No one should be left without a home – LGBTIQ+ NGOs
At the beginning of April, a housing campaign was launched by leading LGBTIQ+ NGOs across Malta and Gozo in order to help individuals who have been harshly impacted by the Covid-19 outbreak.
The campaign is run by Malta Gay Rights Movement (MGRM), Allied Rainbow Communities (ARC), Checkpoint Malta and LGBTIQ+ Gozo and its message is that ‘No one should be left without a home’.
The idea is to get help from anyone who has any kind of residence which is not being used at the moment to offer their space as a place of refuge for LGBTIQ+ individuals, as the places these NGOs had to offer are already at full capacity.
spoke to these NGOs to get a better idea on how the idea came about and what the response has been like.
They explained that, while they all work for the LGBTIQ+ community, this is the first time that all NGOs have joined forces to help each other on a specific campaign.
“Even though our main area is LGBTQI+ we all have different areas that we focus on,” ARC said. “However, when it comes to this situation we understood that certain things are across the board so it was better to pool in resources rather than work separately.”
They believe that it is better to have a centralised area for the campaign just in case one organisation is notified of a residence that the other does not know of and, in turn, ensure that they can support any person seeking help.
“Even through isolation and quarantine, we still have strength in numbers, and that’s exactly what this cross-organisational collaboration is showing. It benefits us, which in turn benefits everyone else,” Checkpoint Malta said. This newsroom asked about the kind of requests that they are getting from individuals who find themselves in this precarious situation.
They said that requests vary from foreigners who came to Malta on a student or tourist visa and wish to stay here because the Covid-19 situation is worse in their country, to HIV patients who are struggling to make ends meet with rent and medication.
“We have cases were we are paying for HIV medication because some foreigners are not entitled to free health care here. They used to return to their home country once a month to get their medication but due to the Covid-19 situation they have not been able to do so,” MGRM explained.
The NGOs are doing their utmost to give financial aid in such cases, paying around €1000 euro for supply of medication. However, their resources are being overstretched and they are not getting any help from the government despite incessant calls for urgency.
They have also reached out to Mater Dei Hospital regarding the new recommendation by UNAIDS (HIV branch of the United Nations) wherein HIV medication is made available more wisely and not restricted to a one-month supply. UNAIDS is promoting a multimonth supply so that HIV patients can collect a six-month to avoid them having to go to the hospital.
“The HIV situation has become acute now, when you have something that is rogatory, a pandemic is what it takes to demolish it. Everybody is focused on Covid-19 but we cannot abandon people, especially when the authorities are saying that they are vulnerable.”
When it comes to people who wish to extend their visa to work in Malta, ARC said that they do not want these individuals to build a sense of dependability when their intention was to stay in Malta for a short period.
“We want to support anyone who needs help and is vulnerable but at the same time if you have a situation where a visa is about to expire, we cannot go out of our way to find accommodation and go against government guidelines that are encouraging people to go back home for the time being,” ARC explained.
There are also individuals who are facing difficulties with selfisolating at home because they live in an unaccepting environment. The NGOs explained that in such cases, the first step is to evaluate the situation through an online consultation as some might just need someone to speak to. However, the moment the situation becomes acute, they take immediate action.
Asked if people have reached out to them and offered a space for this cause, they said that they have been contacted by a number of people already across Malta and Gozo. Some are willing to share a room within their own home while others offer a place that they do not frequent.
Nonetheless, the need for more space is still there and will keep growing until things can start getting back to normal.
“It is important to stress that homelessness is not a queer issue, but indeed a reality much present still in current times,” LGBTI+ Gozo said. “Our message is clear, these are difficult times for all of us, but no one deserves to be homeless or without their basic needs to be met, and so if in any possible way this collaboration of NGOs can help, we will try anything within our power and remit to do so.”
“We encourage anyone who has an available space to contribute to this campaign by filling out the following form,
or contacting any of the NGOs mentioned above. If you do not have a place to offer, you can also help out by donating money which will still be used to support these cases.”