Matteo Salvini’s relentless attacks on migrants make me sick – where’s his compassion?

Please send your letters to letters@independent.co.uk

People carry a banner as migrants disembark a rescue boat in Lampedusa (Reuters)

Matteo Salvini, how dare you call those who rescue other people from drowning “jackals”?

What do you call politicians who milk racism to get power and money? I know what I call them.

You are immune to empathy, Salvini, unlike Carola Rackete, who captained the migrant rescue ship, and her comrades – kind and courageous human beings. They are the true Europeans, with humane values – not you.

Your problem is with other European governments, not rescuers. The EU needs a fair system for assessing the asylum claims of people fleeing to Europe to escape war, persecution and hunger. We don’t need racist hysteria and hatred.

It is true that the other EU countries are washing their hands of these people and pushing them all back to Italy, Greece and Turkey, as well as Libya, to take care of. You are right about that.

Even president Macron is surreptitiously supporting the would-be Libyan dictator, Khalifa Haftar, in the hope that he would ruthlessly curb migration to France and Europe. Too bad about the freedom of Libyans, who have already gotten rid of another dictator, Gaddafi, and want a free and civilised life, like all human beings.

Shame on you, Salvini. You have a trusted position as the deputy prime minister of Italy. Please behave like a human being with compassion for your fellow human beings in need of help – regardless of their skin colour.

Genevieve Forde
Manly

Cowardly politicians

I am prepared to forgive our politicians many things. I will give allowance for: their lack of role knowledge and experience; their petty squabbling; their inability to face reality; their criminal lack of decision making; their unwillingness to learn; and their totally misplaced complacency.

I will never, however, forgive their lying and cowardice, which is leading the United Kingdom into economic oblivion.

Matt Minshall
King’s Lynn

Farage’s so-called ‘honesty’

At first I thought Sandra Haywood’s letter about Nigel Farage was either joking or written as a spoof.

This is the “absolutely honest” Nigel Farage who, in 2017, said he was skint, yet was later investigated over claims that he was being bankrolled by Arron Banks. If he can lie so easily about his personal circumstances, then he is a liar, full stop.

Michael Lewis
Bath

That’s not how fox hunting works

I feel compelled to write and make a correction to the grossly misleading statement made by Penny Little in her letter regarding the role of the terrier in fox hunting. She claims that “foxes [are] dug out of underground refuges while simultaneously savaged by the hunters’ terriers”.

When a fox goes to ground during a hunt, the terrierman is called to enter his terrier. The job of the terrier is to then locate the fox and either force it to leave or keep it in place for the terrierman to then dig down to and dispatch humanely.

The job of the Terrier is NOT to attack the fox or to fight with it, and never has been.

Michael W Cook
Address supplied

Indy cartoons

The Independent’s cartoons are a sometimes uncomfortable joy, if that makes any sense. I have lost count of the number of times we have agreed that they alone are more than worth the subscription. Keep it up.

Sandi Cook
Daventry