Yesterday, Malta saw two examples of intolerance at its best. The first instance involved a Maltese man being made to get off an Air Malta flight in Heathrow after hurling racial abuse to an African man before the flight was due to take off.

Air Malta said that the man was hurling abuse at the man who was sat next to him on the flight, and as a result – as per terms of carriage – he was told to leave the plane. The flight crew made him do so because he was deemed to be of a nuisance and could have posed a danger to other passengers.

As Air Malta was perfectly entitled and obliged to do, the man was removed from the flight. Air Malta’s terms and conditions also stipulate that the passenger can be prosecuted for what he did, and one expects a follow up in this regard. In cases of racism and also in cases of endangering an aircraft and its crew and passengers – charges can be pressed ex-uffcio, which means that the police can (and should) proceed with an investigation.

In another instance, a Spanish man was beaten and kicked at the ferry point in Gozo simply because he decided to play his harmonica. It is understood that the incident took place at about 5am, and while nerves could be a little jangled, it is certainly no excuse whatsoever to kick and beat someone.

It was said that the Spaniard spoke to a policeman, but it is not clear as to whether he made a formal complaint. Again, in this regard, it would be interesting to hear what the police have to say and whether an investigation will be launched.

Sometimes, it really does seem as if we live by the law of the jungle rather than the rule of law. While such instances happen everywhere, it does seem to be the case that people think that they can do whatever they like in the eyes of the law.

We are supposed to be a modern, tolerant and educated Mediterranean society, but such instances show that we have a long way to go. By and large, the Maltese are a friendly, welcoming people. But these are the ones who give us that bad name. These are the instances that make people think of us as racist thugs. These are the instances which embarrass the people as a whole. When the Labour Party came to power, it said that it would shake up the Police Corps, and on the ground, there does seem to be fresh new impetus to tackle crime. But we must stop turning a blind eye to such instances. Offenders should be investigated and prosecuted according to law.