‘Go back to your country!’ - how foreign people in Malta are dealing with the Coronavirus

Malta has always been known for its friendly, welcoming attitude but now and again we do get a slip of the ‘go back to your country’ mentality. Since most of the initial cases of the new Coronavirus in Malta seem to have been imported, many expats have experienced some hateful comments.

Most of the outrage of expats in Malta stems for comments made by Economy Minister, Silvio Schembri. The Minister said, on Tuesday, that the moment thirdcountry workers lose their job, they will have to go back to their country.

On a Facebook group, dedicated to expats in Malta, many called out the Minister as being racist. Most surprisingly, it was the Maltese people on the group who spoke out the most, apologising on behalf of the Maltese community for the comment, and calling for unity.

One expat wrote a long post directed at the Minister but ended it with: “This doesn’t represent the Maltese as a nation. I am so incredibly humbled by the fact that my Maltese neighbours are calling me on a daily basis and are interested in how they can help me being stranded in Germany, even though my centre of life is in Malta.”

This comment, by the Minister, also brought about feelings of concern and worry, with expats asking if medical treatment will also be provided to them equally, should they contract the virus.

‘There are nice Maltese too’

But it is not all doom and gloom, with an expat posting about his “Maltese landlord” and saying he is “the best landlord”. This expat received this from his landlord when he asked him to give some more time to pay his rent:

“We are in hard time right now, we have to take care of each other, don’t think about rent for now, just stay safe and call me every week or come to my shop, let me know that you are ok, I just want to know you’re safe, this is more important than rent at the moment. Also tell me whatever you need....”

Another expat said “there are nice Maltese too,” referring to a post by a Maltese women rebutting a racist comment by noting that a lot of foreigners work in the healthcare sector.

Concern also arose amongst those working in Malta who have a work permit, fearing that it will not be renewed. It was reported that some are receiving emails from their employers or recruitment companies, that their work permit will not be renewed. These emails said that they should make arrangements to go back to their home country, since their residence permit will also not be renewed once their work contract will expiry.

Expats helping the Maltese

A lovely gesture by some expats in Malta was prompted by one man who works in iGaming. He said that he is willing to sacrifice a percentage of his salary to support those in need.

“We, the people working in iGaming can give back a little extra to the community if we stand together. Just to show that we foreigners care about Malta and the citizens in tough times.”

The response he received was incredible.

Another man, also an expat, even offered to foster a cat should the owners decide to leave Malta.

‘Not sure if I can go back to my country’

A woman, originally from the UK, who works in the medical profession was shopping for her loaf of bread and some milk when she noticed a woman watching her every move. Once the woman had paid for her groceries and was on her way out of the shop, she got a “go back to your country”. The woman took it with a pinch of salt and cheekily replied, “not sure if I can”. This medical professional has been in Malta for six years, and her friends have commented “...but this is your country.”

Minister apologizes for choice of words

Economy Minister Silvio Schembri yesterday apologized over the comments he passed on foreign workers after the concern that it raised, saying his choice of words was “unfortunate.” He said that “The government and I are united in our respect to all workers, no matter their nationality. We are committed to assisting employers, employees and self-employed in these difficult days, which I am certain we will overcome together. We are proud of the fact that the Maltese economy has not only offered a better standard of living for Maltese families, but it has also opened the door for opportunities for European and third-country nationals to build a future.” Schembri remarked that he wanted to assure anyone who thought otherwise that the government will not be terminating any work permits of third-country