On Sunday evening, many people defied the cold and the rain and walked in protest at St Julian’s to protest against the sending back of nine Mali migrants back to their country…

Certainly, the people who walked in St Julian’s number far more than the nine Malians.

Then again, it is not a question of numbers, but more of principle. Even were the crowd smaller and the number facing repatriation bigger, the issue would still be the same.

What is this country about? Is it based on money and what money can obtain? Or is it based on respect for basic human values and rights?

A human being is a human being and must be respected as such whatever the colour of his skin and the country where he came from.

These nine Malians, all men, do not have issues with the law, have broken no laws, have worked and paid taxes, and have not been a burden on the country. They have obeyed the laws of the land and have been working on behalf of their families. Under any other circumstances, they would be considered as model citizens. So why are they being kicked out of Malta?

It would seem their worst blame is that they were born in Mali, that this country, while still having internal trouble, and has come to an agreement with the EU that it will take back those Mali citizens who are rounded up and repatriated.

The nine were a larger number at first but then reason intervened and the women in the group were released from the group, as were the children.

In this regard, one must point out that some of the children who were ‘arrested’ at first, were born in Malta but they are not considered as citizens of Malta. This is a legal distinction that must be challenged and changed. As far as is known, any child, for instance, that is born in the UK is considered as a UK citizen without any quibbling. So too in other countries. These children have been born in the EU and by that fact should be considered as EU citizens.

Of course, if populism reigns, all migrants, all asylum seekers, indeed all people of a dark skin, must be kicked out of Western Civilisation Malta. All this leader’s arguments do not mean that some people should be allowed to stay in Malta or should have been allowed in. Our borders are porous, and people seem to be able to come in with the minimum fuss. It is enough to read the court reports in the press and you end up wondering how such people were allowed in. There is much that must be tightened up in this regard.

In the case of these nine Malians they seem to have been boat people, who risked drowning to get away from countries of oppression. In itself, this does not qualify them to live and remain in Malta but they have been in Malta for years and if they did not acquire citizenship by right, they have acquired it by the years they have worked in Malta and paid their dues.