The land of love and freedom

Even today, the Times carried out reports on the current tense situation at Safi Barracks, following Thursday's peaceful protests which turned bloody when the Army intervened. Today's reports say that after the morning incidents the immigrants at Safi staged another protest, and the Army reported that a soldier was badly hurt after stones were thrown at armed personnel by the immigrants.

I must say that I am not surprised by this. What really drew my attention was the aftermath of the protests and comments made by Maltese citizens regarding the issue.

The most appalling incident was the refusal of the Army to let anyone near the immigrants who were hospitalised. Michele Manca de Nissa, a UNHCR high official who happened to be visiting Malta, was not allowed near the injured immigrants. de Nissa was quoted as saying that the guards at the entrance of ward MS2 at St Luke's Hospital simply turned him away telling him that no one was allowed in the ward. Neither were the lawyers acting on behalf of the Jesuit Refugee Service given permission to talk to their hospitalised clients. This was even worse! When eventually these lawyers were granted permission, the guards were ordered to accompany them and take down notes of whatever was said between lawyers and clients. The abominable way these immigrants were treated after being beaten elicits very bad memories of a not so distant past.

A number of organisations issued statements in reaction to the bloody incidents at Hal Safi. What amazed was the statement released by the Christian Democrat Students' Movement (SDM). The democratic students of Christian inspiration had the audacity to "commend the AFM personnel for their work and augurs that such incidents shall not occur frequently" [my italics.]

The Times issued reports of reactions by a number of Maltese citizens too. Most noteworthy was the reaction of a soldier's wife who was quoted as saying that she is constantly worried about her husband's safety since he has been posted at Safi Barracks. This lady reported that the immigrants are a constant threat to the soldiers guarding them, often turning violent and are a dangerous lot.

All this results from the carelessness and gross mishandling of the issue by the Maltese Government. One simply cannot cram hundreds of people who left their war torn countries, faced peril at sea and now the bleakest of futures, in a confined space and expect them to stay put until god knows when, without even informing them of what their situation is.

In this whole issue, the Maltese government seems to have overseen one very simple fact: immigrants are human beings.

Confusion now hath made his masterpiece!

Macbeth, Act2 Scene 3

This morning The Times (Malta) published harrowing pictures of Maltese soldiers beating refuge seekers who were participating in a peaceful protest at the Safi Military Barracks where they are currently detained. The pictures speak for themselves: riot squad personnel surrounding a black immigrant lying helpless on the ground. The heavily armed soldiers do not look as if they are trying to lift the man from the ground. Not at all. So much so two of these soldiers are in fact pressing the protestor to the ground with their boots, while another one hits him with his baton.

I must admit it is not these pictures which intrigued me most. Riot personnel are notorious for their rough handling of human beings. The Times reported other incidents which took place at the barracks during and after the protest, and others which took place at the hospital where some of the worst beaten protestors were eventually taken for medical assistance.

Times' reporters heard soldiers urging their colleagues in the thick of the action to "smash those black's faces" and to hit them "in the head".

The protestors were holding a peaceful protest, chanting pleas for freedom while hanging non-offensive banners to the fencing closing the detention centre.

At St Luke's Hospitalsoldiers were spinning up their version to sympathetic Maltese citizens that the refuge seekers started it all.

The Times also reported that Maltese citizens at the hospital thought it was all the immigrants' fault and they should have never stepped on the sacred island.

What's worse was that the Jesuit Refugee Service was denied access to immigrants who were kept at St Luke's.

As one should expect, AI, was prompt to protest against this barbarous act with the Maltese Government. The international human rights movement has been expressing concern over the Maltese Government's (ill)treatment of refuge seekers, particularly its detention policy and the delays in processing the legal procedures related to asylum applications.

Re-reading the reports published by The Times and by AI, certain points come to the fore:

* the general feeling and reaction to these immigrants are in stark contrast with the myth of Malta as a safe haven where everyone's welcome to stay;

* not only are the armed forces ill-trained for the daily running of the detention centres, but a large number of armed forces personnel are simply blood thirsty, waiting for the right moment to vent out their frustrations on poor, unarmed and helpless refuge seekers;

* Malta denies certain basic human rights, such as the right to express one's concerns and one's pleas for freedom (the most basic of human rights);

* it strikes me as odd, very odd, that the same society which boasts of having collected so many food and medicinal items and money for the tsunami victims, embraces fascist elements who are ready to "smash the blacks' faces" and then play the victims' part.

When your little cat dies

2nd January 2005. 9pm

I just returned from Slovakia. Been travelling since 8am: taxi from Jana's flat to Vrutky train station; train trip from Vrutky to Bratislava; taxi from Bratislava train station to bus station; coach trip from Bratislava to Vienna Airport; flight KM513 from Vienna to Gudja; car drive from Gudja to Tarxien, where I picked my Gelsomina and then drove home.

One of the first things I learned soon after I met my sister Violet at the arrivals was that Kyra, my other sister Carmen's four year old cat, died on 1st January. The sinister details of Kyra's sudden death are the following: sister Carmen invited the whole family (bar me who was still in Slovakia) for a New Year's party. Kyra, being one of the most asocial home cats I ever met, stayed in a room away from the merry makers. The last to leave the party was my other sister Violet (the one who picked me from the airport). Thinking everyone was off, Kyra walked all the way to the front door - much to the surprise of Carmen, Violet and their spouses - and enjoyed being fondled by all. Kyra walks back. Violet and hubby say the last Happy New Year by the front door and leave. Carmen walks back to the kitchen where she finds Kyra strayed in the middle of the corridor, eyes wide open and shining green, motionless. They immediately realise Kyra's dead. Massive heart attack. So everyone's saying.

Requiescant in Pacem, Kyra.

Needless to say, Carmen and all her family are in mourning.

I wrote about Kyra because her demise led me into an old habit of mine: thinking of death on New Year's. The list of friends and acquaintances who passed away in 2004 is sadly quite long. And looking forward to 2005 I wonder who will be next to depart. I have my private fears about this. At the same time my mind is also preoccupied with the harrowing scenes of the aftermath of the tsunami in south Asia. Harrowing. The scenes are also a reminder that man does not rule the world after all.