The internees (2)

Certainly the internment of the 43 Maltese citizens who were exiled to Uganda in 1942 during the war was a blot in Maltese history as Justice Minister Tonio Borg said. But I wish to clarify a fact and add something to what he said for the sake of correctness and historical facts.

The Breconshire, which carried the internees to Uganda, was not a merchant ship as reported but a ship belonging to the Royal Navy, manned by naval crew and known as H.M.S. Breconshire. What I wanted to add is the fact that, on the way to Uganda, the ship was caught in the midst of a naval battle. It is understood that, while the internees were herded into the hold, a naval officer spoke to them and, at pistol point, warned them that if the ship was hit and sunk there would be no boats for them and anybody trying to reach a lifeboat would be shot.

It is also understood that a member of the crew who was on duty on the bridge saw a torpedo heading straight on to the ship and informed the captain who, in turn, quickly ordered a sharp turn, which without doubt saved the ship from an eventual explosion if the torpedo hit. At that very moment, it is said, a Mass was being celebrated by Mgr Pantalleresco who was one on the internees.

Of course, nobody knew what was going on at that moment and afterwards, but this was considered as a miracle. As far as I know, all the ex-internees are now dead, so there is no confirmation of this except what has already been written and perhaps heard or known by some of the relatives of the internees themselves.

This episode is part of Maltese history of the darkest period of the war in 1942 and should not be forgotten, although 65 years have passed. So the erection of a monument to those who have suffered, with all the names of all the internees and a brief story, will not be out of place as the minister suggested. Let's hope that this will be erected in a prominent place in the not too distant future.