Wenzu Mintoff: admiration for "naughty" Gaddafi
This piece was published by Saviour Balzan’s and Roger de Giorgio’s newspaper, Illum:
Analizi ta’ Wenzu Mintoff
06 ta’ Mejju 2007
L-AFRODITE TA’ GADDAFI
Għalkemm forsi jidher li għadda żmienhom, mexxejja imqarbin bħal Hugo Chavez, Muammar Gaddafi u anki sa ċertu punt Fidel Castro, ma tistax ma jkollokx ċertu sens ta’ ammirazzjoni lejhom, anki jekk ma tkunx taqbel ma’ ħafna milli jgħidu u ma’ ħafna milli jagħmlu.
Huma t-tip ta’ mexxejja ‘skurdati’ u bla sabar li ma ppermettewx li jiġu bullied minn min hu ikbar minnhom.
Dawn ġejjin minn razza pjuttost rari ta’ mexxejja li ma fittxewx il-kumdità u l-konvenjenza fir-relazzjonijiet tagħhom ma’ pajjiżi oħra.
Mexxejja kontroversjali kemm tridhom li ma jħalluha lixxa għall-melħa lil ħadd setgħani kemm jaħseb li hu setgħani.
Għalkemm f’kuntest kemmxejn differenti, il-Perit Mintoff fid-DNA politiku tiegħu kellu ħafna ġeni komuni ma’ din ir-razza ta’ mexxejja li ffurmaw ruħhom fl-era kolonjali li mhux lakemm imbagħad għarfu jaddattaw irwieħhom ġaladarba qatgħu l-kurdun umbelikali minn mas-sistema imperjali li kienet taħkem fuq arthom.
——–Translation——–
Although perhaps it seems their time is past, you can’t help but feel a certain sense of admiration for naughty leaders like Hugo Chavez, Muammar Gaddafi and even, up to a point, Fidel Castro, even if you don’t agree with much of what they say and do.
They are forceful leaders who don’t allow themselves to be bullied by those who are bigger than they are.
They belong to a rare genus of leaders who never sought ease and convenience in their relations with other states. They are controversial leaders who don’t let the powerful get away with anything.
The context is different, but Dom Mintoff had in his political DNA much in common with this genus of leaders who emerged in the colonial era. They learned how to adapt once they cut the umbilical cord of imperial rule that dominated their homeland.
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Funny how he doesn’t include Hitler in that list. Maybe that’s a step too far? I guess it’s OK to kill a few hundred thousands but if you kill millions then, well, that’s crossing a line.
He uses the adjective imqarbin for people who, amongst others, were responsible for introducing ‘ to disappear ‘ as a transitive verb in the English language.
A more suitable adjective would have been monstrous.
I am not surprised he admires them.
It is a family trait.
Of course, Dom Mintoff wasn’t bullied by Gaddafi.
He delegated that to us.
The thugs who spent years systematically ransacking PN clubs and beating up people also used to be described as “imqarbin” by MLP politicians and supporters.
Jaqqqqq!!
DNA…
Wenzu Mintoff, his bosom buddy Toni Abela, and his what-exactly-is-he? Manwel Cuschieri are chummy with Saviour Alfred-Hitchcock’s-Psycho Balzan.
The AD stink can be smelt from miles away.
Why doesn’t Austin Harry-Callahan Gatt just invite ’em all to make his day?
“Għalkemm f’kuntest kemmxejn differenti, il-Perit Mintoff fid-DNA politiku tiegħu kellu ħafna ġeni komuni ma’ din ir-razza ta’ mexxejja li ffurmaw ruħhom fl-era kolonjali li mhux lakemm imbagħad għarfu jaddattaw irwieħhom ġaladarba qatgħu l-kurdun umbelikali minn mas-sistema imperjali li kienet taħkem fuq arthom”.
Your translation of Wenzu Mintoff’s concluding paragraph is incorrect. In English it should read something like this:
The context is different, but Dom Mintoff had in his political DNA much in common with this genus of leaders who emerged in the colonial era. Once they cut the umbilical cord of imperial rule that dominated their homeland, they struggled to adapt.
“Huma t-tip ta’ mexxejja ‘skurdati’ u bla sabar li ma ppermettewx li jiġu bullied minn min hu ikbar minnhom. ”
To the detriment of their countries’ citizens. Yes, very easy to be stoic when others are suffering for it.