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26 Letters maltatoday, SUNDAY, 27 OCTOBER 2013 Send your letters to: The Editor, MaltaToday, MediaToday Ltd. Vjal ir-Rihan, San Gwann SGN 9016 | Fax: (356) 21 385075 E-mail: newsroom@mediatoday.com.mt. Letters to the Editor should be concise. No pen names are accepted. Neanderthals in Malta? Sacred inside, Although it was a crucial part of humans' survival 100,000 years ago, hunting is now nothing more than a violent form of recreation that the vast majority of hunters do not need for subsistence. Hunting has contributed to the extinction of animal species all over the world. Hunting disrupts migration and hibernation patterns. It is still hard to understand why hunting is still authorised in the 21st century, especially bird hunting in Malta. While one understands that the votes of the hunters and their families appear to be decisive in the outcome of elections in Malta to this day, it is indeed quite deplorable that none of the existing and past governments have taken action to abolish bird hunting completely. Honestly speaking, my impression is that matters became worse since the last election. People having decided to live outside development zones – at least what's left of them – have to endure the relentless noise of shooting, starting early morning and stopping only late in the evening. Crossing armed and camouflaged troglodytes on the streets or on the countryside will always be a shocking experience, especially when our children ask us about them. How would one explain to children witnessing the shooting down of a bird the reason behind such an action? Why does the Church have no opinion and moral guidance on hunting? The Coalition Against Spring Hunting, composed of 11 NGOs and Alternattiva Demokratika, is actively collecting signatures for a referendum to abolish the derogation on spring hunting. The Coalition has collected so far over 10,000 signatures out of the 34,000 required by law. I urge you to contribute with your signature to the referendum request to at least stop once for all spring hunting in Malta, the first step to abolish hunting all together. Henrik Piski Alternattiva Demokratika Spokesperson for Digital Society Europe and the legal system In many European countries, we find a legal system which is far from perfect. To pay for legal aid, many people are reduced to poverty and some even end up in debt. The legal aid offered to people without financial means leaves much to be desired. What I suggest is that when the authorities come to specify the minimum wage, they should include a sum which the individual pays to the government so that any legal aid necessary during his or her lifetime would be paid by the government. In this way, all lawyers would be paid by the government. I further suggest that there would be two groups of lawyers: group A and group B. Group A would be made up of successful lawyers and group B would be made up of less established lawyers. When a person would be in need of a lawyer, they would be assigned one lawyer from each group. The two lawyers would work separately on the case and before the case goes to court, they separately present their case to the YOUR FIRST CLICK OF THE DAY www.maltatoday.com.mt individual in question. It would be up to the individual to choose which of the two lawyers would be representing them in court. The lawyers would have an incentive to work hard on the case in question, for this would mean that they remain in group A, if they belonged to such a group, or move to group A if they belonged to group B. Group A lawyers would be paid more than group B lawyers. Let's hope that the European Union, the international Unions and the Left-leaning parties work hard so that we may have an affordable and efficient legal system though out the European Union. Josephine Gatt-Ciancio Via email A government unmoving and unrepentant EDITORIAL – 26 OCTOBER 2003 THERE comes a time when one wonders whether this government is aware of all the rumblings going on in these small isles. One wonders whether there is a receptor system in place to gauge public opinion and media concerns. It is not only because of stories that appear in this newspaper, but also because of an expansive lethargy that continues to rule within the whole government apparatus. The latest scandal, the one of Tomorrow's schools, lands squarely in Louis Galea's court. The scandal is one that he will try very tactfully to brush aside and try to give the impression he did not consciously know what was going on. But the choice of people at FTS was his. The political responsibility is his. In this scandal we note how direct orders were issued to individuals and companies against the established policy. MaltaToday was not the one to discover the complete mess at FTS; it was first emphasised by the Opposition which was repulsed by the accusation that the allegations were nothing but a case of mud slinging. This is not the first time that Dr Louis Galea has got himself into a fix. And yet, he is still around, displaying a confidence that is quite incomprehensible. To those who cannot possibly remember, the Minister of Education, who at one time served as a part time farmer, and who constructed a farmhouse on pristine land at Fawwara, was also politically embarrassed by a very complicated and convoluted history that takes us back to a spree of direct orders with the Auxiliary Workers Training scheme. The scheme was a shining example for promoting favouritism to men who had more than simple close links with the Minister in question. Needless to say the accounting system at the AWTS left much to be desired, with limited accountability and accounting to explain the criteria for deciding and issuing lucrative direct orders. The Minister's personal chauffeur, for example, would rake thousands of pounds a year for the leasing out of a refuse truck. Among the people who benefited from this strange AWTS scheme was a certain Mario Callus, a man who now reappears in the FTS as a central figure. Mr Callus, apart from being a Louis Galea acolyte, is also a leading Nationalist activist and in the AWTS scheme discovered his entrepreneurial devotion by also leasing out a dumper to government at a handsome price. The FTS scandal may appear to be an isolated example; but it is not. Unfortunately, it illustrates what is happening within the government. The same delirious mismanagement is taking place elsewhere. We have little doubt that the FTS revelations will not shake the government. In the past, we have seen a government with little interest in rocking the boat when faced with far more serious accusations. This reaffirms our belief that government needs to be more accountable and transparent. And sensitive to public and media opinion. profane outside With reference to John Guillaumier's letter 'The people's idolatry', published in the 8 September 2013 issue of this newspaper. Prima facie, Guillaumier's reasoning sounds right, however there are a few key issues which may need to be addressed. Every form of communal festa rivalry, wherever that is and whatever cloak it wears, is essentially sectarian in nature. The Church is not the exploiter; it is itself exploited by internal or external regional interests. It is unfortunate that festa celebrations are sometimes riddled with numerous problems. The church is aware of them but cannot dispel them in one fell swoop, as if by a magic wand. The idolatrous manifestations mainly happen in the streets, on which the Church has no jurisdiction. The clapping in front of statues is certainly void and idolatrous and does not induce people to practice better Christian values. On the contrary, they have an opposite effect. The contradictions, religious ignorance and limited intellectual range of 'ordinary' lay Catholics are rampant and worrying. And Guillaumier knows that those are the fanatic, ethnic armchair museum-piece Christians (only by name). They know where the church parvis is but they don't know it is 'the house of God and gate of heaven' and never frequent its precincts. They have long neglected their religious upbringing and perhaps now detest religion's ethics. The authentic followers of Christ are not found around the statues and only once a year but rather in places like Xaghra, where the parishioners raised more than €40,000 in aid of the missions in Honduras or San Gwann where another €24,000 were raised in aid of a sick child or during L-Istrina campaign, besides the myriad humanitarian missions carried out by volunteers worldwide. Human nature, being what it is, sometimes gives rise to the sudden, subtle transformation of the profane into the sacred, when the sacred instantly becomes profane. These people are not aware of the distinction there should be between these two realities and the responsibility they carry. Old habits die hard, and local tribal tradition often takes the upper hand. Action and reaction are equal and opposite (take the hunting or fireworks lobbies as an example). Pope Francis's simple reply to the question of whether God pardons unbelievers was that the most important matter for them is to obey their conscience when confronted with the decision of choosing between good and evil. I don't think that Mr Guillaumier feels it compellingly dutiful to write derogatory letters, which can do no good, in a vain attempt to ram down our throats his false theories. He had enough time to flex his muscles in your paper and should lay down his pen, even for prudence's sake. Ultimately, argues Bo Jinn, atheism is not just a pessimistic way of looking at the world, it is a profoundly illogical way. John Azzopardi Zabbar