I WANT TO GO HOME, BUT I HAVE NONE ! (Part Two)

By Joseph Cachia
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You (could this well mean also you, dear reader?) took it away from me!

The law demands that we atone
When we take things we do not own
But leaves the lords and ladies fine
Who take things that are yours and mine.

Firstly, why don’t you ask me why I am an emigrant? Very simple answer – YOU made me one!

I am rich, yet I am poor! Haven’t you been profiting from my poverty?

When the West tells us: “We don't need you!”, who of you protested? Neither did we need you when you came to colonise our country and brought havoc to us….but still you came! Neither did we need you when you came to exploit our country for your interests….but still you came! When you came to ravish and destroy our country through your imperialist wars, we never wanted you….but still you came

And now you see and treat us as a hostile invasion force and unashamedly and immorally, quoting Hungarian prime minister Orban telling us; “Do not come”!

Moreover, the shameful construction of the disgraceful Iron Curtain of walls and fences ironically by those who claim to have, earlier in their history, suffered such ethnic discrimination, exposes the hypocrisy of Europe's professed morality. On the other hand, calling such migrant countries as Canada and Australia as hypocrites is more than fitting, considering their part in supporting Western imperialists to disrupt countries like Iraq and Syria. Their hand in the crisis is illustrated in their fortress-style border policies at home and their wars abroad which have never been a help, but a lethal contribution. They are equally responsible in this human tragedy. Also in line comes Israel; “Israel is not indifferent, but 'too small' to take in refugees” said Natanyahu, after refusing to take in Syrian refugees fleeing from the raging civil war in their home country. Allocations from much smaller countries, like Cyprus and Malta were much more significant. How could it possibly be that he forgot what it means to be Jewish? Again, brazen and arrogant hypocrisy!

So the European Union is preparing to bomb targets in Libya to stop migrants from attempting to cross the Mediterranean.

EU foreign policy coordinator Federica Mogherini briefed the United Nations Security Council on plans for a “Chapter VII” resolution that would give a UN green light for the use of force.

The “bomb the boats” plan is driven, however, not by the number of deaths by drowning, but by the even larger number of refugees who have successfully reached the Italian coast, or have been picked up by merchant ships or the Italian coast guard and navy.

EU ships would enter Libyan territorial waters, along with aircraft and helicopter gunships, to identify ships and help “neutralize” them, i.e., blow them to bits. These reportedly include HMS Bulwark, a helicopter carrier that is the flagship of the British Royal Navy, now deployed at Malta.

So this is what we are harbouring! Along with all 28 EU members supporting the military intervention, the Maltese government, for the second time, is getting involved in military action against a neighbouring country on the excuse of humanitarian reasons. That what is being proposed is not humanitarian assistance, but a new war, is so obvious that the Süddeutsche Zeitung has felt obliged to admit, “This is not a humanitarian initiative.”

No less to be condemned are the elites of the Arab world who, willingly or not, are reluctant in creating conditions to keep people from fleeing elsewhere. It's true that Turkey and Lebanon have taken in a large number of refugees from Syria and Iraq, and for this they deserve respect. But the big bankers of this world are sitting in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Dubai and the Emirates. Have they done at least as much for the refugees as other less prosperous countries or are they afraid of displeasing their imperialist comrades-in arms? But now all minions of the West are shedding crocodile tears!

Individual member states of the European Union have voiced opposition to the proposed EU quota system for refugees and called instead for refugees to be taken in on a "voluntary" basis. This may sound more practical and just. After all, why shouldn't Europe's ex-colonial powers be now called on to pay the price for their colonial past. And why should countries that never had any colonies unlike France, Germany, Belgium or Italy did, which ultimately contributed to their current wealth, be now asked to share responsibilities?. These countries must now shoulder the burden of their colonial past. They shouldn't try to pass it on to others. Malta is one of the poorer and smaller states in the EU. Why should we have to pay for the problems of the old and rich EU states? Others may have forgotten their past tribulations and are now closing up.

Europe faces a moral problem. On the one hand, saving refugees serves as an incentive for further immigrants – and victims. On the other hand, you can't let refugees drown just to prevent others from escaping hell in their country.

It is very unfortunate that it has now become a fashion and an excuse for refusing refugees on the pretext of them being 'culturally alien'. Locked hearts will quickly forget that most civilizations were refugees once. “If we declare that we hold freedom and human rights dear, we should commit to providing assistance and support to those who cannot return to their home countries."

Everybody is somebody's child!
And don't you remember the picture of the young girl running naked in a street in Vietnam, her skin peeling off after being burned in a napalm strike?

WE SIMPLY JUST HAVE TO CHANGE and there are no 'ifs' and 'buts' about it, as we are dealing with humanity's very survival now in reality.

“No human heart is denied empathy. No religion can demolish that by indoctrination. No culture, no nation and nationalism – nothing can touch it because it is empathy.

I think we all have empathy. We may not have enough courage to display it.”

Maya Angelou
Next: (Part Three – Final Solution)

Joseph M. Cachia
Freelance Journalist
Email: [email protected]
Vittoriosa – MALTA (Europe)
Tel: 21807566 – 99866151




Body of Syrian child washed on the shore in Turkey.


Who remembers this? Don't know, but I surely do, though it wasn't as close to home!!