Malta must not become a multicultural society

Godfrey Pirotta

Sep 30th 2008, 17:02

Sandro Pace, multiculturalism is what the EU is all about. There is not one state in the EU which is not multicultural. If you want to be a member of the EU you must accept that people in the EU might migrate into Malta. And you cannot stop any EU citizen, whatever his religion or skin colour, or even language, to settle in Malta. And already the number of people from the EU has grown. Contrary to what you seem to think not all EU citizens are white. And should you go to the EU to settle do not be shocked if people think you are from North Africa. It happens very often.
Secondly, you have not answered my question re:your definition of multi-culturalism. Terms must have meaning and you cannot expect people to agree or disagree with you if you do not explain yourself. You have not taken up my challenge to tell me whether you chose to be born in Malta and whether you have chosen your religion. Perhaps after all muticulturalism is merely another excuse to sustain one prejudices. I have lived a multi-cultural life and because I do not have prejudices I enjoyed it tremendously.

Marvic Aguis

Sep 29th 2008, 05:49

Good morning

Any body interested to read about Islam, please read Quran and modern science-compatible or incompatible? By Dr. Zakir Naik
http://www.ahmed-deedat.net/modules.php?name=myBooks2&op=listt&cat=7

Sandro Pace

Sep 28th 2008, 18:36

@ Godfrey Pirotta

The letter is about multiculturalism brought by immigration, and in Malta, as the author correctly outlined, both are presently intertwined, because however one twist things, a multicultural society presently we are not.

a.cassar

Sep 28th 2008, 10:38

@ M.Mercieca
I don't think you understood my comment. The gist of my comment was that if god forbid islamic law were to be introduced in Malta it would not solve any of the problems you mentioned. We do not need islamic law to improve our lives vis a vis morality. We have the bible and Christ's teachings which are against all the ills that you mentiond. One other thing. you did not comment on the pleasntries concerning sharia law. I assure you that if god forbid someday islamic law is introduced in Malta (Ishudder writing this) maltese christians will have no say as to what form it will take.
God bless you and enlighten you too

M. Mercieca

Sep 28th 2008, 05:54

@ a. cassar

Where our Christian values has gone?
I am sure Jesus is not happy to see 99.9 of his follower females having sex at the age of 14 or 15 years. Actually our virgin young girls make news nowadays.
Jesus is not happy to see teenager pregnant mothers.
Jesus is not happy to see 25-30 % of our Christian born babies are either of unknown fathers or out of wed-lock. Right or wrong but (my understanding) Islam forbids sex out of wed-lock.

All this is happening because we turned our back to God. We wanted to join the modern world and become secular, or more indulged in secularism. As a result, we have become more sexu-lism. We have traded our Christians values with liberty, sex-based and values-free culture. The latter, produced unsolved social dilemmas.

Thank you my friend. God bless you

a.cassar

Sep 27th 2008, 12:52

@ M.Mercieca
"When the governments fails to spend more money on: alcohol – related health problems, single parents, teen pregnant mothers, usury, kids with unknown fathers…etc. All this type of things is against Islam laws. I believe this is why Islam may spread in Europe."
For your information, thse things are also contrary to Christianity. you forgot to mention beheadings, amputations, lapidation (stoning) and other pleasantries found in sharia law.
perhaps you would like them to be enshrined in our laws too. and rest assured that inspite of thse nasty things you mentioned being against islam, one can still find muslim drunks, addicts fornicators, murderers, thieves etc. no religion guarantees heaven on earth but some can surely create hell. ask the taliban!

apgech

Sep 27th 2008, 09:15

@ M Mercieca: I did not mention Islam. An influx of any other religion could cause serious friction. When a country belongs mostly to one denomination and the people are still very involved with their religion, any other religion will cause friction. One day the church in Malta fought Mintoff's integration attempt because they were afraid of the Protestants imposing their rules such as divorce, etc, on Malta.

Also, this country is too tiny and we cannot allow indiscriminate entry of foreigners here. It is also dangerous because we do not know the background of these people and every country has the right to know the background and history of the people who go to live in it.

