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| LETTERS | Sunday, 04 November 2007 Ashamed to be Maltese It takes a lot to get us to write and air our grievances. Yesterday (30 October) we found one of our rescued 16-week-old kittens shot dead in the middle of our car park. The cat, Krug, was the sweetest kitten one could ever hope to come across. He formed part of our programme to support feline organisations, rescuing, neutering and finding homes to abandoned cats. It is our bit towards the community at large. Why would anyone want to do such a thing? Why would anyone want to murder an innocent pretty pet? Surely these are not the actions of a civilised, mature, social, intelligent, decent human being. In fact we wonder whether someone who commits such heinous acts could be called human. A local said to me that it might have been a hunter who shot nothing and wanted to vent his frustration on a moving target. If this is the case, (and there is evidence – a local farmer claimed that he has had more than 200 cats shot by hunters over the years – cats chase birds away and are not liked by hunters), is this not enough to ban all form of possession of firearms? Surely even one fatality is enough to rescind all permits for handguns. I came to Malta to start a gastronomic revolution hoping that I can contribute something both to the local economy and the local community. Unfortunately I am suddenly disillusioned, saddened and heartbroken. Not so much because we, at Palazzo Santa Rosa, lost a loving pet but because all our efforts to demonstrate a better lifestyle have suddenly been shattered. Suddenly I want to go back where I came from and turn my back once and for all on this god-awful place. And this is not a one-off incident either. The burning down of trees, the damage to the environment, the damage to other people’s property (people actually steal our organic vegetables from our fields on a regular basis) is a sign of a nation that is devoid of any social responsibility, dignity, self respect and manners. We might be a European country, part of the EU, but when it comes to the moral character and fibre of the nation, we are still a third world country. These are the acts of third world country folk who have never been educated in the ways of being part of a larger community. I am ashamed to be Maltese. I am ashamed to be in a country where, beyond lip service, no one gives a hoot about the environment, no one bothers with protecting the environment, no one legislates and acts to protect animals and prevents cruelty to animals. Maybe these issues are not vote-winning issues. Last week in the US a man was sentenced for six months in jail for throwing a dog out of a balcony in a fit of anger. We simply cannot just sit back and accept the harm caused by these outcasts of society. I am not one to pass judgement. I just hope that these people stop doing the harm they are causing and see the error of their ways. Yet, until then, there should be a firm hand that metes out punishment, not only to chastise the culprits but to send a message out that it is simply not on to harm the nation in such an awful way. Claude Camilleri Palazzo Santa Rosa, Mistra Bay Any comments? If you wish your comments to be published in our Letters pages please click here |
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