversial ruling on Monday, Speaker Anglu Farrugia simply ordered both MPs to retract their comments, prompting the Opposition to walk out in a show of protest and present a motion to condemn the identical treatment of the two cases.

Debono Grech himself wasn’t present for the debate, with Prime Minister Joseph Muscat explaining that the Labour MP didn’t think it right that he get to vote on a motion calling for his own suspension.

During her speech, Farrugia condemned the ruling as one that “treated her on the same level as the aggressor”.

She drew parallels with how victims of domestic violence who pluck up the courage to report their cases to the police, only to be questioned over what they themselves had done to their spouses for them to commit acts of violence.

“While I have no intention to see Debono Grech suspended from the Chamber, the Speaker’s unjust ruling delivered a worrying signal to battered women seeking justice,” she said.

During the heated debate. Busuttil condemned the Speaker for ruling in a manner that “perversed the basic sense of justice, describing it as akin to “handing out the same punishment to a criminal and a crime victim”.

“The phrase Debono Grech used is completely unacceptable, let alone when it is uttered by an MP in the country’s highest institution, and [Debono Grech] has no moral authority to call himself honourable,” he said.

“The Prime Minister didn’t have the courage or moral authority to take action or even to condemn Debono Grech,” Busuttil said. “The government cannot handle criticism, and acts aggressively whenever it is criticised. Debono Grech’s words were neither liberal, moderate or progressive.”

However, Joseph Muscat dismissed calls for Debono Grech’s suspension from the house, arguing that the Labour MP’s formal apology that was read out earlier today was enough of a reaction to prove that the two cases shouldn’t be treated identically.

He refused to  “engage in a Punch and Judy match-up” against Busuttil, and urged MPs from both sides of the House to “start debating more constructively”.

“The air of cordiality has vanished from the Chamber ever since parliamentary debates started being streamed on live TV,” he said. “What happened last Friday was a wake-up call for both parties to up their game.”

However, later on during the debate, Busuttil stopped his speech short to question whether social policy minister Michael Farrugia had insulted him by saying that he is suffering from dementia.

Farrugia responded that he “didn’t say those exact words”, to which the Opposition MPs rose in chorus to ask what words he had exactly used, a request that the minister refused.

“You can insult me all you like, but that was offensive to people who are truly suffering from dementia,” Busuttil said.  

Government whip admits to disagreeing with Speaker’s ruling

Government whip Godfrey Farrugia – Marlene Farrugia’s partner – admitted that he personally disagreed with the Speaker’s ruling, but dismissed calls for Debono Grech to be suspended from the House.

Indeed, Marlene Farrugia suggested that the Opposition’s motion be amended so as to remove the clause that called for Joe Debono Grech’s suspension.  

Busuttil agreed with the former Labour MP “as a sign of compromise”, but still called on the House to vote in favour of the rest of the motion. However, Muscat dismissed this call, as “there are other parts of that motion that the government disagrees with”.

Marlene Farrugia once again voted with the Opposition and independent MP Giovanna Debono, but the motion failed with all government MPs present voting against it.

A separate government counter-motion that called on MPs to debate more constructively and civilly was passed.