I almost skipped Harry Vassallo's full-page Opinion piece (February 4). However the quote prominently placed under the author's photo - "We had treated our prisoners-of-war much better" - caught my attention.
With all due respect to Dr Vassallo, there are so many historical inaccuracies and poor comparisons contained in that one sentence referring to Axis prisoners held in Malta during and after World War II that I cannot let it go by without comment.
To start with, the POWs held in Malta were not our prisoners. They were military personnel captured by the British Forces and their allies and sent to Malta which was considered to be a secure location for POW camps. We Maltese were not responsible for the state of the camps and the POWs' welfare although many in the employ of the British Forces did have direct contact with these German and Italian prisoners. A good relationship did ensue in most cases.
Dr Vassallo went on to state that: "The Nazis and the Fascists who had bombed the living daylights out of this country were allowed Red Cross packages, mail and had the comfort of knowing that their families knew of their survival". The vast majority of prisoners held in the local camps were captured in Italy in the last phase of the war. They were not involved in the bombing operations. Only a few were actually captured and held here after being shot down over our islands. They were entitled to Red Cross packages and (censored) POW mail, just as British prisoners in German and Italian captivity were entitled to the same treatment irrespective of whether or not they had participated in bombing attacks against Axis countries.
Above all, any comparison with present circumstances in detention centres is tenuous to say the least.
The POWs were not a burden on the Maltese taxpayer. The cost of "hosting" them and providing them with food, medicine and clothing was borne by the British Forces which also controlled the flow of POWs and made sure they only kept as many as they could handle.
When captured, POWs did not attempt to hide their identity or origin. They only withheld information regarding their military units - it is a soldier's duty not to divulge information to the enemy.
The POWs did not wreck what their captors provided them with. On the contrary they used their skills and ingenuity to improve their surroundings and turn their spartan Nissan huts into a home away from home.
They did not throw away the food provided to them but actually cultivated vegetables and fruit and even helped in the kitchens and in the distribution of food.
Some of the POWs had medical training and tended to their fellow prisoners' health and sometimes they were called upon to provide medical assistance to British and Maltese personnel in charge of camp security.
The POWs organised cultural and sports activities. They printed their own newsletters. Their football teams were a formidable force on the rough grounds where they played against their captors, providing many Maltese football fans with a spectacle.
They produced souvenirs in a variety of materials such as Malta stone, aircraft duralumin or Perspex which they then sold to raise money for their needs. Some Maltese homes still have some POW art displayed on a shelf.
POWs worked on various construction projects, which the Maltese enjoy to this very day, such as the chapel at Pembroke and the Lido at St George's Bay. They even offered to rebuild the Royal Opera House. Incidentally, this project never materialised because someone thought it fit to publicise it as a threat to Maltese workers' jobs (Is it not ironic that our unions now remain silent while our workforce is slowly but surely being swamped with underpaid "asylum seekers"?).
There were times when the POWs organised peaceful protests that were just that and no more. There are no reports of prisoners carrying stones or weapons fashioned out of chicken bones. There was one occasion when they cheered and clapped when some Maltese workers protested over the POW's employ in construction works - the Maltese protesters carried placards which read "Germans Go Home" and the POWs loved it.
Above all, the POWs were a self-disciplined lot and their level of education and culture could only have left a positive influence on those who came into contact with them. The Maltese never felt threatened by their presence.