The recent sad case of a black African man being attacked and injured in Malta for no apparent reason other than race has brought up the usual phobic talk of indiscriminate white on black violence at dinner parties. It has brought with it a string of politically correct accusations, condemning among other the fabrications that bondage, as an institution, was invented by the Caucasian race.

For the sake of balance and at the risk of being called insensitive, history has recorded that blacks tracked down and sold fellow blacks from warring villages to white slavers for profit. In this harsh but practical fashion, not only were troublesome tribal warriors gotten rid off permanently, but also money exchanged hands.

Furthermore, for the sake of historic accuracy, it must be borne in mind that more whites were sold into bondage over the centuries of human evolvement, than all blacks combined. Before the very first captive black ever set foot in colonial America and sold at open auction, tens of thousands of indentured Caucasians were similarly bought and sold on the open market, forced to labour for a set number of years in virtual servitude. In those less enlightened years of human evolution, slaves were seen as the equivalent of today’s working underclass and artisans. Like it or not, that was the prevailing system used to build an emerging continent nation. Caution must be exercised not to judge yesterday’s values with today’s enlightened standards.

If folks must be critical of bondage they should in all fairness maintain a balanced perspective, and not simply flow with the popular but mistaken trend of blaming whites for all that turned sour with humanity. As it happened, religious institutions had a hefty investment in the extremely profitable transportation of slaves across the Atlantic, where berthing space on sailing ships was held at a premium. The more densely packed the human cargo, the bigger the profit realised, even allowing that victims died of overcrowding en route to their final destination. Calmness and impartiality have to be observed in addressing this revolting injustice. Truth is, human evolution is the by-product of good and evil experiences, with each generation facing its own contemporary hardships and challenges. The same forces that separated the powerful from the weak are as germane today as they were in years gone by. The nefarious trade in human beings is the modern equivalent of slavery. It leads to exploitation of vulnerable, displaced people in a most egregious manner, be it in Malta or elsewhere.

While the criminal conduct of those thugs who caused serious body injury to Mr Mbotu, must not be condoned under any circumstances, he and other law breakers are well advised to stay home in their African native villages, should they not wish to encounter similar unprovoked ugly incidents, from native citizens who are enraged by their mere presence. Sympathy towards illegal immigrants is in short supply for folks determined to violate national boundaries, as a means to seek out a better life denied within their own country. In the process they jump the waiting line, edge out those who patiently wait their proper turn to reach the promised land, and cause antipathy and confusion wherever they go. Surely the refugees’ material needs and aspirations are no greater or more imperative than of those folks who abide by established law and order. The disruption and division illegal immigrants have caused in Malta is of growing concern. A solution needs to be found with help from the EU, which takes into account demographic limitations of size and clashes in culture, without resorting to violence and anarchy.

Joe Vella

California

USA