Why Assyrians should be inspired by Malta
By: Emil Brikha. April. 1, 2008
Those who know me know that I left Sweden to move to Malta just a couple of days
ago, leaving darkness, cold weather and cold people behind. What none of you
probably know though is the history of Malta and reading this won’t make you any
wiser in that aspect.
There is just one thing that my mind can’t grasp. I am, not surprisingly
Assyrian, dwelling in the ruins of greatness, picking my feet clean from
fragments and splinters of my people’s history as I walk barefoot through life.
I come from a great people with a magnificent heritage of mind boggling
ingenuity, intelligence and forward thinking.
Where are we in 2008? Scattered, shattered, bickering, bitching and fighting
over politics, dialects, flags and religion. We are all over the world (I have
not yet found a single Assyrian in Malta though) and there are millions of us.
Many of us forgetting or not learning our own language and history. Many of us
not bounding, not understanding and not being given the chance or opportunity to
form and uphold any sense of actually being Assyrian. This is what we are in
2008.
Now look at Malta. This tiny 25 km or so long island with its 400 000
inhabitants have been in bed with many countries but never became anyone’s
bitch. In 2008 it is a country with its own language which is a beautiful love
child formed through various “bed partners” into what is today the Maltese
language. They have their flag and they raise it proudly. They are a member of
the European Union, just converted to the euro and are well on their way to
reach new heights in development both economical and infrastructural (you can
thank the nationalist party for that).
So what is our problem? Granted, Malta has never been a threat to any nation and
most would argue this is why Malta has been left alone. Okay, Assyrians were and
are still heavily targeted because of their religion in a Muslim dominated area
of the world but still. We are again, millions of people, most of us schooled
and educated or at the very least not retarded but we are still following the
same patterns, repeating the same mistakes, reducing ourselves to even smaller
beings as far as Assyrianism goes.
Some Assyrians fight loudly, aggressively and passionately for their cause. Some
have done it all their life, grown up in a family with active parents within the
movement through various organisation and in that way had their Assyrian
identity parallel with whatever life they lived in whichever country they were
living. Then there are others, like me, who grew up outside of the Assyrian
movement, with parents who themselves were raised without any greater insight or
knowledge about the history which lead to these living generations of Assyrians.
I didn’t wake up until one of these loud and passionate Assyrians introduced
herself to me and engaged in discussions with me. Discussions which did not only
change how I view my people but also how I view myself and my own identity,
which made me loud and passionate about my cause, or our cause rather.
It is this awakening that is needed across all continents and tiny islands where
Assyrians live but it requires that we are open to the change within. Untill
then we won’t see any real change and Assyrians will still be divided, still
bickering and still bitching and arguing over nonsens. Still to busy impressing
friends, neighbours and family with superficial things instead of rebuilding,
teaching, understanding and loving. I salute Malta and all active Assyrians this
evening with my hand on my heart wishing Assyrians all over the world one day
can come together as one.
-Emil Brikha. is an Assyrian from Iran, raised in Sweden,
recently moved to Malta. Check out his website and more of his articles at:
www.LQP.se
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