Dominic Mintoff (Maltese: Duminku Mintoff [dʊˈmɪnkʊ ˈmɪntɔf]; often called il-Perit, "the Architect"; 6 August 1916 – 20 August 2012) was a Maltese socialist politician, architect, and civil engineer who was leader of the Labour Party from 1949 to 1984, and was Prime Minister of Malta from 1955 to 1958, when Malta was still a British colony, and again, following independence, from 1971 to 1984. His tenure as Prime Minister saw the creation of a comprehensive welfare state, nationalisation of large corporations, a substantial increase in the general standard of living and the establishment of the Maltese republic, but was later on marred by accusations of authoritarianism.
Mintoff was born on 6 August 1916, the third-born and eldest male sibling of nine, born to Lawrence (or Laurence) "Wenzu" Mintoff (who hailed from an old Gozitan family) and his wife, Concetta Farrugia (known in Maltese as Ċetta tax-Xiħ). He was baptised the next day in his hometown Bormla in the Sanctuary of the Immaculate Conception. His father was a local cook employed by the British Royal Navy and his mother was reputed to have been a pawn broker or money lender. He attended a seminary but did not join the priesthood. One of his brothers did become a priest, however, and one of his sisters became a nun. Dom enrolled at the University of Malta. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science and, later, as an architect and civil engineer (1937). That same year he was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship and pursued his studies at Hertford College, Oxford, where he earned a master's degree in engineering science in 1939.
Early political career (1935–1949)
After serving as the assistant secretary of Bormla Labour Party club from the age of 19, Mintoff was served as Labour's Secretary General from 1935 till 1939 and from 1944 till 1945, resigning from 1939-1944 to pursue his studies at the University of Oxford.
He was first elected to public office in 1945 to the Government Council. In the same year, Mintoff was elected Deputy Leader of the Party with a wide margin that placed him in an indisputable position as the successor, if not a challenger, to party leader Paul Boffa. After Labour's victory at the polls in 1947, he was appointed Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Works and Reconstruction, overseeing large post-War public projects.
Leader of the Labour Party (1949–1984)
Mintoff's strong position and ambition led to a series of Cabinet crises. A split in the Labour Party came about when Boffa, who was ready for compromise and moderation with the colonial authorities, resigned and formed the Malta Workers Party. Mintoff refounded the Labour Party as the "Malta Labour Party" of which he assumed leadership. Despite Mintoff's faction retaining the overwhelming majority of party members, the split resulted in the weakening of both parties and it was not until 1955 after remaining out of government for three consecutive legislatures, that the Labour Party was elected to office with Mintoff as Prime Minister.
This government's main political platform, integration with the UK, led to a deterioration of the Party's relations with the Catholic Church, leading to the interdiction of all party supporters by the Church, with voting Labour being declared a mortal sin. This led to all voters who braved social marginalisation to defy the Church's demands to be termed "Soldiers of Steel" (Maltese: Suldati tal-Azzar). The Labour Party lost the subsequent two elections in 1962 and 1966 due to the influence of the clerical prohibition on the deeply religious Maltese population, and boycotted the Independence Day celebrations in 1964 due to wide-ranging disagreements with the substantial amount of power retained by the British government.
Following the lifting of the interdiction and the improvement of relations with the Catholic Church in 1969, Dom Mintoff was elected as Prime Minister in the 1971 general election and immediately set out to re-negotiate the post-Independence military and financial agreements with the United Kingdom.
The government undertook socialist-style nationalisation programmes, import substitution schemes, and the expansion of the public sector, the collective sector and the welfare state. Employment laws were revised with gender equality being introduced in salary pay. In the case of civil law, civil (non-religious) marriage was introduced, and sodomy, homosexuality and adultery were legalised. Through a package of constitutional reforms agreed to with the opposition party, Malta declared itself a republic in 1974. In 1975, Mintoff ordered that the Royal cyphers be ground off Maltese pillar boxes. However, when it was pointed out to him that this defacement was similar to what Napoleon Bonaparte did to the coats of arms on buildings of the Knights Hospitaller, he ordered that the programme be stopped. In 1979, the last British troops left Malta in accordance with the 1972 agreement.
Social and political troubles in the 1980s
The Labour Party was confirmed in office in the 1976 elections. In 1981, amid allegations of gerrymandering, the Party managed to hold on to a parliamentary majority, even though the opposition Nationalist Party managed an absolute majority of votes. A serious political crisis ensued when Nationalist MPs refused to accept the electoral result and also refused to take their seats in parliament for the first years of the legislature. Mintoff called this action "perverse" but it was not an uncommon one in any parliamentary democracy with disputed election results. He proposed to his parliamentary group that fresh elections be held, but most members of his Parliamentary group rejected his proposal as it was likely that the prior result would be repeated. Mintoff stayed on as prime minister until 1984, during which time he suspended the work of the Constitutional Court during discussions with the Opposition to amend the Constitution. He resigned as Prime Minister and Party leader aged 68 in 1984 (although he retained his parliamentary seat and substantial influence over the party), opening the way for his deputy prime minister, Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici, to succeed him.
For the 1981 elections, the opposition Nationalist Party, reinvigorated with a new leader and backed by various Conservative and Christian Democratic parties in Western Europe, looked set for a serious challenge to Mintoff. In fact, in that election, the Partit Nazzjonalista managed an absolute majority of votes, but managed only 31 seats to the Malta Labour Party's 34. Mintoff said that he would not be ready to govern in such conditions and hinted that he would call for fresh elections within six months. However, pressure from party members forced Mintoff to do otherwise: Mintoff eventually accepted the President's invitation to form a government. This led to a political crisis whose effects continued through much of the 1980s characterised by mass civil disobedience and protests led by Opposition Leader Eddie Fenech Adami as well as increasing political violence, such as Black Monday.
Labour backbencher (1984–1998)
Mintoff resigned as Prime Minister and Leader of the Labour Party in 1984, while retaining his parliamentary seat and remaining a government backbencher. He was succeeded by Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici. Mintoff was instrumental in convincing his parliamentary colleagues to support constitutional amendments ensuring a parliamentary majority for the party achieving an absolute majority of votes. A repeat of 1981 was thus avoided, and the Nationalist Party went on to win the 1987 elections. The Labour Party went into opposition for the first time in sixteen years.
Mintoff successfully contested the 1992 and 1996 elections. However, a rift grew between Mintoff, representing the party's old-guard, and Alfred Sant, the new Labour Leader. Things came to a head in 1998 when the Labour government was negotiating the lease of sealine to be developed in a yacht marina in Birgu. Mintoff eventually voted against the government's motion which was defeated. The Prime Minister saw this as a loss of confidence and the president, acting on Prime Minister Sant's advice dissolved Parliament and elections were held. This was the first time, since the war, that Mintoff's name was not on the ballot paper and the Malta Labour Party lost heavily.