Greens hit out at Busuttil’s bid to render IIP applicants stateless

It is indeed unfortunate that the Leader of the Opposition Simon Busuttil is competing with Dr Muscat and doing his best to contribute to additional reputational damage for Malta.

Green party Alternattiva Demokratika have lambasted Opposition leader Simon Busuttil's intention to file a judicial protest against the Individual Investor Programme, as a "gimmick".

The Nationalist Party will file a judicial protest against the government and Henley & Partners, the concessionaires of the cash-for-citizenship scheme, to inform the IIP applicants that the scheme is being investigated by the European Commission that a PN government would repeal any passports issued under the IIP.

"Those beneficiaries must be told their passports will remain valid until the next election as the next PN government will repeal the passports awarded by this scheme," Opposition leader Simon Busuttil said.

But AD said Busuttil's threat to repeal passports was a case of fighting discrimination by discrimination.

"Busuttil's declaration that tomorrow the PN will emphasise its criticism through a judicial protest is a gimmick we can do without," AD deputy chairperson Carmel Cacopardo said.

"Moreover Busuttil's insistence that a future PN government will revoke the citizenship acquired through the proposed scheme is a declaration that a PN government led by Busuttil will ride roughshod over human rights."

While Busuttil says Malta's citizenship goes against the spirit of international law, his threat to remove passports could also fall foul of international rules that prevent States from rendering anybody stateless. In the case of IIP applicants, new citizens could have to renounce their original citizenship under the rules of their former nationality.

"Busuttil has time and again that his political position is based on sound legal advice. Busuttil should publish the advice he has received just as Joseph Muscat has already published the advice tendered by the Attorney General," Cacopardo said.

Alternattiva Demokratika chairperson, Prof. Arnold Cassola said: "The sale of Maltese and European citizenship scheme as proposed by Prime Minister Muscat is not acceptable as it is since it creates discrimination between rich and poor and could go against Article 4(3) of the European Treaties to which Malta is a signatory.

"However, the threat by Simon Busuttil to revoke the acquired citizenship when and if in government is unacceptable. Acquired rights are not thrown into the dustbin," Cassola said.

Cassola said that Malta's international reputation, already damaged by Muscat's citizenship proposal, will plummet even further through Busuttil's threat. "If no agreed compromise, compatible with international law, is found in the immediate future, the people of Malta should have the final decision on the proposed citizenship scheme through a referendum on the 24 of May," Cassola said.