Raymond Sammut

Sep 27th 2008, 02:32

@ Fr Joe M Meli

"The Catholic Church understands itself as the sacrament of God's loving outreach to, and welcome of, all humanity (men and women of all eras and regions)."

Your statement is all very nice, Fr Meli, but it is no substitute to a passport and a valid visa to enter and stay in a foreign country. You knew this as a fact all along, which would mean that you are merely indulging in pretense and hypocrisy.

Furthermore, according to your reasoning, for long Malta should have become dotted with an equal number of churches and mosques. But you also know that the evidence on the ground very convincingly states otherwise. This is the point which Charles Scerri is making in no uncertain terms and which you so vainly and deceitfully set out to challenge, but to no avail.

a.cassar

Sep 27th 2008, 00:53

@ A Muscat
re your comment:
If Indians and Pakistani were to quit England and go back home, IT sector in the UK will suffer and eventually would lose a market share..
If Gulf States withdraw their money from British banks, 10% of banking sector will run out of business, and 13% of English population will go begging in Gulf States streets.
To bring the picture closer in Malta, what would have happened if we didn’t get the Smart City investment? .
That is precisely what we want to prevent. would you have malta held at ransom by foreigners like what happened to britain? we do not need foreign workers. Some are arguing that the illegals are doing jobs that maltese are loath to do. so now the crisis seems to be turning into a blessing!!!! I don't recall my garbage remaining uncollected. I don't remember any building site closing down because of lack of workers.

William P Flynn

Sep 27th 2008, 00:37

One disadvantage of being part of the EU is that Malta is perceived as an official stepping stone into Europe - which it will always be, EU or no EU.
The EU has no choice but to shoulder this problem for humane, practical and historical reasons; EU/Malta cannot escape its share.
But its share should be proportional to its territory and existing/potential population density.

Malta processes many tourists annually; so it should handle landing immigrants adequately. But the EU should compensate Malta for that task as well. Since Malta can't escape its unfair proportion of landings, it might as well charge for it.

Europe should also recognize Malta's territory can't accommodate the longer term process as to who stays and who doesn't; so processing should happen elsewhere.
Tiny Malta's tiny share of the immigrant intake should only then be allowed to go there as permanent residents.
All considered, Malta's proportionate share should be a token one - a family here and there annually (not hundreds or thousands).

Since time immemorial, people have walked or sailed elsewhere - especially out of Africa; whence all humanity originated.The march of the millions continues today and is unstoppable - get used to it.

a.cassar

Sep 27th 2008, 00:36

@ becky d'Ugo
If you still believe that paul of tarsus managed to topple a religionof an entre island which had been practised for millenia in just three months then you will believe anything! but then you also said that the 'maltese' of that time were open minded. that's an improvement! the danger in this situation is not so much the foreign aspect as the huge ammount of illegals coming in in such a short period. this is a veritable invasion considering the size of malta.

M. Mercieca

Sep 26th 2008, 23:05

@ apgrech

Please note that, in the EU constitution, no reference for God was made? Can we blame the immigrants for this?
Why are you talking about Islam as if Islam s imported by the immigrants? What about the millions of native Europeans Muslims? do you suggest we expel them out of Europe?

@ all
Rests assure, you may not find queues of Christians heading to Muslims mosques to convert at the hand of a Muslim Immam. You may also never see a Muslim asking a Christen to convert at a gun-point. But you would certainly see a great shift in today’s laws that would change dramatically to fit into Islamic values or laws.

When the governments fails to spend more money on: alcohol – related health problems, single parents, teen pregnant mothers, usury, kids with unknown fathers…etc. All this type of things is against Islam laws. I believe this is why Islam may spread in Europe.


-----------------------

When they legal, they are not welcomed.
When they are illegal they are subject to prejudice and hatred sentiments, so I guess it us who make the immigrants chose to live in ghettoes

apgrech

Sep 26th 2008, 22:54

Any influx of other nationalities be they be black, pink, blue or purple, can destablize Maltese culture and traditions.

Fr Joe Meli is wrong in his interpetation. One day VERY SOON, we're going to hear about objections to Crucifixes, processions, street decorations, corner statues etc. Look at what is happening in North America and in some countries in Europe.

