Political Bickering Mars Malta's EU Vote

A bitter political fight has broken out on the island of Malta over the country's future membership in the European Union.

The country's two main political parties, the ruling conservative National Party and opposition Social Democrats, have accused each other of running dirty campaigns that lie about the benefits or disadvantages of membership.

Prime Minister Eddie Fenech Adami called the Labour Party's "No" campaign an "alliance of lies." Labour Party Secretary General Jimmy Magro told the EUObserver.com web site that the government was running a "scare-mongering campaign" to keep the populace from voting no.

All this with less than two days before the country's citizens vote on a referendum for EU membership. The referendum won't directly affect Malta's candidate status. The government of the Mediterranean island, approved for EU membership by Brussels along with nine other countries last December, has already agreed to enter the EU in 2004.

But which way the populace votes in the referendum could hint at the likely outcome of general elections, due to be held some time in the spring. Should those elections see Prime Minister Fenech Adami's Nationalists upended, then EU membership and the accompanying €194 million subsidy would be imperiled.

Opposition mobilizes

The Labour Party would like nothing better. In the weeks leading up to the election, the party's campaign has stressed Malta's neutrality as a strong reason for refusing EU membership. For a country with a history of occupation, the freedom to stand on the sidelines during conflict is a treasured one.

Once in the EU, Malta will have to take on the Union's common defense policy and back the body's foreign policy decisions. Those opposed also fear that the European tourists currently swarming the vacation island will want to buy land and set up shop like they have in Grand Canary Islands and Mallorca.

The "no" camp favors establishing Malta as a free trade zone within the European Union. Trade ties are already strong. Around 40 percent of the country's exports ship into EU member states, and 60 percent of the imports come from Europe.

A slight majority in favor

Current polls show the almost 52 percent of potential voters favor EU entry, with 25 percent against -- numbers that the "no" camp disputes.

Eight other candidates for EU expansion -- Slovenia, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania -- are holding referendums during the course of 2003. Cyprus will not hold a referendum until the status of its division is resolved.

Unlike Malta, the majority of the other countries are tying their referendum results to whether they actually join or not in 2004.

"In the end, it will depend on how the majority results look following the next parliamentary election," said Günther Verheugen, the EU Commisioner for Expansion, in a DW-TV interview.

And should Malta opt not to join the EU?

"That doesn't mean very much for us," said Verheugen. "It means that there won't be 10 countries joining, but nine."