A night to remember

Friday, May 29, 1998. That's just over four years ago. Dr Alfred Sant was our Prime Minster and his Cabinet included Mr Joe Mizzi, a minister "without portfolio".

The Nationalist Party was trying to use the broadcasting tower at Gharghur to transmit its own television signal. During a meeting held on May 20 between the party's secretary-general, Dr Lawrence Gonzi, as well as the head of Net Television, Dr Roger Degiorgio, and the Broadcasting Authority, it was emphasised that it was unconstitutional for any party to be placed at a disadvantage with regard to the use of broadcasting.

The party argued that it had the right to carry out tests that would establish objectively whether the Gharghur tower could also be used by the Nationalist Party without causing any difficulties to other entities using the same facility to emit their own broadcasting signal. Those entities include the Labour Party which was zealously guarding its own use of the same facilities!

The following day, the Broadcasting Authority wrote to the Nationalist Party informing it that it was authorising such tests provided that they were carried out subject to its own technical monitoring and added that these tests were to be carried out by June 4.

On the basis of these instructions, the Nationalist Party's technical team went to Gharghur, placed broadcasting equipment in the room allocated to it by the Broadcasting Authority and on May 29 proceeded to take up its transmitter as well as place the required panels on the Gharghur tower.

The Labour Party, which had criticised a former Nationalist government for liberalising broadcasting and introducing total pluralism, much as it was then the party that made and still makes full (ab)use of this right, felt "uncomfortable" about the Nationalist Party placing broadcasting facilities close to its own! In fact they requested the court to issue a prohibitory injunction to stop the Broadcasting Authority allowing the PN to make any transmissions from the Gharghur tower.

What was however more surprising was that the head of Wireless Telegraphy went to Gharghur in the afternoon and insisted that the Nationalist Party remove its transmitting equipment. It was immediately pointed out to him that such an order was illegal since the PN was authorised to place that equipment by the Authority itself. The party however offered to guarantee that it would not switch on and activate its equipment unless there would be the express permission of the Authority.

For the Labour Party in office, however, that was not enough! Minister Joe Mizzi ordered the head of the Wireless Telegraphy Department and the Commissioner of Police to forcibly remove from Gharghur the broadcasting equipment belonging to the PN.

It was around 9.30 p.m. that the Nationalist leader, Dr Eddie Fenech Adami, arrived at Gharghur and made it clear to the head of Wireless Telegraphy that such an action was illegal. He also spoke to the same effect by phone with the Police Commissioner.

The 1996-98 Labour government could not be bothered. It intended to proceed regardless. More police officials came over to Gharghur and journalists were asked to leave the site of the tower. The specific orders from Minister Mizzi were about to the followed. He did not bother to give his instructions in writing but as resulted in court proceedings, he was keeping in regular contact with them, monitoring the situation and insisting that the PN equipment at Gharghur be removed. What was at stake was not merely the equipment in itself, but the Nationalist Party's right to relay its message to the people.

It was an act of utter arrogance and abuse of power. It was happening during the "good days of new Labour" in office. It brought back memories of the arduous struggle that the PN had to go through in former years to communicate its message with the electorate. One memory that we recalled was when the Nationalist Party had in the Eighties installed an "electronic broadcaster" which is merely a means of showing written messages through light diodes on a panel placed on the PN club in Valletta.

Government personnel were then ordered to severe the club's electricity supply in an attempt to shut down these messages, only to realise that the messages carried on since we had switched over to a generator.

The "good days of new Labour" were proving to be as gruesome as the "bad days of old Labour".

When we recall what happened at Gharghur, we do not have to rack our memory cells and figure out what used to happen up to 17 years ago. We merely have to remember what was again happening when in our period it managed to breach our Constitution at least twice. It was very efficient in reverting to arrogance, abuse of power, managing through ministerial diktat even when that is in breach of the law, and in seeking to suppress freedom of expression which is what the freedom of the air waves is all about.

Faced with the Gharghur threat, we had no alternative but to seek immediate redress. On behalf of the party leader, the secretary-general and myself as president of the Administrative Council (with responsibility for the party media), I filed, together with my friend Dr Tonio Borg, an urgent application in the Court Registry to open the court for the filing of an application for a prohibitory injunction against the head of the Wireless Telegraphy Department and the Commissioner of Police to prevent them from removing the PN's broadcasting equipment.

The court accepted our request to consider our application with urgency and while the Police and Wireless and Telegraphy Department officials were at Gharghur preparing to obey Minister Mizzi's orders, we were in court making our submissions. The deputy leader, Dr Guido de Marco, joined us in this difficult but memorable hour.

Government tried to argue that the Nationalist Party was not sufficiently covered by the permit given to it by the Broadcasting Authority, since it still required another permit from the Wireless Telegraphy Department which in turn needs ministerial approval! As the defendants were grilled in the witness box, it emerged more clearly that they were acting under sheer political pressure of the most arrogant nature.

It was close to midnight when the court issued its decree. It ordered the head of the Wireless Telegraphy Department and the Commissioner of Police to refrain from removing the PN equipment. The court also provided for the immediate notification of its order. We knew that the order had to be delivered personally to the government officials concerned. I shall never forget accompanying the court marshal to Gharghur to ensure that the court order was communicated in time.

We were not only battling for our rights, but we were doing it as the sword of Damocles was hanging above our heads by a single horsehair.

There was commotion and a sigh of relief as we made it to Gharghur in the nick of time.

While the Nationalist Party equipment was not forcibly removed from the site, the party remained unable to use the Gharghur tower, and the case proceed in our courts.

Last Thursday, the court held that on May 29, 1998, there was a violation of the party's fundamental right to protection of property, peaceful enjoyment of property and freedom of expression.

The decision to forcibly seize the equipment belonging to the Nationalist Party, was "clearly illegal and abusive". The party was discriminated against. Dr Sant and Mr Mizzi cannot avoid shouldering their political responsibility following this judgment.

The prohibitory injunction issued on the night of May 29, 1998, is now definitively confirmed and the Nationalist Party is to be given all the facilities that have been given to others to freely broadcast from Gharghur.

Moreover the Court has awarded the Nationalist Party Lm20,000 as compensation for the breach of its rights. This compensation is not be considered as damages for the financial losses suffered by the party but as a remedy to its constitutional complaint.

We have been vindicated. Friday, May 29, 1998 is a night to remember.