The European Parliament Valletta Office and the European Commission Representation in Malta have announced that they have sent a letter to the Chief Electoral Commissioner regarding the latest European Union Electoral Register and the right to vote of non-Maltese EU citizens resident in Malta in the June 2009 Elections.

The letter is signed by Dr Julian Vassallo, Head of the European Parliament Valletta Office and Dr Joanna Drake, Head of the European Commission Representation in Malta. It is being copied to the secretaries general of the political parties contesting the European Elections.

The letter is as follows:

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT VALLETTA
The Chief Electoral Commissioner
Evans Building

April 29, 2009

Publication of latest European Union Electoral Register

Since the publication of the latest European Union Electoral Register it has become clear that a number of EU citizens resident in Malta who voted in the European Parliament Elections in 2004, and had every intention to vote once again in the 2009 Elections, find themselves unexpectedly excluded from the Register.

It appears that the adverts placed by the Electoral Commission in the last months in the local press notifying the procedure for non-Maltese EU citizens to register seem not to have been clear or prominent enough. In particular the message that persons on the 2004 Register needed to re-register was not understood.

We are aware that the Electoral Commission treats the European Union Electoral Register as a stand-alone register that expires after each European Election to be built up anew at the next European Parliament Election.

Nevetiheless the fact that the European Union Electoral Register has been republished in full by the Electoral Commission every six months right until October 2008 has helped give bonafide voters the impression that their name will remain on the Register also for the next European Elections. This impression is quite understandable since this is indeed the practice with the Maltese Electoral Register.

I am sure you will appreciate that both the European Parliament and the European Commission consider participation in the European Elections as a crucial political right and fundamental tenet of European Citizenship that cannot be denied simply because of a case of miscommunication.

I should point out that many of the non-Maltese EU citizens that unexpectedly found themselves excluded from the latest Register are long-standing residents in Malta. We would like to ask on their behalf why they were not personally notified of the intention of the Electoral Commission to exclude them from the European Union Electoral Register. Therefore the Office of the European Parliament and the Representation of the European Commission in Malta call upon the Maltese Electoral Commission to do all in its power to greatly facilitate the procedures for those bona fide non-Maltese EU citizens resident in Malta to regain their right to vote.

In addition we believe that the Electoral Commission should clearly and urgently communicate what the affected EU Citizens can do to regain their right to vote in the upcoming European Elections.

We remain at your disposal to discuss what measures may be taken to this end.

Sincerely,

Dr Julian Vassallo – Head European Parliament Office in Malta

Dr Joanna Drake – Head European Commission Representation in Malta

Cc: The secretaries general of the political parties contesting the June 2009 European Parliament Election.