Cyrus Engerer is a Maltese Member of
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adop ...
representing the
Labour Party. A gay rights activist, he was the leading spokesperson for the Yes campaign at the
2011 Maltese divorce referendum
A referendum on divorce was held in Malta on 28 May 2011. Voters were asked whether they approved of a new law to introduce allowing divorces, as at that time, Malta was one of only three countries in the world (along with the Philippines and the ...
. In 2021 he was tasked with negotiating the European Parliaments historic resolution on the declaration of the European Union as an LGBTQ Freedom zone, in reaction to the establishment of so called "LGBT-Free zones" in Poland. Engerer later went on to write the European Parliaments resolution which condemned the laws in Hungary which effectively banned "LGBT propaganda" in the vicinity of schools. From 2014 till 2019 Engerer was the Prime Minister's special envoy to the European Union. He was elected as a
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament.
When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and Steel Commu ...
in November 2020.
After he joined the Labour Party the Police of Malta opened an investigation against him, leading to his father's arrest, the opening of a court case against him on spreading pornography and the arrest of his mother on election day. He himself was convicted for spreading revenge porn and received a suspended two years term imprisonment.
He is the partner of Partit Laburista's Member of Parliament
Randolph De Battista.
Early life and career
Engerer read an Honours Degree in
European Studies
European studies is a field of study offered by many academic colleges and universities that focuses on current developments in European integration.
Some programmes offer a social science or public administration curriculum focusing on devel ...
and
Communications
Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inqui ...
at the
University of Malta
The University of Malta (, UM, formerly UOM) is a higher education institution in Malta. It offers undergraduate bachelor's degrees, postgraduate master's degrees and postgraduate doctorates. It is a member of the European University Association ...
, graduating in 2007 with a dissertation on "The Role of the European Parliament: Developments, the Constitution and Future Prospects". He then obtained a Master's in European Politics from the
College of Europe
The College of Europe (french: Collège d'Europe) is a post-graduate institute of European studies with its main campus in Bruges, Belgium and a second campus in Warsaw, Poland. The College of Europe in Bruges was founded in 1949 by leading ...
in
Bruges
Bruges ( , nl, Brugge ) is the capital and largest city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Scienc ...
,
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...
with a dissertation on ‘Malta Europeanised: Political Parties and Electoral Campaigns’.
Upon graduation, Engerer was recruited at the Office of the Prime Minister
Lawrence Gonzi
Lawrence Gonzi, (born 1 July 1953) is a Maltese politician, retired Nationalist politician and lawyer, who served for twenty-five years in various critical roles in Maltese politics. Gonzi was Prime Minister of Malta from 2004 to 2013, and lea ...
as project managed on EU-funded projects. He later joined the Malta-EU Steering and Action Committee (MEUSAC) and worked as adviser on EU funds to various Ministries, local councils and NGOs.
Political career
In a highly polarised society, Engerer was raised in a politically mixed environment with his father being a traditional
Nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a in-group and out-group, group of peo ...
supporter from
Sliema
Sliema ( mt, Tas-Sliema ) is a town located on the northeast coast of Malta in the Northern Harbour District. It is a major residential and commercial area and a centre for shopping, bars, dining, and café life. It is also the most densely po ...
, while his mother from
Valletta
Valletta (, mt, il-Belt Valletta, ) is an administrative unit and capital of Malta. Located on the main island, between Marsamxett Harbour to the west and the Grand Harbour to the east, its population within administrative limits in 2014 was ...
was an activist in the
Labour Party, with her family being ardent
Mintoff supporters.
Engerer is known for his public stands on
civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life ...
,
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
's
national identity
National identity is a person's identity or sense of belonging to one or more states or to one or more nation, nations. It is the sense of "a nation as a cohesive whole, as represented by distinctive traditions, culture, and language". National i ...
and the protection of the environment.
Nationalist Party (2003-2011)
Engerer's first involvement in Maltese politics was related to Malta's accession to the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been ...
