congressional_record: CREC-1994-12-20-pt1-PgE3
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| CREC-1994-12-20-pt1-PgE3 | 1994-12-20 | 103 | 2 | COMMENTS ON THE NATION OF MALTA | HOUSE | EXTENSIONS | FRONTMATTER | E | E | [{"name": "Earl F. Hilliard", "role": "speaking"}] | 140 Cong. Rec. E | Congressional Record, Volume 140 Issue 150 (Tuesday, December 20, 1994) [Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 150 (Tuesday, December 20, 1994)] [Extensions of Remarks] [Page E] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov] [Congressional Record: December 20, 1994] From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] COMMENTS ON THE NATION OF MALTA ______ HON. EARL F. HILLIARD of alabama in the house of representatives Tuesday, December 20, 1994 Mr. HILLIARD. Mr. Speaker, it is inherent in Washington's role as the Capital of the free world for heads of state to come here for consultations and discussions with the leaders of the United States, and unfortunately many of their visits go unnoticed. However, one such visit which did not go unnoticed was a tour by the Prime Minister of Malta, the Honorable Fenech-Adami. Prime Minister Fenech-Adami was the leader of a delegation which included his deputy prime minister/minister of foreign affairs, the honorable Guido de Marco. The delegation from Malta met with President Clinton, the Secretary of State, the National Security Advisor, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, as well as the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. It is wonderful for the United States to host a delegation of leaders from another nation who exemplify the characteristics of honor and integrity. In an age when many of the nations of the world are entangled in blood feuds and ethnic genocide, it is refreshing to know that there are still nations, like Malta, who have able and fair-minded leaders. A recent article in the Washington Times by Andrew Borowiec, succinctly described the positive changes which the strategic island of Malta has undergone since the 1987 election of Dr. Fenech-Adami. I hereby submit the aforementioned Washington Times article for inclusion in the Congressional Record. [From the Washington Times, Sept. 25, 1994] Malta's Prime Minister Touts Island as New Business Base (By Andrew Borowiec) Seven years of conservative rule have turned Malta into a prosperous island striving to become a major center of business activity in the western Mediterranean, its prime minister said yesterday. Pointless prestige projects have been discarded, infrastructure has been developed, and Malta is anxious to join the European Union, Edward Fenech-Adami told editors and reporters of The Washington Times. Because of structural problems in the EU, Malta's membership cannot be considered until 1996, ``although legally we are entitled to it now,'' he said. South of Sicily and a short distance from Tunisia, the ``Island of Honey and Roses'' remains painfully aware of the threat of Islamic fundamentalism battering Algeria. Mr. Fenech-Adami described the Islamic movement as a ``cauldron that has to be watched'' and said the solution is ``not to suppress it now and then, but eliminate it.'' With a population of 370,000 and an area of 122 square miles, barely twice that of the District of Columbia, Malta is a bastion of Roman Catholicism. It has three churches per square mile. The overwhelming influence of the church was challenged somewhat by the socialists who were voted out of power in 1987. Overcoming the opposition of labor unions, the government this week drafted a major plan to revamp the huge shipyards it inherited from Britain upon independence in 1964. Mr. Fenech-Adami described the agreement as a ``milestone,'' saying Malta no longer will build ships, but will develop the yards into joint ventures making containers and cranes. Trying to keep the shipyards working ``was a desperate act on the part of the socialist government,'' he said. When the socialists flirted with Libya before the rise to power of Mr. Fenech-Adami's Nationalist Party, Libyan gunboats were repaired in the shipyards. Although under his leadership Malta has distanced itself from Libya, Mr. Fenech-Adami said a ``good working relationship'' continues and ``the proximity of Libya cannot be ignored.'' Mr. Fenech-Adami said Malta has registered constant economic growth in recent years, including 8.1 percent last year. Unemployment is 4 percent on an island whose men in the past frequently left in search of work. The inflation rate has been reduced to 4 percent, he said. ``We now think of Malta as a hub, promoting it as a center of international trade and business activity.'' Discussing the plans for Malta's EU membership, Mr. Fenech- Adami said: ``The prospects are good. Malta has gained a lot of credibility. Our low unemployment--and I call it full employment--is due to the high degree of confidence.'' ____________________ |