Ex-GWU lawyer sues for libel over union statement

Lawyer George Abela yesterday filed two libel suits in connection with comments made by the General Workers' Union in a press release following the removal of Josephine Attard Sultana from her post of public section secretary.

Dr Abela, Ms Attard Sultana's legal representative, filed the suits against the union's information secretary, Charles Vella, and against the editor of the union's daily newspaper l-orizzont, Frans Ghirxi.

The suits follow the issue of a press release by the GWU entitled Il-kwistjoni tal-konferenza generali staordinarja tat-taqsima settur pubbliku - aktar rapportagg sleali mill-media tal-PN (The public sector section's extraordinary general meeting - more unfaithful reporting by the PN's media).

The press release was issued by Mr Vella and published on l-orizzont last Saturday.

The press release said that a court decision to stop a extraordinary general meeting for public sector section delegates had not been reported faithfully by the Nationalist Party media.

It also said that the PN media found support in comments given to them by Dr Abela. The press release even spoke about Dr Abela's past connections with the union.

Dr Abela, the union's former legal adviser, considered that comments made in the press release to be libellous and defamatory.

He attached to the application a letter he sent to Mr Vella soon after the press release was issued, informing him that the allegations he was making were false and libellous and asking him to withdraw it, but the statement was never withdrawn, Dr Abela told members of the media outside the law courts.