Above all, these people are coming to our country, illegally which means, against our laws. Now our stupid government accepted a deal by the EU which does not help us with this problem. The EU, US and other nations could help them much more if they try to educate these people and help them develop their own country so they can live a decent life.

apgrech

Sep 26th 2008, 22:43

@ Dr Paul Sant Cassia: Very interesting and wise comments. I agree with your stand on the issue.

A. Muscat

Sep 26th 2008, 21:54

In terms of Multiculturalism
You should ask why Great Britain once upon a time was an empire?
The Great Britain ripped-off natural resources of India, Pakistan, plus many Gulf States and African countries.

The Economist magazine (On 14 February 2005) page released a very interning report-stating something as follows:
If Indians and Pakistani were to quit England and go back home, IT sector in the UK will suffer and eventually would lose a market share..
If Gulf States withdraw their money from British banks, 10% of banking sector will run out of business, and 13% of English population will go begging in Gulf States streets.
To bring the picture closer in Malta, what would have happened if we didn’t get the Smart City investment? .

---------------
St. Paul
Many down here have mentioned St. Paul.
As far as to what I once heard on one of our TV channels, the Maltese population were about 180,000 peoples at the beginning of the 19 centaury. Can any body inform me how much was the Maltese population when St. Paul landed in Malta?

Wilfred L Camilleri

Sep 26th 2008, 19:11

The issue really is whether or not Malta can afford this influx of illegal immigrants. The Government of Malta does not have the resources necessary to support a large and rapid influx of immigrants/refugees. So the question comes down to who is going to pay for it? I personally believe that integration or accommodation of a large number of people from other cultures, religions, and traditions in a relatively short span of time will ultimately have an impact on Maltese society and culture, negative or otherwise. But the bottom line is that Malta does not have the capacity to continue accepting these immigrants/refugees without having a negative impact on the Maltese economy and society. This is not a racism issue as many seem to imply.

Becky d'Ugo

Sep 26th 2008, 19:09

@ Dr. Sant Cassia - Far be it from me to argue with you on anthropology! I have read your comment with interest and apologise for any incorrect terminology I used. I agree with you that there are massive challenges to be faced. I just hope that the matter will be tackled in the right manner, with everybody's dignity being preserved in the long run.

Chris Ebejer

Sep 26th 2008, 19:03

Fr Meli don’t you know that Arab and Muslim population in Europe is growing so rapidly with thousands of Muslims settling into Europe every year you will be prohibited
to continue preaching about your St Paul ?

Becky d'Ugo

Sep 26th 2008, 19:03

@ Eric Soames & I Galea

My mention of St. Paul, who was responsible for introducing Christianity to Malta (point noted Mr. Pirotta thank you), was meant solely as a remark about people like Mr. Scerri who say they are Roman Catholic as an opening gambit and then go on to speak in a way which in my opinion reflects a different moral stance. Hence, the irony I mentioned. I was not playing any Catholic card. As if i want to open that can of worms...

@ Alexander Morana - Of course Mr. Scerri is free to be proudly proclaim his identity and voice his fears! I never said he shouldn't. Likewise we are free to comment on what he and others proclaim and what such proclamations reveal about the proclaimer.

Godfrey Pirotta

Sep 26th 2008, 18:46

Mr Chris Ebejer tells us that the British Empire was God's gift to the world and wants to convey the impression that it was soft hearted. Yes as long as you submitted. Maybe he does not know that the British invented the concentration camps. And the people of the world should be grateful for that British gunboat which turned up and imposed a new economic order on people who did not want it. Do you know Mr Ebejer, that in Kenya the British took nearly all the fertile land leaving only 7% for the Africans? As to inventions one has to ask whether you have heard about China's civilization which pre-dates the European? Or indeed, have you heard of the contribution made by Arab civilization to science? Perhaps I suggest you spend some money on some of the excellent books available in the world. Why not ry and read BBC History Magazine. Even the British have long ago abandoned the mythology you still believe in. And if you want to learn about the real Maltese history why not go to the National Archives in Rabat?

