New talks

The leading pro-life group in Malta is renewing its effort to enshrine legal protection for unborn children in Malta’s constitution, writes Lifenews editor Steven Ertelt in Canada:

..Gift of Life wants to take the nation's laws prohibiting abortion and turn the right to life into a constitutionally-protected right. The group had suspended its campaign while Maltese residents were caught up in the March elections.

"We believe that it is now time to reopen talks with the Government and the Leader of the Opposition on the way forward towards finally updating the Constitution of Malta, to clearly extend the right to life to the unborn child," the group said Monday...Gift of Life is hoping to get party leaders to support the constitutional amendment as members of the ruling party have already done..

The organization had presented 39,000 signatures on a petition to parliament from Malta citizens who want the constitutional amendment. The petition contained the signatures of 36 MPs. However, a Maltese government spokesman has said it would not officially propose any constitutional amendment without the support of the opposition Labor Party. Several Labour Party members have endorsed the amendment but former party leader Alfred Sant never took a position for his party..

Malta is one of the few European nations to make abortion illegal and government officials have tried to crack down on efforts from other nations to promote abortions there. Previously, government leaders in Malta said they will not cave in to pressure from the United Nations and European Union leaders to legalize abortion.