Yesterday was the 49th anniversary of Independence Day, a great day for Malta, a great event that will remain inscribed forever as one of our nation’s peaks. This small piece of rock, as we are sometimes referred to, is passionate, proud and ready to fight against all odds, boasting a history of achievement and success.

I am very proud of what our country has managed to do in its relatively short existence as an independent country and it is interesting to ponder the significance of this date and the layers it sheds if we scratch the surface of this momentous day.

It is great to see the Labour Party’s new hierarchy celebrating this date and acknowledging that it is a great day. It fills me with pride that the PN – the party that Labour spokesmen keep harping is all against inclusivity – was the party that fought for and achieved independence. Back in the horrid days of the 1970s and up to 1987, the PN never stopped celebrating this great day, even though Labour not only removed it from the calendar of holidays but called it a sham and a national disgrace. The people behind the Labour Party at the time pumped tear gas, threw stones, handed out truncheon beatings and constant slander not only against the PN and its supporters but against Malta itself.

Throughout the years, the PN has acted with dignity and proper inclusivity. Instead of an eye for an eye and seeking revenge, when it was elected to power the PN fought for reconciliation and honoured all the dates that made Malta proud. It did not, as Labour used to do, send in the army and the police to scatter the PL’s legitimate celebrations. On the contrary, the celebrations were national and members of the PN took part in them.

If the PN of yesterday had not worked hard to save the commemoration of Independence Day, most probably it would just be a date that only veterans like me would even know about.

I hear people shout that these are old stories that we keep harping on about because we are stuck in a time warp. History teaches and also admonishes us to be wary, to worry about what lies behind the new waves of smiles donned by new Labour. That it has changed and now pays homage to Independence Day is a great leap. However, I don’t believe that the leap is the result of the PL feeling it was wrong to do what it did in the past. If this is the case, why haven’t we ever heard a tiny apology for the aggression way back when Malta was terrorised by socialist thugs who would attack anyone trying to keep Independence Day a day to remember?

Labour today has changed because it has realised the only way forward is progression and not regression. But, unfortunately, what appeals to it is its marketability – not because they believe in it. It knows the new Maltese youth would not trust it if it acted aggressively, so its supporters smile and wear suits, unlike the old Labour of the 1970s.

The past is the past so let’s leap into this present. But the lessons learnt from the past need to remain in our minds because of what is happening in the country today. I am not saying we face a torrent of abuse and stones on Independence Day. God forbid! But the signs of what this government is slowly doing are spreading fear and dread among many of us. The way the army, the police and broadcasting are being turned into Labour strongholds is terrible – and this in less than a year of it being in power.

I am not saying that there were no problems under the PH: state TV was hardly ideal. But what is happening in such a short time is not just making a mockery of our impartiality and intelligence but also a direct affront to quality.

The army and police and broadcasting all fall under one Minister. This Minister has shown he has no trouble making horrible choices and then flicking off any criticism with a legalistic, but hardly believable, argument. In the bad old socialist days, legalistic arguments were used to prove that independence was a sham, that majority rule was not necessary and that judges could be moved around like chess pieces. Legalistic arguments were used to justify even the perpetration of violence on Maltese people.

The omens are bad. The worry is strong. May this government realise that what we celebrate on Independence Day goes far beyond the raising of flags – it is the celebration of freedom not just to win elections but also to believe and act as a true defender and lover of all things that give more than just a legalistic belief in freedom. May we truly live our independence.