Eric Soames

Sep 26th 2008, 18:17

Not to pile it on Becky D'Ugo, but St Paul was a Roman citizen and so would not have had any problems traveling the Empire anyway.

Godfrey Pirotta

Sep 26th 2008, 18:04

Sandro Pace cannot say what being Maltese involves but he knows what it is not. Now that is really helpful for a healthy debate. Perhaps what he believes to be Malteseness is different from what other Maltese believe it to be. Or does he speak for everybody on this island? My point was not about immigration but multiculturalism because that is what the letter was about. He is also uncomfortable with history because it is probably not convenient to explore it deeply as it may bring up issues which people want to evade. He also talks about people like me taking a liberal view of immigration. Of course it never occurs to him that I may have no view on immigration but I may have views about multiculturalism. Hence my questions which he shied away from, perhaps because answering them truthfully may create a sense of insecurity where once none existed. He may discover that he is holding to a lot of myths rather than truths. So Mr Pace did you choose to be Maltese and did you choose your religion?

Fr Joe M Meli

Sep 26th 2008, 17:39

I find it very hard to understand people who justify their stance against (illegal) immigration and Malta becoming a multicultural (multi racial?) society on the premise that they are members of the "Catholic Church".
If they were truly aware of what the Catholic Church understands itself called to be by its founder, they would argue very differently. The very phrase "Catholic Church" is translatable to "universal gathering." The Catholic Church understands itself as the sacrament of God's loving outreach to, and welcome of, all humanity (men an women of all eras and regions).
We really still have much to learn from Saint Paul, the "Apostle to the Nations."

Sandro Pace

Sep 26th 2008, 16:41

Some people who profess a liberal immigration view (or anti anti-immigration) invoke Malta's history to make us accept the immigration anarchy we are witnessing today on our shores. Well, to all intents and purposes, Malta till now has always been recognised as a homogenous country.

Twisting our identity would become very dangerous. We may not clearly define what is Maltese, but we know what it is not.

We have small communities of peoples as other countries, but no recognised ethnic or religious minorities. Other countries and people always speak carefully about these things because they are no light matter. Turkey for example rarely recognises the Kurd minority, lest it give it secessation claims. We do not know what a multi-whatever society is, fortunately. we were spared such problems.

Denis Catania@yahoo.com

Sep 26th 2008, 16:31

@William P Flynn: Catholics were not always welcomed into protestant communities , and Catholics are not welcomed in Moslem communities. But this is not a faith issue. But an overpopulated small island with no resources. This is the problem. Another problem is some of these illegals are stuck somewhere they don't want to be. Do we need to force these people to pick up our garbage, stock our shelves and so on, for very little pay. Malta can't afford the large influx of illegals. Especially when they come with no papers.

Sandro Pace

Sep 26th 2008, 16:13

By no stretch of immagination can Malta be termed a multicultural country, in a politically recognised way. Though some may stretch it to the point that every person is a culture in himself.

However 'mongeralised' we are, we are not even politicaly multi-ethnic. We shared the history of some other european mediterrenean countries like Spain and Southern Italy, and still, they are even fighting African immigration.

Malta cannot be forced into multiculturalism just because thousands on the shores of Africa want to come here. Other countries like England historically brought it on themselves as they said they required workers. But every country is a different story.

It is a proven fact that it is better not to mix cultures, politically. Clashes and friction will inevitably arise.

john fenech

Sep 26th 2008, 15:50

Let’s put the record straight, we already have some 12000 legal foreigners residing in the Maltese Islands plus several thousands students visiting our shores all the year round. On the other hand the illegal immigrant is another kettle of fish. He is here illegally without documents or identification and without the means of support.
It is a fact that ethnic groups tend to dominate the area where they reside. For instance this is the experience in several towns in the UK and to a certain extent in Italy and France. If their culture is very different from that of the locals then it might lead to certain difficulties. So we have to keep an open mind and an awareness of the changes that multicultural society will impose on our way of life.

