MEIA grants authorities grace period before protest ‘in the interest of keeping negotiations on the table’

The Malta Entertainment Industry and Arts Association (MEIA) has said that it is delaying its upcoming demonstration against the treatment of the culture and events industries by a week, “in the interest of keeping negotiations with the authorities on the table”.

After announcing the “temporary suspension” of its ‘Daqshekk Siekta‘ (Silent No More) on Tuesday night, the Association provided details on the latest proposed date for the protest in a social media statement on Wednesday morning.

The MEIA claims that during meetings held with Malta’s health authorities, a counterproposal to its original reopening plan was presented to its delegates, which are now under discussion with MEIA members.

Citing a potential resolution of its concerns about the “discrimination” towards its industries’ audiences and workers, the MEIA states that the grace period will be implemented as “talks with the authorities are still ongoing”.

If a satisfactory decision is not reached, the Association insists the demonstration will take proceed on 30th June.

It cites progress made “in the right direction”, and some positive points, such as “the extension of curfew” and “unlocking fixed amount of seated pax”.

Despite the progress, the MEIA insists that “much more is needed” and the organisation will continue to voice its concerns regarding this.

At the time of writing, over 1,300 people have signalled their interest in attending the protest, which is set to take place in St George Square, Valletta.

Supporters take issue with the stringent limitations to be imposed on the eventual return of events on 5th July, which according to the most recent official guidelines will take place with controlled entry, vaccine certificates and significant attendance limitations.

Guest must be seated and only 100 people will originally be able to attend, although maximum attendance should increase by 50 people fortnightly, until mid-August.

The MEIA’s decision to postpone its protest comes after one well-placed source and local events operator who preferred not to be named told BusinessNow.mt that the situation after Monday’s talks “is not looking good”.

Additionally, the individual confirmed that dancefloors will likely remain closed in July.

Also in Wednesday’s statement, the MEIA acknowledges that its previous statement regarding the protest and its suspension “has left some members frustrated and confused” and concedes it should have communicated better.