. Convinced that membership augmented Malta's opportunities for growth, he joined the ''Moviment IVA Malta fl-Ewropa'' and campaigned for Malta's EU membership during the
accession referendum in 2003.
The same year, prompted by the party's positive stand on EU membership, Engerer joined the conservative
Nationalist Party (PN).
At the
2009 administrative elections in Malta, Engerer was elected to the
Sliema
Sliema ( mt, Tas-Sliema ) is a town located on the northeast coast of Malta in the Northern Harbour District. It is a major residential and commercial area and a centre for shopping, bars, dining, and café life. It is also the most densely po ...
Local Council, third among ten candidates. Within the Council he was given the remit on EU affairs, EU funding, youths and sport. In 2010 Engerer was appointed deputy mayor of Sliema.
Engerer frequently criticised the Nationalist Party's conservative positions, especially on issues related to civil rights and liberties, while he also regularly questioned his party's democratic credentials.
Commentators like Raphael Vassallo noted that his progressive views on
divorce
Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
and
gay rights
Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality.
Notably, , ...
would have made him more at ease in a European liberal party, than in the traditionally conservative Nationalist Party.
[
During the last PN General Council he attended, Engerer went as far as hinting that Nationalist Party was cut off from society's realities.
]
2011 Divorce referendum
During the referendum campaign for the introduction of divorce legislation in Malta in 2011, Engerer joined the Yes Movement ''Iva Għad-Divorzju, Iva Għaż-Żwieġ'' and was also the leading spokesperson for the Stand Up campaign.
The long referendum campaign not only brought the progressive voices together but also led the country's conservative forces (including the Nationalist Party) to hold a joint campaign against divorce. Notwithstanding the religious pressure that was exerted by the Catholic Church on the Maltese population, the Yes campaign won 52.67% of the votes.
Despite the electorate's clear vote, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi
Lawrence Gonzi, (born 1 July 1953) is a Maltese politician, retired Nationalist politician and lawyer, who served for twenty-five years in various critical roles in Maltese politics. Gonzi was Prime Minister of Malta from 2004 to 2013, and lea ...
stated he would vote ‘no’ in parliament, against the will of the majority. The statement spurred Engerer to declare he would resign from the party's structures, if its leader and Prime Minister did vote against the will of the Maltese. Engerer stated that "Lawrence Gonzi
Lawrence Gonzi, (born 1 July 1953) is a Maltese politician, retired Nationalist politician and lawyer, who served for twenty-five years in various critical roles in Maltese politics. Gonzi was Prime Minister of Malta from 2004 to 2013, and lea ...
no longer represents the Maltese population, he has committed political suicide and if he has the country's and the party's interest at heart should resign immediately."
Gonzi ultimately voted against divorce, which led Engerer to resign from the Nationalist Party on 15 July 2011 and join the Labour Party led by Joseph Muscat
Joseph Muscat (born 22 January 1974) is a Maltese politician who served as the prime minister of Malta from 2013 to 2020, and as the leader of the Labour Party from June 2008 to January 2020.
Muscat was re-elected as prime minister in the ...
, who had personally campaigned for the introduction of divorce legislation and other civil liberties.
Labour Party (2013)
Engerer joined and became highly involved in the Labour Party. In July 2011, he became a board member of the party's think-tank ''Fondazzjoni IDEAT'' and one of its delegates to the party. He also formed part of LGBT Labour.[ Within the party, Engerer also spearheaded the fight for Civil Rights. His involvement was particularly prominent in the 2013 Labour Party campaign for the General Elections, where he worked hard to encourage former Nationalist voters to vote Labour. Labour won with a 54.83% majority.
Following her appointment as Minister for Social Dialogue, Consumer Affairs and Civil Liberties, ]Helena Dalli
Helena Dalli (born Helena Abela, 29 September 1962) is a Maltese politician serving as European Commissioner for Equality since 1 December 2019. She is a member of the Labour Party.
