Dear citizens of Malta and Gozo living abroad,
As we come together to celebrate this special time of year, my wife Miriam and I extend our warmest wishes for a serene Christmas to each and every one of you. Christmas is a time of joy, reflection, and inclusion, and it is with great pleasure that I reach out to you – the Maltese diaspora across the world.
The Christmas season is a time when families and communities come together, in a spirit of love and goodwill.
On this occasion of unity, this Christmas we take a brief moment to reflect on our values as Maltese – the values of community, resilience, and compassion. As I had the opportunity to tell you during my visits, remember that you make an integral part of the Maltese family, regardless of where you are across the world.
Even though Malta is a small country, we can say without hesitation that Malta is everywhere around the world, in the heart of every member of the Maltese diaspora.
Observing the Maltese diaspora succeed in other countries instils in us a sense of great pride and satisfaction. Through your work, you continue to carry our country’s name and strengthen our reputation as a successful people. It gives me pleasure to see so many Maltese and others of Maltese descent make a name for themselves but also for their country. Your achievements, resilience, and commitment to safeguard those elements that make us stand out as Maltese set an example to us all. I would therefore like to express my gratitude for the impact that you are leaving in your respective communities.
As we celebrate Christmas, we should also take the opportunity to celebrate Maltese traditions, which also resonate with the activities we have attached to these times in order to cherish Maltese heritage and what unites us as Maltese.
I would like to take this opportunity to once again ask you Maltese living abroad to continue using the Maltese language whenever possible. Our language is a unique treasure that binds us together and makes us who we are – Maltese. Our language is too precious to be sidelined and neglected. The Maltese language is in no way inferior to other languages.
Let us cherish and preserve this unique symbol of our national identity that binds us together and helps us connect to our roots.
Against this backdrop, I would also like to convey my appreciation to the Maltese diaspora for the warm hospitality you have extended to me and Miriam wherever we visited you. Your enthusiasm, as well as your commitment to maintaining a strong link between the diaspora and Malta, have left a lasting impression on me. Thank you for being ambassadors of our country and for upholding the values that make us proud to be Maltese.
I will conclude this message by sincerely thanking you and conveying once again my best wishes for a Happy Christmas and a Happy New Year. Wherever you are – we are proud of you. You are testament that the strength of a country does not only lie in territorial size, but in its people and the unity among them as well as the fondness towards all that is Maltese.
Thank you and all the best.