- Jul 12, 2018
- 9,336
The end of the 20th century has been anything but friendly to the islands of Malta. Elected leaders have fallen from grace after repeated revelations of scandal and corruption. Several Presidents and Prime Ministers were brought down, in one way or another, by their own immoral deeds, along with countless members of the Maltese Parliament. Economic growth had stagnated, and begun to shrink, despite a growing population. The people themselves were slowly faced with the depressing reality that their children were not going to grow up better-off than they were. Students studying at Malta's university found themselves unable to find stable, professional jobs on the islands. Most of these would-be professionals found themselves either underemployed or unemployed after graduation. As a consequence of this economic recession and loss of national moral, crime was steadily on the rise. A rise in national cynicism was reflected in the Maltese media, from televisions shows and radio programs, to even the local news. The government could at least measure these downward trends in Maltese society, but the constantly changing governments meant that few effective policies were implemented to fix these things. In short, Malta was sick. Perhaps one of the few improvements to the islands was the construction of the Global Assembly Campus on one of the Maltese islands, which at least brought with it employment for thousands of Maltese in the form of construction jobs.
Shortly before the New Year of 1995, the then Prime Minister resigned like several of his predecessors before him due to political scandal. That being said, there was at least one glimmer of hope for Malta's politics. Although the position of President of Malta was that of a Head of State with little to no executive powers, President Archibald Fenech had a strong reputation. He was an older man, in his 50s, and had owned several businesses and contributed to a number of charities. He was well-known in his earlier years as one of the most trusted journalists in Malta. He had a booming personality and was always the center of attention in any room he walked into. Rumor had it that he was seriously considering resigning as President and running to be Prime Minister in the Nationalist Party. Presently, a Labor government was in charge, with the Foreign Minister as acting-Prime Minister.
In the months coming up to New Years, Malta was beginning to boil over. Mass-protests across Malta and the neighboring island of Gozo couldn't be quelled by Malta's small police or Defense Force. The protests initially began with citizens peacefully making certain demands of their government, from an increase in the minimum wage, to having all Labor Ministers resign and calling for new elections. After one or two weeks of protests, however, they devolved into riots. With few exceptions, the government was largely unable to control or stop these from happening. We now find ourselves on New Years day, 1995. Malta is in shambles, and there are groups of rioters in Malta who are in open rebellion, and calling for the abolition of the state. These anarchists, or traitors as some others have described, have loosely organized with a few key leaders. The entire world is now possibly witnessing the collapse of a western state. What happens in the couple of weeks, will be crucial.
Meanwhile, in Rome, The Sovereign Military Order of Malta has sadly watched as their former home is growing more and more unstable. Partly for publicity, and partly for a sense of duty, The Order was in charge of designing and leading construction for the Global Assembly Campus in Malta. The Order itself, however, wasn't without its own recent drawbacks. Andrew Bertie, who had been Grand Master of The Order since 1988, had recently died. He was quickly becoming regarded as one of the greatest Grand Masters in recent history, and was increasing The Order's image around the world. Tragically, he died in his sleep in Rome. Pope John Paul II is said to have remarked about him, "We know not why the Lord takes our leaders from us, sometimes when it seems we need them most."
The Order was in the midst of constitutional reforms, some of which had been partially implemented. Unfortunately, without their Grand Master, The Order was now in a crisis of leadership. There had been a complicated constitutional process of choosing a new Grand Master, which also partially involved the Pope, but the recent constitutional reforms which were not entirely completed left this up in the air. Normally, upon the death or resignation of a Grand Master, one of the Grand Officers automatically becomes acting-Grand Master. Then, someone is elected to the position of "Lieutenant Grand Master" until a larger legislative body of The Order can be assembled to elect a permanent Grand Master. For the sake of public image with Malta and garnering some attention around the world, and perhaps to grab the attention of the Global Assembly with whom The Sovereign Military Order of Malta was seeking some form of membership, a young Knight in The Order by the name of Arthur Sinclair was elected to the position of Lieutenant Grand Master. The plan, of course, was not to elect him as the permanent Grand Master of The Order, but for now the 25 year old would make a new image for The Order.
Shortly before the New Year of 1995, the then Prime Minister resigned like several of his predecessors before him due to political scandal. That being said, there was at least one glimmer of hope for Malta's politics. Although the position of President of Malta was that of a Head of State with little to no executive powers, President Archibald Fenech had a strong reputation. He was an older man, in his 50s, and had owned several businesses and contributed to a number of charities. He was well-known in his earlier years as one of the most trusted journalists in Malta. He had a booming personality and was always the center of attention in any room he walked into. Rumor had it that he was seriously considering resigning as President and running to be Prime Minister in the Nationalist Party. Presently, a Labor government was in charge, with the Foreign Minister as acting-Prime Minister.
In the months coming up to New Years, Malta was beginning to boil over. Mass-protests across Malta and the neighboring island of Gozo couldn't be quelled by Malta's small police or Defense Force. The protests initially began with citizens peacefully making certain demands of their government, from an increase in the minimum wage, to having all Labor Ministers resign and calling for new elections. After one or two weeks of protests, however, they devolved into riots. With few exceptions, the government was largely unable to control or stop these from happening. We now find ourselves on New Years day, 1995. Malta is in shambles, and there are groups of rioters in Malta who are in open rebellion, and calling for the abolition of the state. These anarchists, or traitors as some others have described, have loosely organized with a few key leaders. The entire world is now possibly witnessing the collapse of a western state. What happens in the couple of weeks, will be crucial.
Meanwhile, in Rome, The Sovereign Military Order of Malta has sadly watched as their former home is growing more and more unstable. Partly for publicity, and partly for a sense of duty, The Order was in charge of designing and leading construction for the Global Assembly Campus in Malta. The Order itself, however, wasn't without its own recent drawbacks. Andrew Bertie, who had been Grand Master of The Order since 1988, had recently died. He was quickly becoming regarded as one of the greatest Grand Masters in recent history, and was increasing The Order's image around the world. Tragically, he died in his sleep in Rome. Pope John Paul II is said to have remarked about him, "We know not why the Lord takes our leaders from us, sometimes when it seems we need them most."
The Order was in the midst of constitutional reforms, some of which had been partially implemented. Unfortunately, without their Grand Master, The Order was now in a crisis of leadership. There had been a complicated constitutional process of choosing a new Grand Master, which also partially involved the Pope, but the recent constitutional reforms which were not entirely completed left this up in the air. Normally, upon the death or resignation of a Grand Master, one of the Grand Officers automatically becomes acting-Grand Master. Then, someone is elected to the position of "Lieutenant Grand Master" until a larger legislative body of The Order can be assembled to elect a permanent Grand Master. For the sake of public image with Malta and garnering some attention around the world, and perhaps to grab the attention of the Global Assembly with whom The Sovereign Military Order of Malta was seeking some form of membership, a young Knight in The Order by the name of Arthur Sinclair was elected to the position of Lieutenant Grand Master. The plan, of course, was not to elect him as the permanent Grand Master of The Order, but for now the 25 year old would make a new image for The Order.
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