Laurence Zerafa, chairman, Malta Library and Information Association, Msida
Rebirth or ruin in the city of Valletta? (3)
The Malta Library and Information Association notes with great interest and pleasure Renzo Piano's quoted statement: "The building will not only house Parliament but a public library too, as suggested by a group MaLIA that joined the fray..." (June 22).
MaLIA is the group, that, in early October 2008, through a press release, proposed that this important location in Valletta merits a cultural centre that includes a Public Library.
This press release was issued just a few days before the Prime Minister launched his renewed vision for the regeneration of this area in Valletta. MaLIA since this press release has over the past months been actively, even if quietly, promoting the idea for a modern state-of-the-art public library in Valletta, with the key players in this project.
We reached the public through an i-petition on our website and through a Facebook group by the name State-of-the-art Public Library/Culture Centre in Valletta Malta. Both groups found considerable public support.
MaLIA's view is that the present central public lending library in Floriana (down a steep hill cut off from other public activities) is not in an ideal location. The ideal location for public libraries should be somewhere central, easily accessible and in a location where people gather in any case for a hundred other reasons. City Gate of course fits these criteria very well. If we hope to stimulate the public's interest in reading and accessing and using information for leisure and study purposes, then an attractive, modern, well stocked and professionally run public lending library is a must.
Such a public lending library would certainly support the Prime Minister's vision of having Malta become a centre of excellence based on the concept of a knowledge-based society.
MaLIA looks forward to seeing this suggested public library take shape and come into use in the coming few years.
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Robert Mizzi
Jul 5th 2009, 21:09
@ Mr Schembri
Although I agree with your points re reading by the local community, we cannot simply sit back and accept the fact that we are not a reading nation. As Laurence and Heather rightly point out, there is much room for improvement within our public library system that has remain entrenched in the 70s. We have not even been able to automate all public libraries, 14 years after starting the automation programme! I think that the most depressing factor in all this is that the decision makers. i.e. the politicians, do not seem to really believe that we need to invest in such a project. This is what the facts are showing...alas!
laurence schembri
Jul 2nd 2009, 20:22
Laurence, I know what you mean and i agree with you, but as I said, reading is not one of the Maltese great love. Do not compare European nations to ours. on a bus in the UK, nine out of ten people read newspapers or a book, in Malta you will be lucky to notice one with a newspaper never mind books. I don`t have a TV, my pastime is reading and of late this machine that I`m scribbling on. I wish that most Maltese will adopt reading as a culture, it is a pity, they just won`t.
Laurence Zerafa
Jul 2nd 2009, 16:47
Mr. Schembri, it is true that public libraries are not one of the most visited public places on the island. There are many factors as to why people visit or not public libraries. The important factors are their location, the services they offer, the people running and manning them and whether their collections are attractive enough to make a visit worthwhile. Certainly from personal experience visiting many public libraries in several European towns and cities, one can observe well run public libraries serving as community learning centres and offering a hive of cultural activities. Attractive, well run and stocked libraries, like any other attractive building or service, do attract people. That's a fact that I notice from running a library myself. We have to ask ourselves: Why are we as a nation failing to attract people to libraries which are houses of knowledge and learning? Are we doing enough to make use of public libraries worthwhile? MaLIA believes there is more room for improvement in this area.
Heather Brown
Jul 2nd 2009, 14:56
Mr. Schembri, that is precisely the reason behind MaLIA's and Laurence Zerafa's proposal - to create a modern, state-of-the-art library that is highly visible and readily accessible, so that people who may not have realised it before, are given the opportunity to begin to appreciate just what a rich and valuable resource such a library can be, both to themselves and the cultural life of the country.
laurence schembri
Jul 2nd 2009, 11:22
Lawrence, I`m afraid most are not inclined to rush to a library on this Island.