I am four square with Charles Xuereb on choosing September 2 as our National Day.
Those who sacrificed their lives both in the Great Siege of 1565 and in the World War II, did so for foreigners. The first helped the Knights of St John against the Ottomans. Yet the Knights treated the Maltese as second-class citizens.
In World War II they fought for the British because Malta at that time was a British Colony.
The Maltese truly fought alone for the country in the siege of 1429 against the Ottomans, when Malta had just gained independence from King Alphonso.
The second time was the ‘Uprising of the Farmers’ on September 2, 1798 against the French troops.
I am very sorry to say that these two important historical dates have sunk into relative oblivion.