From Mr J. Martinelli

I have been following the subject of the internati since Minister Tonio Borg’s speech in Parliament a few weeks ago. The vast majority agreed that the deportation of the 43 Maltese patriots was not only unwarranted but illegal. The significance of this action is even greater when the British portray themselves as the champions of democracy and, in their heyday, imposed their supposed unimpeachable standards on all their colonies. The fact that they treated Malta as one of their colonies, when in fact we were not, proves the double standard.

The very few who expressed themselves differently from the majority are perhaps those who in the 1950s dreamed of becoming more British than the British themselves. And let me remind those who, in more recent years, feared for the loss of the Maltese identity and culture, that only divine intervention prevented us from being absorbed into an insignificant three-seat afterthought in the British House of Commons.

The impeccable writings by Giovanni Bonello and J.M. Bencini in The Independent on Sunday of 4 March have prompted me to respond with two observations.

With regard to an apology for similar events happening elsewhere, with particular reference to Canada, let me mention that last year a formal apology was made by Prime Minister Harper in Parliament to the descendants of the Chinese-Canadian citizens who, during the war, were plucked from their homes and “deported” to British Columbia for fear of subversive acts. Not only was an apology given but also a monetary settlement. The interesting part of this is the fact that these Chinese-Canadians were deported to Canada! Not Uganda.

As far as the other observation is concerned – regarding the erection of a monument – let me assure Giovanni Bonello that one already exists in Floriana. Whenever I visit, I always spend a few moments in meditation in front of the Independence monument, remembering very well the events leading up to and during the Independence ceremony, when the Union Flag was lowered and our glorious flag was raised, and tears still flow freely when I remember that proud moment. Because at that moment it mattered not how shabbily the British (governments) had treated the Maltese, the deportations, the inadequate compensation for war damage, the misuse of public property that they “rented” for whatever they felt like paying. What mattered most was a new beginning and the transfer of an illegitimate British grip on Malta’s affairs to true Maltese politicians who steered the country to what it is today.

Sure, we had moments when many wished that the British were still here with their quasi-democracy, but those years are gone and the newer generation savours the freedom and the vast opportunities it enjoys now as opposed to the meagre existence under our “colonial masters”!

We are now masters in our own land and we should always look forward – but heaven forbid that we forget the past!

Joe Martinelli

London, Ontario

CANADA