Many reasons to be thankful for living in the western world

Morning View (“While we have freedom to demonstrate, Iran hangs protestors”, News Letter, December 13) is a timely reminder of the privileges enjoyed by westerners: “The rich, privileged, free western world is the greatest civilisation in history.”

This generation of Europeans have enjoyed many benefits: advancing technology, sustained peace, stable democracy.

People in small inflatable boats, typically operated by people smugglers, are ready to risk their lives to try and gain what we already possess.

An east Belfast-based relief overseer, just back from the arid Kenyan bush, described the misery of seeing swollen and oedematous children, deficient of adequate protein, in a perilous state of health or advancing towards death.

The missionary spoke of a past trip to East Africa with a medic, who assessed a family where children had gone blind. The verdict, or diagnosis, was once again felt to be protein deficiency. The doctor apparently suggested how just "two to three eggs a week" might have prevented the childhood blindness.

We should not make light of social and economic problems in the UK causing citizens so much pain currently: an NHS crisis, housing shortfalls, rising food prices, expensive fuel or energy costs. But it is also good to reflect upon the benefits which accompany being born in western Europe, plus holding citizenship and a passport for a free and democratic country.

We fret about water charges being fixed for our NI domestic properties, yet according to my missionary contact, who has worked in East Africa for decades, many villages and settlements in the bush would benefit hugely from simple water boreholes or availing of chances to access fresh river water by pipe systems.

Might the price of a new family car, in relatively wealthy Northern Ireland, fund water systems for a couple of bush villages in Kenya, helping children to avoid death or disease, and allowing their families to grow much needed crops?

James Hardy, Belfast, BT5

EU chief guilty of throwing stones in glass houses

“Her Excellency” Ursula von der Leyen, the unelected EU Commission president, recently declared that Ireland’s past struggles with Britain are a mirror image of the war in Ukraine.

Her ill-thought-out comments are a perfect example of throwing stones in glass houses. Any student of history will know there is no comparison.

The real comparison the German politician should have used was Germany’s invasion of Poland and the subsequent destruction of its infrastructure and the slaughter of millions of Poles. The excuses used by Putin in 2022 are similar to those used by Germany in 1939 - in fact the Russian use of “false flag” operations are straight from the German playbook of 1939.

To this day the government of Poland are trying to get the Germans to pay for their atrocities.

Another comparator she should have used was the German occupation of Greece and the subsequent atrocities committed by them. Like the Poles, the Greek people are still trying to get compensation from Germany for its evil past.

By the way, I wonder if she or indeed the Irish government are aware that over a three-week period in 1945, French troops murdered thousands of Algerians, solely for demanding equality. This is known as the Setif Massacre.

Furthermore, between 1954 and 1962 it is estimated that over a million Algerians were killed by French troops during the Algerian war of independence.

As Ireland is now aligned to the Francophone block and France is central to von der Leyen’s EU, perhaps she and the Irish prime minister might use their next visit to France to demand that France compensates Algeria for its actions.

Tom Nash,

Derriaghy

Failures in health goes back many years

The Labour Party through the freedom of information process discovered that hospitals in England have paid out as much as £5,200 for a shift by a doctor through an agency. They sanctimoniously blamed the Conservatives for failing to train enough doctors and nurses.

Patricia Hewitt and Andy Burnham as health secretaries didn't have success with their portfolios, and as for the Labour-controlled Welsh Assembly with responsibility for its failing NHS, similar policies have been adopted.

It was ex-PM Tony Blair's human rights sacred cow which precipitated the current uncontrolled immigration, which the Government appears incapable of addressing.

At source there is a population crisis compounding the strains on the NHS. Hell will freeze over the day the hypocritical Labour Party admits this!

David Fleming,

Downham Market, Norfolk