Tourists witness bus driver's violent behaviour

Although we had read recent articles on the problem of asylum seekers, we thought it would not affect our recent holiday to your lovely island.

We felt free to visit any place we were interested in. After having seen most of the marvellous Neolithic temples, we decided to travel to Għar Dalam. Later, we had a little lunch break in Birżebbuġa and set off to catch the bus to return to Valletta.

We got on the bus but there was still some time left until it was scheduled to leave. It slowly filled with people, including a young Maltese woman. Shortly after, a second bus arrived, and many of its passengers got onto the bus we were on. They were all black people. Finally, an elderly Maltese woman got on and sat next to the driver. We were the only tourists on board.

Since there was still some time left for the bus to leave, a black passenger who had been sitting in front of me left the vehicle to make a phone call. The moment he got off, the bus driver abruptly started the engine and, without any hesitation, drove off at the highest speed a 50-year-old bus can manage. However, the passenger managed to catch up with the bus and jumped up onto its steps. He exchanged angry looks with the driver.

The situation calmed down until the next bus stop, when another black man wanted to leave the bus. However, when he was on the steps and trying to get off, the driver started driving and the passenger nearly fell off the bus. It became obvious to us and everybody else on board that the driver's behaviour was deliberate.

Naturally, the black passengers started to complain and the atmosphere became even more tense. On hearing the complaints, the driver stopped the bus suddenly. He picked up a water bottle and started to threaten the black man in front of me with it.

The elderly Maltese woman got off the bus at once, but all the other passengers were trapped at the back. I do not want to know what would have happened had the young Maltese woman not stepped in between the two men to diffuse the situation. Shortly afterwards, some officials got on the bus and helped calm things down. We got off the bus, leaving the driver and the black man alone with the authorities.

The strange thing was that no one asked us to testify. I doubt any action was taken against the driver since we saw him soon after, driving into Valletta.

We spent another week in Malta and we met some very friendly people, so we can say we had a nice holiday. But what should have been a holiday far away from everyday problems was overtaken by harsh reality. Our memories of Malta are marred by that incident.

We hope that Maltese authorities will take action against such violent attacks in the future so that we can recommend your beautiful island to prospective tourists.