More than just an anthem

There was something very polished and incredibly elegant about the Prime Minister’s end of year speech.  

It was very Tagħna Ilkoll in style but very patriotic in soul. Teenagers in different coloured t-shirts sang the national anthem from the theatre boxes at the Manoel Theatre, with the National Orchestra playing the Innu Malti.  

The tackiness of Mintoffian and Alfred Sant representations of nationalism have been replaced by the refined imagery of new Labour.  Labour is no longer sloppy and tacky and as some would like us to believe.

It took me back to a little historical event I learned about. I had vague memories of this episode when very young, learning to recite a Ruzar Briffa poem.

One has to go back to the Second World War when Yugoslavia was invaded and the Germans set up a fascist state with the help of the pro-Nazi Croatians. It was well known that the Croatian club Hajduk Split did not bend over when the puppet Nazi satellite State attempted to include Hajduk in the Independent State of Croatia Cup. 

With the Allies occupying southern Italy and controlling the Mediterranean, the Adriatic islands became the haven for the resistance and the Hajduk team moved there in 1944.

The club's players then joined the partisan general headquarters on the island of Vis. On 7 May, 1944 on the Feast of Saint Duje, the patron saint of Split, Hajduk began playing as the official football team of the Yugoslav resistance. They competed with Allied service football teams from across the Adriatic in Italy, where they famously defeated the British in a friendly match. Good for them. 

At this time, the club leadership adopted the Partisans' red star as the badge on the white-and-blue club dress. It remains so till this day. In the first quarter of 1945, Hajduk embarked on a football journey through Egypt, Palestine, Lebanon, Syria and Malta.

It was in Malta that an interesting incident happened before the end of the war. It was 25 March, 1945, in the Gżira Stadium, and Hajduk Split had come to Malta to play the Malta team.  

Before the game, the King’s Own Band proudly played the anthem of Yugoslavia and then it played God Save the King, obviously the national anthem of Great Britain. As the governor, Edmond Schreiber, was about to seat himself, the whole stadium gathering stood up and spontaneously started to sing the Maltese anthem. Schreiber, embarrassed, was obliged to stand up until the end of the Maltese anthem. 

That episode led Ruzar Briffa, a dermatologist by profession, to write a poem that remains one of those ‘must learn’ if you study Maltese.

U l-Kotra qamet f’daqqa – u għajtet: “Jien Maltija!

Miskin min ikasbarni, - miskin min jidħak bija!”

U l-Kotra għanniet f’daqqa – u semmgħet ma’ l-irjieħ

L-Innu ta’ Malta tagħna, – u l-leħen kien rebbieħ

Fuq ngħas l-imgħoddi ġwejjef, – in-ngħas ta’ l-Apatija,

Xħin ruħna kienet rieqda – ġo sodda barranija;

U l-ombra ta’ Vassalli – qamet minn qiegħ il-qabar,

U għajtet: “Issa fl-aħħar – jiena se nsib is-sabar.”

It is perhaps telling that the Maltese national anthem has such significance. It goes to show to what extent Maltese as a language unites and is the key to our real national identity. Which is why it is such a pity that the Maltese language is still a secondary consideration when it comes to the print media. And even more so, in some sections of our private school system.

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The news that nearly half a billion undeclared euros belonging to Maltese individuals and companies in undeclared assets were repatriated comes as no great surprise. Good news for the government that raked in 15% of that sum. And good news for the men who avoided all these taxes by simply paying 15% not 35%. To be precise the total repatriated read as €445 million, nonetheless the amount is a staggering figure.

It goes to prove that the extent of tax evasion has gone on for far too long. The sad story is that tax evasion is not considered to be a serious crime in Malta. Indeed the opposite is true, those that manage to rob the State and avoid paying taxes are considered to be super heroes. 

We are not talking here of small and insignificant numbers.

The stark reality is that robbing someone of a mobile could land you in prison but if you rob the State of the taxes due then somehow it is considered to be an achievement.

Not so in those countries where the State has a certain standing.   

The US is a case in point, but so are the UK and the Scandinavian countries. Here fraud and tax evasion are taken very seriously and individuals and companies that avoid tax are paraded around as if they had committed the worst crime against humanity.

The reality is that the repatriation scheme is a thumbs down to all those who pay their bona fide taxes on time. For them there are no concessions or tax credits for their timely action or moral standing. As in all things in life there are all the rewards for the sinners and none for those who are without sin.

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The Ched Evans debate shows to what extent the seriousness of rape charges are taken across the world. Like tax evasion, rape charges seem to be treated in a different way in Malta.

Owen Bonnici it seems, appeals to Jason Azzopardi, both believe that Ched Evans, a convicted rapist, should be give a second chance. The former is Justice minister and the latter the shadow Home Affairs minister. Perhaps the less said, the better. But it must be remembered that Azzopardi is also honorary president of the football team Hibernians.

At least the Prime Minister’s tweet was spot-on. He said: 'Footballers are role models. Hibs’ decision will define them + to an extent #Malta. I hope mgmt understand this clearly before final decision'.

Rape, it appears, is underrated as a crime, most especially if one looks at it from a female perspective. Ched Evans declares that he is innocent, British justice thought otherwise.  

Rape is not like drug addiction. It involves a victim, victims who often remain scarred for life.