Tuesday, 2nd December 2008
Army to guard Fort St Elmo
Eviction notices were affixed on doors at lower Fort St Elmo in Valletta to remove squatters and their animals. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli.
Soldiers are to go on guard at Fort St Elmo to make sure squatters and vandals don't continue to have the run of the dilapidated monument.
Eviction notices were distributed to the squatters yesterday afternoon and enforcement action is scheduled for next week, marking the historical start of a long-overdue clean-up and rehabilitation of the run-down site.
Access to the fort will be controlled by the army, 24 hours a day, following an agreement on managing security reached between the Parliamentary Secretary for Government Revenues and Land Jason Azzopardi and the Armed Forces of Malta.
Apart from the crumbling state of the fort, the uncontrolled access to it was also considered to be a problem.
It would be the first time the AFM would be deployed to guard the site, Dr Azzopardi said.
Carnival organisers and related volunteers, whose names and details are on a list, would still be allowed to enter, he said.
About 15 notices were affixed on doors in areas that are not allocated to the carnival organisers.
Dr Azzopardi has been working on the situation at Fort St Elmo since early summer, but the site and its state of neglect have been in the spotlight for a while, with attention intensifying when the Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism Mario de Marco called it a "national shame".
Ideas for the rehabilitation of the site flowed in and the government last week said it would be applying for EU funding to restore it and give it a use.
It is discussing whether the project would be eligible under the Structural Funds for tourism, or for urban regeneration.
Fort St Elmo has also found its way onto the 2008 World Monuments Watch's List of 100 Most Endangered Sites.
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Comments
This is more than "national shame". Yours is an understatement, and a very belated one.
The Australian government constantly seeks out places around the world (including Malta) were Australians died or are buried. It endeavours to protect and to honour these places wherever it can. Why do you think the Australian Head of State visited Malta only recently?
On this basis, just try to think what Saint Elmo should mean to the Maltese government. Think of how many Maltese fought and died at Saint Elmo.
Saint Elmo should be sealed and protected. No-one should be allowed in. Not even Carnival floats should be built there. An alternative place for this purpose should be allocated at the earliest. Saint Elmo must be freed from any social perception that can lead to further degradation, and be given the respect it deserves. The fort should be kept under lock and key until such time when restoration works can commence under government approval.
One is that Fort St. Elmo shall remain as is and guarded by the Army at the expense of all taxpayers. People have come out to thank the PS Jason Azzopardi for his initiative. I would imagine this is only a stop gap solution.
Second is the creation of a private foundation to transform the place into something sustainable without putting the burden on the taxpayer. Instead of coming out to support this initiative some cowards have come back, as usual, to shoot the messenger rather than the proposal.
When are the Maltese going to grow up and express some political maturity to indicate the level of the national social capital.
Would some maritime servicemen posted at St Angelo achieve less deterioration of the place . Both places during the occupation of the two Forts the former by the Army and the latter by the Navy kept both places in pristine condition .
grandaughters. Keep it up.
There might be more than 1000 J Farrugia in Malta and Gozo so I cannot judge the comment.
All I can say that the meeting is open to all and J Farrugia is more than inivted to attend and make a post mortem rather than an ante mortem of the meeting/intentions.
This would seem to be more intelligent than mud slinging.
I have received the support of the World Monument Fund that has classified the Fort as being on the Danger List with Grade Four Risk out of a scale from one to five. So everyone can image the risk that lies with Fort St. Elmo. The documentation has been sent to the local media for publication.
I do agree to have the Army protecting the Fort.
Following the first public meeting on Monday, the elected Board will start discussions with Government on the best way to proceed our co-operation.
I appeal to those that have contributed to this discussion to attend the meeting and support this national initiative. Civil Socities have an important role to play in every democracy. This is not a political initiative and no partisan politics will be allowed during the meeting.
I appeal to other similar organisations to be present during this meeting and we should be seen as partners and not competitors. The objective is to give a contribution to this national effort.
However, that the AFM have (again!!) been suckered already to provide "contract-style" fixed-point security guarding for access control purposes is a dismal cheap excuse not to award a contract to a local security-guarding firm. And this when personnel in the AFM is lacking or commited more sverely on other important missions. Hindsight, they still render an UNARMED doorman service at the Marsa Open Centre for former illegal migrants, have suffered attacks of all sorts and damages to public and private property there at.
Dr. Azzopardi conveniently forgets that the AFM was already located for a period at St. Elmo, and many recall the 3/11th RMA's disbandment parade there as well. Now's the time to put the money where the mouth is: there is no Word War Two heritage/history exhibit in Valletta with the War Museum carted away in storage!!
How about doing the same here in Malta? Fort St. Elmo could be the first.