John Spiteri

Sep 26th 2008, 15:48

Many are confusing race or ethnicity with culture. being against multiculturalism is not being against an ethnicity or a person of a different race. you can have people of the same ethnicity/race (take christian and muslim arabs) who belong to different cultures and uphold different cultural values. Whilst individuals are 'equal', cultures are most certainly not. the fetish of multiculturalism demands the rejection of our western culture and the glorification of everything else. ultimately a multicultural society cannot function, because a society is the result of people who share the same cultural values in the first place. multiculturalism can only logically lead to three scenarios:

a) parallel societies upholding different cultures living tensely with the confine of one state. (Apartheid).
b) far from new cultural and social achievements it will result in the dissolution of all cultures to a least common denominator (hence monoculturalism but of an inferior state to the previous culture)
c) conflict, as one will try to subsume the other.

Godfrey Pirotta

Sep 26th 2008, 15:46

The British are proud to be British, the Maltese want to defend their Malteseness, the French want to be superior, the Germans want to be the master race and the nonsense goes on. Will some one define what is it to be Maltese please. Will bloggers please try to answer this question within the framework of three simple questions. 1. Who of these bloggers chose to be born in Malta? 2. How many of them, if any, has chosen their religion? 3. What is their definition of multiculturalism? And just for the historical record St Paul did not make the Maltese Roman Catholic. Catholicism came centuries after. If he made the Maltese anything, He made them Christian in the same way that he had before that time made Greeks, Syrians, Jews and other Middle East peoples Christian. An answer to these questions is very important because your definitions may actually re-write Maltese history given the fact that most surnames in Malta come from a variety of cultures, Arabic, Balkan, Greek, Jewish, Spanish, Italian, Indian, Portugese, Irish, Scottish and English, to mention but a few.

Alexander Morana

Sep 26th 2008, 15:36

Dear Becky d'Ugo, if you would like to go any further our first people, was the Seculi, the aboriginal race or first inhabitants of the island of Sicily. They were the race which built our Temples (If they are Temples?) of Hagar Qim. Still it doesn't mean that Mr. Scerri can't proudly proclaim his identity and voice his fear of the demise of his nation.

Joe FOuntain

Sep 26th 2008, 15:29

Mr Scerri, we are not in a position to reject multicultralism ... all you need to do is hear our language to see that we're there already .. .and have been for a long time

i suggest you wake up and get real!

Dr Paul Sant Cassia

Sep 26th 2008, 15:11

Comment for Becky D'Ugo:
You are quite tright in pointing out that Maltese society is the "result of 7000 years of colonisation and extreme racial mingling" - although the use of the term "race" is not acceptable/correct nowadays. What is "race"? Biological or Cultural? But then you suggest that Malta is "the result the result of a succession of multi-cultural societies".?? Sorry, Malta was pretty culturally homogeneous: same religion, same customs, same language. Incomers were integrated and produced a unique cultural mix, but it was not "multi-cultural". Now it may be, perhaps to the chagrin of many, but not then. The key point one has to ask is: Is it easy to "integrate" so many people with such diverse cultures in such a short period of time? Multi-culturalism is the opposite of integration, which was the model of what you call "mongrelisation" (why use dog metaphors?). You cannot draw upon the past to legitimate your politico-cultural views for the future, because the past was completely different. So let us look at what models of society are being proposed: forceful integration along the past model, or loose multiculturalism? Both entail massive problems and challenges.

louise vella

Sep 26th 2008, 15:03

On September 24th Archbishop Cremona said on RTK that, when Gwardamanga parish-priest in the 1990s, parishioners gave generously for Iraqi refugees. Now voluntary workers helping illegal immigrants meet strong resistance from usual donors who refuse to contribute. He wondered why.

I suggest 4 reasons:

1. Iraqis were genuine refugees. Africans coming from Libya were originally presented as refugees. Now we realize most are illegal immigrants trying to go to mainland Europe.

2. Iraqis were a once-only occurrence and limited in number. Africans are never-ending, the influx increasing every year. Millions of them are ready to come. The Maltese realize that the more generous they are, the more of them will come.

3. Iraqis came with documents, by normal means of transport. Africans force themselves on us. They land in Malta or enter Maltese waters and expect to be rescued from real or feigned distress. Africans usually have no documents to prove their identity, nationality or background.

