2005: a year in review
As Malta entered its second year of full membership in the European Union, life went on as usual. There were few outstanding events in 2005 worth mentioning for posterity. Fewer still will live on in people's memory, except for a couple that become a part of history by rote.
What many consider the event of the year 2005 for Malta is actually not a one-off event but a recurrent issue in Maltese society: the effects of the ever-growing numbers of illegal immigrants arriving on Maltese shores. It has led to the creation of an anti-immigration national movement, over-strained the limited resources, and led to a new flare of racism.
As Malta entered its second year of full membership in the European Union, life went on as usual. There were few outstanding events in 2005 worth mentioning for posterity. Fewer still will live on in people's memory, except for a couple that become a part of history by rote.
What many consider the event of the year 2005 for Malta is actually not a one-off event but a recurrent issue in Maltese society: the effects of the ever-growing numbers of illegal immigrants arriving on Maltese shores. It has led to the creation of an anti-immigration national movement, over-strained the limited resources, and led to a new flare of racism.
Two other major events were the death of Pope John Paul II and the subsequent election of Benedict XVI in April and the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in November. Predominantly Catholic Malta followed events in the Vatican City quite closely, along with the rest of the Catholic world. Karol Wojtyla had visited Malta twice during hist pontificate and made the first Maltese beatificiation persons. Speaking of religion, Gozo welcomed a new bishop in late 2005 but Malta is still waiting for the successor of Archbishop Guzeppi Mercieca, who resigned two years ago. People will surely remember these events more than the much-flaunted CHOGM that saw around 50 heads of state or their representative come to Malta and talk on several issues, including development, the digital divide and terrorism. Other political events included the annual government Budget, which followed-up a hefty increase in the surcharge on water and electricity bills, the first concrete steps towards the adoption of the Euro, and the Sea Malta saga. The only elections held in 2005 were the Local Council Elections in March, which saw the Nationalist Party in government trounced by the Labour opposition. Chiara splendidly represented the Maltese nation at the Eurovision Song Contest final, but victory eluded both singer and country once again. The list of personalities who died during 2005 is a veritable who's who from across the spectrum of Maltese public life: artists, singers, journalists, politicians and religious figures. among others. Their passing marks a particular way of life in Malta. MaltaMedia too had its share of events for the year 2005. The most memorable one happened in November, when our permanent Brussels' correspondent, Pierre J. Mejlak won the e-journalism category of the Malta Journalism Awards. The MaltaMedia Online Network continued to expand with more bloggers coming on board, a new cartoonist, the launch of the world's first series of Maltese podcasts, and the fifth anniversary of aboutmalta.com's monthly newsletter. Photo captions (top to bottom): Alfred Giglio, long-time photographer with The Times captured violent incidents at the Safi Immigrant Detention Centre in January just a few months before passing away; Pope John Paul II who died in April was succeeded by Pope Benedict XVI a few weeks later; Chiara won the Malta Song for Europe and represented Malta at the Eurovision Song Contest; President Fenech Adami and Queen Elizabeth II during a CHOGM 2005 state dinner; Artist Antoine Camillieri is remembered fondly by lovers of art and life, he died aged 83. |  |
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