Dec 20 - Christmas Message From Marlene Hassan Nahon
By Marlene Hassan Nahon
Hello
I would like to take this opportunity to wish everybody of all religious and cultural backgrounds, a peaceful and happy festive period. We can never have enough expressions of love and good faith in the world, and I think the spirit of unity and generosity that accompanies these festivities is one that we can all be a part of and celebrate. In the face of fear, intolerance and confrontation, we must continue to practice love, tolerance and conviviality. May we enjoy and share our diverse cultural heritage in the spirit of these principles for many years to come.
I, for one, have made it a mission to foster that spirit from my humble corner as an independent representative. I have listened to every cause however singular, and every constituent regardless of political affiliation or status. I have done my best to show empathy and to understand the issues of those with a different background to mine, and I have tried to listen and get to know the community I represent more profoundly. I hereby reiterate my commitment to be fully accessible to those who want to share their problems and concerns with me personally.
In that spirit, I have campaigned for issues which my constituents have considered of grave importance to THEM, for example my campaign for the medical use of cannabis. Not having access to medical cannabis affects many sick patients ranging from sufferers of Parkinsons to Multiple Sclerosis, Cancer and autism, who could gain enormous relief from this widely accepted and scientifically proven treatment, and yet many have chosen to mock the initiative, letting their arrogance and prejudices stand in the way of the welfare of their constituents. Politics, as I understand it, should be less about Politicians´ personal views and agendas, and more about faithfully conveying the wishes and aspirations of those they represent.
And the only way to achieve this is by having strong ties with the community and operating in an honest, fully transparent manner. I´m afraid a great many of us agree that there is too much nepotism and not enough accountability in Gibraltar, and that openly speaking out against these matters often comes at a price. Those who do not benefit from favouritism, from a lack of transparency, know how detrimental these things are to our community as a whole, but are often too afraid to speak out for fear of being targeted or blacklisted. This year has given me the opportunity to stand strong in rejecting these practices, for example, by asking the uncomfortable questions on the Calpe House issue that many were concerned about, but nobody was prepared to ask. The sooner people stand up and lose fear to scrutinise Government and the high echelons of our society, the sooner we will have a real system of checks and balances that ensures good governance.
And on that note, of course, you may have heard that in September we launched our movement Together Gibraltar. The purpose of this new project is to have a forum where people can get together freely and without fear of ‘taking sides’ as citizens to discuss and engage on issues that affect us all.
It is a platform which aims to be horizontal and inclusive, because I truly believe that this way of doing politics is the future. The succession of strong leaderships, based on the charisma of an individual, talented as they may be, is a frail and dated system. The problems we encounter today as a society cannot be solved by one man, or by one party. They demand great levels of consensus, courage and sometimes even sacrifice, and this is something we can only achieve through participation. If we make the big, tough decisions together, we will be less vulnerable to frustration and disenfranchisement. This in turn will strengthen the values and freedoms that sustain our societies and protect them from demagogues and charlatans. The kind of politics I believe in is the kind that listens to and empowers the people.
So far, it has become clear that what we need environments that foster free speech, in which we can try to achieve cross party consensus on key issues. The partisan divide is hampering progress on many matters which should be worked on together instead of being used as weaponry for each side to score their own political points. In our first public debate we discussed environmental issues with some very informed and passionate panellists, and with the help of these experts and our membership have drafted a plan which will be discussed in Parliament in January next year.
In the coming year, Together Gibraltar will be holding periodic meetings discussing key issues from Housing, to Health, to Education because we want to know where you stand on these issues and how they affect you.
If you allow me the licence, I suggest becoming more of a political activist as an idea for a New Year´s resolution. I encourage everyone to think about what needs to change in our community, and what they could do to to make this change happen, whether as individuals or by engaging with others and with civil society. The warmth and the sense of unity which becomes so prevalent during the Christmas period should drive us to want the best for our community every day of the year, and can empower us all to become activists who believe in positive social change.
I take this opportunity to wish you and your loved ones, a very Merry Christmas and a healthy and prosperous New Year.
