Sunday, January 25, 2009

'Hunters' boycott strengthens me'

Edward Demicoli, a PN candidate for the European Parliament elections, said today that a call by the hunters' federation for its members not to vote for him, made him proud.

The call was made by the federation this morning after Mr Demicoli came out against Spring hunting when he launched his electoral campaign.

"I am against Spring hunting as I believe that this is not sustainable. Nothing that FKNK can or will do will make me change that view. It can only serve to strengthen it," Mr Demicoli told timesofmalta.com.

He added that had the FKNK exercised more control on its rogue members the hunting situation in Malta would not have become what it is today.

Earlier, the FKNK said it had issued its directive against Mr Demicoli at the launch of an MEPs Election Campaign.

The campaign has the slogan “FKNK – For Your Rights in Europe”.
"Ironically and without shame Mr. Demicoli, the Malta/EU Information Centre (MIC) Deputy-Head for the past 10 years chose to attack the Maltese socio-cultural tradition of spring hunting during the launch of his campaign as a member of the European Parliament, conveniently forgetting and totally contradicting the information that MIC had enlightened hunters and trappers with prior to the EU Referendum vote," the federation said.

The federation said any single hunter’s YES vote for Europe was based on gross misinformation of material facts and consequently that EU membership was based on a hoax. It quoted from statements from a MIC Fact Sheet entitled “Hunting and Trapping Enthusiasts”, (http://www.huntinginmalta.org.mt/uploads/24/508/Hunting__Trapping_Entusiasts_MIC _Fact_Sheet.pdf )which said, among other things that: : “…Malta argued that hunting in Malta is mostly practised in Spring because it depends on migratory birds. The EU acknowledged these arguments and Malta will be able to retain hunting in Spring and Autumn even after membership.” and “…hunting in Spring can continue in Malta for turtledoves and quail. As a result, therefore, after membership Maltese hunters will continue to be able to hunt in Spring.”

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Edward Demicoli launches campaign

Edward Demicoli launched his campaign as a member of the European Parliament this morning on the slogan “To continue serving you in Europe”.

His programme will be based on safeguarding the people’s quality of life, the environment and making the best use of the EU’s regional funds.

Mr Demicoli told a news conference that for the past 10 years he had been directly involved in sectors linked to the European Union gaining a fantastic opportunity and experience which helped him understand the aspirations of the Maltese.

As the deputy head of the Malta-EU Information Centre (MIC), his work was focused on providing objective information on Malta’s membership in the EU at a time when this was being systematically attacked by the Labour Party.

Following the referendum and the 2003 election, he was appointed official within the European Commission and in the past years focused his work on informing the people what was taking place in the EU and how the Maltese could make the most out of membership.

Mr Demicoli said that following his work in the MIC and the European Commission, contesting the EP election was, for him, a natural step.

“This election will give me an opportunity to continue serving my country in Europe,” he said.
The Nationalist Party, he said, had always believed in the people’s abilities and values and in the past 20 years it had always promoted a policy which placed the people and the Maltese family at the centre.

This was the crux of the principle of solidarity which should guide policies being drawn up in the EU. It was this main value which led to the creation of the Union. It was also the principle he wanted to put in practice so that people would be able to reach their aims.

He said that as a parent, the focus of his work was to safeguard children’s rights. Children had a right to live healthily, receive an education and get an opportunity to succeed. “I believe the EU can do more and I will see that this subject is placed on the forefront of its agenda,” he said.

He expressed his frustration that many non-governmental organisations, small businesses and the self-employed did not know how they could benefit from EU funds. His staff in the EP would include a person dedicated to facilitating, informing and guiding sectors needing assistance. He would also work for Malta to use its funds in the best possible manner.

Mr Demicoli said that the environment was very important for him and he would work to ensure that no new development was carried out in outside development zones and against hunting in spring.

Air quality and beaches had to be monitored in line with EU directives. He said he believed that a lot more needed to be done for the country to be transparent and consistent when it came to decisions by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority. Environmental NGOs and those working with animals should be heard more.

Mr Demicoli said he would be launching his website in the coming weeks. He would also be taking several initiatives as part of his campaign.

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Welcome Message

The reason why I am contesting the next European Parliament elections in June is based on a belief that that is the best possible way I can serve Malta in Europe. I have for the last 10 years worked to facilitate Malta's membership in Europe. In my time as deputy head of the Malta-EU Information Centre (MIC), I formed part of a team, together with Simon Busuttil, that informed the general public on what being a member of the European Union was all about. Those were trying times for all involved. The public was being deceptively scared into believing that Europe was not a good choice for Malta. Luckily common sense prevailed.

For the past four years I worked as an official of the European Commission in Malta where I continued my work in serving the general public, explaining what Europe is all about.
I am now seeking your trust and support so that as one of your representatives in the European Parliament I can continue serving you in Europe.

On my website you will find what I stand for, what I believe in. I have given importance to four aspects which I believe should be paramount in my work as MEP. The first aspect is our security, in its widest sense, whether it is our jobs, our way of life, our peace of mind. Solidarity is another issue which I would be giving importance to, bringing Europe's social agenda to Malta, strengthening our children's rights. The third issue I will devote my energies as an MEP would be the issues of funding. NGOs, organisations, small businesses should be made aware of the opportunities EU funding may provide and helped in accessing these funds. The last issue is environment an issue which should be tackled by roping in the expertise found amongst our NGOs to ensure that the environment is truly placed at the centre of every policy, or every decision.

I trust that you will find this website informative and useful. I thank you for visiting and I look forward to meeting you in the coming weeks so that I can listen first hand to your experiences and be in a position to further explain my policies.

Sincerely

Edward