Career
Parliamentary Secretary
In 1996, Dalli was elected ...
appointed Engerer as Chairperson of the Consultative Council for LGBT rights, with the initial task being to provide government with a Bill on Civil Unions as well as a Gender Identity Act. The Civil Union Act was presented to the Minister at the end of June while the Gender Identity Act was presented at the beginning of August 2013.
The same year, Engerer joined the cabinet of the Parliamentary Secretary for the 2017 EU Presidency and EU Funding, Ian Borg.
European Parliament campaign (2013)
On 8 June 2013, Engerer announced that he would be contesting the 2014 European Parliament election in Malta. He submitted his nomination to Labour Party for the elections on 5 August 2013, getting support from Minister Evarist Bartolo, Minister Helena Dalli
Helena Dalli (born Helena Abela, 29 September 1962) is a Maltese politician serving as European Commissioner for Equality since 1 December 2019. She is a member of the Labour Party.
Career
Parliamentary Secretary
In 1996, Dalli was elected ...
, Parliamentary Secretary Ian Borg, Member of Parliament Deborah Schembri
Deborah Schembri (born 1976 or 1977) is a Maltese politician and attorney who was a member of the Parliament of Malta from 2013 to 2017. She is known for leading the pro-divorce movement during the 2011 Maltese divorce referendum.
2011 pro-divor ...
and Gozo Labour Party spokesperson Ġuża Cassar. Along with seven others, he was approved as a candidate by the party on 21 August 2013.
Engerer's campaign, called ''Malta l-Ewwel'' (Malta First), was launched in Valletta
Valletta (, mt, il-Belt Valletta, ) is an administrative unit and capital of Malta. Located on the main island, between Marsamxett Harbour to the west and the Grand Harbour to the east, its population within administrative limits in 2014 was ...
on 27 October 2013.
In the week following his switch to Labour Party, Engerer and members of his family were faced with multiple charges opened against them by the Police of Malta. Such charges included circulating pornographic pictures of his former partner. Although government denied that any of the charges were politically motivated,[ a number of opinion-makers alleged that this was character-assassination of an opponent of the governing party. This version of events relied on the fact that internal police and court documents were leaked to the media before Engerer himself was informed of the charges by the police. An internal police inquiry later confirmed that the timing of the initiation of court proceedings was politically motivated.
On 31 May 2013, the Court of Justice presided by Magistrate Audrey Demicoli acquitted Engerer from all charges. However, he was sentenced to a two-year jail term suspended for two years on 8 May 2014. The decision was handed down by Mr Justice Michael Mallia in a 17-page appeals court judgment. The following day, Engerer announced that he had backed out of the European Parliament Elections 2014 citing that he did not want any bad light cast on the Labour Party.
]
Joseph Muscat's special envoy to the EU (2014-2019)
In October 2014, Engerer was appointed by Prime Minister Joseph Muscat
Joseph Muscat (born 22 January 1974) is a Maltese politician who served as the prime minister of Malta from 2013 to 2020, and as the leader of the Labour Party from June 2008 to January 2020.
Muscat was re-elected as prime minister in the ...
as his "special envoy" to the European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been ...
, in parallel to the official Permanent Representative of Malta to the EU sitting in Brussels' ''Dar Malta'' office. He kept the role until 2019.
Member of the European Parliament (2020)
Engerer run on the Labour Party ticket at the 2019 European Parliament election in Malta and placed 5th from the Labour Party's list of candidates, with the party electing four Members.
When it became clear that Miriam Dalli would resign from her seat to join the European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
, Engerer was elected on 5 November 2020.[
]
Publications
Engerer wrote a biography of the Labour Party leader, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat. The book, called ''Joseph, Malta li Rrid Ngħix Fiha'', was published on 22 January 2013. It sold more than 10,000 copies in eight weeks and was well received by critics.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Engerer, Cyrus
1981 births
Living people
Nationalist Party (Malta) politicians
Labour Party (Malta) politicians
Gay politicians
People from Sliema
Maltese LGBT politicians
Maltese gay men
21st-century Maltese politicians
MEPs for Malta 2019–2024
LGBT members of the European Parliament
21st-century Maltese LGBT people