4. Iraqis were soon whisked away to Canada, but we seem to be stuck with Africans.

How can we treat African illegal immigrants like Iraqi refugees? Of course, they are all human beings; but differences of numbers and circumstances are too great.

J Martinelli

Sep 26th 2008, 14:46

Malta has been multicultural for a long, long time and the recent 'illegal immigration' problem had nothing to do with it.

Just grab the telephone directory and look at last names. That ought to give you an idea. Maltese marrying foreigners and settling here, once 'illegal' immigrants staying here when border controls were inadequate, or even when such immigrants were legally processed, all contributed to a multicultural society. There are Jewish and Hindu Maltese citizens and a bunch of other religions such as Moslem.

No big outcry was heard when a large piece of land was granted for the building of a Mosque or the ceding of prime land in St. Julians - the former St. Michael's college.

If we did not see a threat then, why should we look upon a couple of thousand of temporary refugees as a danger to our culture?

What I am afraid of is not the refugees or the multicultural society but the total indifference and apathy among those who pretend to be the defenders of their faith by words but hardly by their deeds.

Vincent Zerafa

Sep 26th 2008, 14:41

I have a question for all those people who see no threat from illegal migration.

Is there a limit to how much we can keep in Malta? Is 20,000 enough for you, or maybe 30,000?

Or maybe you think they will stop coming when it is no longer ok for you?

May I remind you that they are coming from places where there are millions and millions.

Malta has helped with refugees from many places. But we just can't keep accepting the non-stop flow of illegal immigrants. Not even the enormous Australia, let alone tiny Malta.

So just WAKE-UP and start facing the disastrous consequences!

William P Flynn

Sep 26th 2008, 13:48

Mr Ebejer, I don't know how many people who are technically and constitutionally Maltese, like me, live overseas. My estimation would be hundreds of thousands. We took our culture and intermingled with our host nations all over the world.

Some of these nations even accepted Catholics into their Protestant culture. When droves of Maltese emigrated to Egypt in the early 20th century, Moslems had to accommodate Catholics and their churches amongst their mosques.

The "white man" as you describe the European nations, has raped pillaged and plundered the other races and their countries for centuries. Since the demise of those evil and rapacious empires in the last 50 years, at whose avaricious forefront was the British Empire, (who used its technology for its own ends and to subdue and enslave entire countries, including our own), the erstwhile colonised world such as the Arabs, the Indo-Chinese, the Indians, the Chinese and the Maltese have moved forward in leaps and bounds.

If the British had invented computer technology and satellite navigation, you wouldn't be able to use it. Wrong name, I'm afraid. Your own surname is just not British.

john fenech

Sep 26th 2008, 13:08

Let’s put the record straight, we already have 12000 legal foreigners residing in the Maltese Islands plus several thousands students visiting our shores all the year round. On the other hand the illegal immigrant is another kettle of fish. He is here illegally without documents or identification and without the means of support.

It is a fact that ethnic groups tend to dominate the area where they reside. For instance this is the experience in several towns in the UK and to a certain extent in Italy and France. If their culture is very different from that of the locals then it might lead to certain difficulties. So we have to keep an open mind and an awareness of the changes that multicultural society will impose on our way of life.

l Galea

Sep 26th 2008, 13:05

@Chris Ebejer
You are right.
Kosovo is a good example

@Becky d'Ugo
Your Catholic card no longer impresses anyone

Nigel Lawrence

Sep 26th 2008, 12:48

This article opens with the argument of being in favour or against illegal immigration. EXCUSE ME, in FAVOUR of ILLEGAL immigration?? Rape is illegal, murder is illegal, theft is illegal- shall we start an argument in favour of these as well.

Joseph Galea

Sep 26th 2008, 11:48

Mr. Charles Scerri's letter is symptomatic of many Maltese who see no contradiction in stating that they are Roman Catholic Christians and then spew out their hatred for anybody who does not look or think like them. One should remind Mr. Scerri what Christ said we will all be judged on when Judgment Day comes. It's not going to be a label of Roman Catholicism or the number of Masses attended or rosaries said. (Although these are good they are useless without love of neighbour - and not just those who look like you!)

