Magistrate Silvio Meli dismissed a libel suit filed by the mayor and executive secretary of San Gwann against Frans Ghirxi, editor of l-orizzont, and Renè Savona Ventura.

Kurt Guillaumier and Joseph Grech claimed they had been libelled by a letter written by Mr Savona Ventura entitled Xejn Anqas mill-Verità (Nothing but the truth) published in l-orizzont in October 2003.

They asked the court to condemn the author and the newspaper's editor to pay them libel damages.

The court heard that plaintiffs felt libelled by the letter because it alleged that a direct order had been issued to the company The Light Housekeepers and that the local council, which had a majority of Nationalist Party members, had approved a motion for installing floodlights without first obtaining a quotation.

Furthermore, the letter alleged that the company was owned by the deputy mayor of San Gwann.

In its judgment, the court noted that it did not appear that the letter was addressed at the behaviour of the mayor and executive secretary, for their actions had not been attacked in the letter. On the contrary, the letter was addressed at the action taken by the deputy mayor of the time.

As a result, it was the deputy mayor who ought to have filed the libel action for it did not result that plaintiffs were the target of the letter.

The court therefore dismissed plaintiffs' action.