The beginning of the end...

This victory is all about taking Malta back into Europe.

I am writing this after confirmation that the Yes vote prevailed. This newspaper has good reason to celebrate. We are the only media house to have taken a consistently clear stand in favour of divorce since its inception, in 1999. At times we were alone.

This victory places Malta back into Europe.

The anti-divorce campaign was organised and clearly financed by the Nationalist Party and the Church to ridicule the Yes campaign. It was a no campaign which was fuelled by fear and lies.

The Prime Minister knew yesterday evening the PN would lose. So much so that the bishops issued their silliest statement ever, an apology which seals the mediocrity that makes the Church in Malta what it is, an apology that continues to humiliate the Church.

It was the the Prime Minister who took a stand against divorce. It was he who pushed his party to back the no vote, and it was he who allowed his party to back the Church in its shameful campaign.

If the Church was a democratic organisation, Mgr Anton Gouder would be tendering his resignation and Gozo bishop Mario Grech would be asking to be transferred to the Gabon and Fr Joe Borg retiring to a monastery.

But back to Lawrence Gonzi, it is not me who should call for his resignation but his own party. He no longer holds the high moral ground and he no longer holds his party together. This is the end of GonziPN.

Someone should tell Gonzi that he has lost hold of his party. There are two parties: the rural conservative PN and the urban PN which is detached from Gonzi's reality.

The next step in parliament which should lead to the introduction of divorce should be smooth.  One hopes that parliamentarians Beppe Fenech Adami and Austin Gatt will go back on their word and vote for the bill.

The campaign was won thanks to the incredible energy of the few who ran the Yes campaign, and the influence Joseph Muscat had on the Labourites who would have otherwise voted NO but instead opted to stay at home.

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Don't count Gonzi out. The Yes vote works in his favour. In the next general election Divorce will not be an issue and therefore he can keep the PN together. If he is wise and rides the wave of the liberal side of his party he can still be a force at the next General Election. His biggest problem will be in the unlikely event that PN's Church allies and the conservative side press for a divorce rematch.
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After voting consistently for the Nationalist Party for the last 25 years, it can never represent me again in parliament for being in league with the devil. It is unforgiven. I simply cannot trust them again. That is why I am voting Labour in the next election. This small nation is unfortunately led by a politician who cannot make a distinction between a personal opinion or conviction and what is good for the country. Fortunately we can breathe again. I had given up on this country. Now I heartily congratulate the majority of the Maltese people for voting Yes to common sense and democracy.
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Austin Gatt said that he will resign if the Yes vote wins. I'll be going to his office tomorrow morning with a pen, paper, envelope and a stamp. Gonzi is out of touch. He should call a general election.
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@albatross Debbie for Family minister!
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Grzegorz Tomski
I'm proud to be an avid maltatoday fan - keep up the good work. Now I wish that the PL considers Dr Deborah Schembri to be one of its candidates for the next general election.
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Well done Saviour. I have commented more here: http://www.planetmona.com/opinions-on-planetmona/52-social/3570-shame-isthu-jekk-tafu-kif
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Saviour - I take my hat off to you personally and your paper as a whole. You have the courage to say and do things which most people in your position do not have. Don't ever give up. Keep it up.
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U l-kotra qamet f'daqqa u ghajtejt: jien Maltija u Sekulari! Miskin min ikasbarni, miskin min jidhaq bija! - http://mazzun.wordpress.com
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Dr. Deborah Schembri would be a most fitting candidate for election to Parliament. I hope the PL would persuade her to contest on their ticket. We need people like her to lead the country, to legislate for civil rights and to fight on behalf of the discriminated. She would be a most welcome breath of fresh air and a beacon of light to illuminate the way for Malta to finally emerge from the middle ages.
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Prosit Saviour ta' kull m'ghamilt waqt il-kampanja.