Mark Fiorentino

Sep 26th 2008, 11:37

"I am concerned about myself"... well said Mr. Scerri. You've just declared to the world that you're a Roman Catholic!

The problem with Malta is that there's too many people who are "concerned about myself" and don't give two hoots about anyone else !

Chris Ebejer

Sep 26th 2008, 10:48

Even the liberals knows that immigration & Multiculturalism cannot go on forever. But once ethnic groups get a degree of power they will vote for more immigration, in order to bring in more people of their own kind to further strengthen their hand, so the problem will become worse and worse. There is a danger of a snowball effect, with no possibility of our stopping it even when liberals realize that enough is enough !

Jean-Pierre Tabone Adami

Sep 26th 2008, 10:47

Charles Scerri,

the fact that Malta is already multicultural is something you have to get used to. I am not referring to immigration. Your thoughts are alien to me. I just don't get you. We HAVE a different culture in all respects.

Please understand that our Europe is being changed in a multitude of ways, because its people are changing their habits and practices. We are free, we think, we want new ways of doing things. A Maltese from the 1950s would find today's younger generation totally incomprehensible and probably downright unacceptable. They are fine by me. And this cultural change has nothing to do with immigration.

You may want to keep things as they were in your childhood. I suppose I might want that too in my later years. But it's not going to happen. This in "inbuilt" cultural shift to which migration is but an addendum. The age of communication does not need boats to bring its messengers. Your message that Malta must "NOT" change, somehow rings pretentious and hollow.

Becky d'Ugo

Sep 26th 2008, 10:47

@ Peter Camilleri

Yes, yes ok I know he was only shipwrecked here. Maybe I need to make myself more clear. When I mentioned St. Paul it was merely to point out that if people at the time were not open-minded or receptive to someone else from another culture, then Roman Catholicism itself would not have been accepted, at least not back then. Mr. Scerri mentioned that he is a Roman Catholic but didn't stop to think that this religion was brought to us by a foreigner from a totally different culture and ethnicity, who was shipwrecked on our island en route to Italy. I just found it to be rather ironic.

Chris Ebejer

Sep 26th 2008, 10:44

Why did we need mass immigration and multiculturalism? Was our society not functioning very well beforehand? This belief seems unwarranted. The white people were responsible for the Industrial Revolution, one of the most important events in human history, on a par with the Neolithic revolution. The white people have been at the forefront of almost every scientific, medical, and technological advance over the last few centuries. It would be too tedious to list all of their accomplishments throughout the last few centuries, but around the time of the Second World War alone they invented the jet engine, the computer, discovered antibiotics, developed radar, and invented the microwave. The British built the most benign Empire ever, which did more than any other Empire in human history to spread technology

Peter Camilleri

Sep 26th 2008, 10:27

Becky D'Ugo
Forgive my ignorance but it seems to me that St Paul did not migrate to Malta but was merely shipwrecked here. Besides I beleive that over a period of 1948 years as stated by yourself, conditions might have changed a little.

Kevin Sciberras

Sep 26th 2008, 10:16

Mr Scerri, my 3 children are half maltese - does that make them an inferior species because they are not full blooded maltese? Or are you really referring to color and not ethnicity? I guess I am a traitor to my culture. Lets not revert back to 1939 Germany please.

We are in the EU and hence all ethnicities within the EU can freely reside in Malta as long as they are gainfully employed. Get used to it!

Becky d'Ugo

Sep 26th 2008, 10:10

The Malta that exists today, its people and its 'character' is exclusively the result of 7000 years of colonisation and extreme racial mingling. There are few races and cultures as 'mongrelised' as the Maltese, but it is precisely because Malta has been a cultural melting pot for millennia that we are what we are today. Malta and its people, its traditions and its culture are nothing but the result of a succession of multi-cultural societies. The "beloved Malta" to which Charles Scerri refers, is exactly that which he, bless his generous Roman Catholic heart, is loathe to accept, that is, a multicultural society. Had Mr. Scerri been around 1948 years ago, St. Paul wouldn't have stood a chance.