Updated at 11.15 am as Mr Dean calls off hunger strike

A Pembroke man who embarked on a hunger strike this morning after the authorities ignored his appeals to stop the loud music at night called it off by 11am after Prime Minister Joseph Muscat promised to take action.

Dean Camilleri, 31, had started his protest outside the Auberge de Castille “for as long as it takes” after having spent months fighting against the operators of an entertainment venue who he claims blatantly ignore the law.

When Prime Minister Joseph Muscat arrived at around 10am, he spoke to Mr Camilleri and took him inside.

Some time later, Mr Camilleri issued a statement saying he called off the strike after talking to Dr Muscat.

"I was well received by the Prime Minister... his listened to the problems we are facing here in Pembroke. I was told action will be taken in this regard... For the time being, I am calling off my hunger strike and will be waiting to see if the situation improves," he said.

Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

Earlier, Mr Camilleri had told the Times of Malta:

“Every weekend it’s the same story. The music starts at around 4pm and goes on till whenever the police finally shut the place down. Sometimes it’s the early hours of the morning and the music is still playing.” 

He said the establishment Villa Rosa had been hosting weddings and other events every weekend, going well past the 11pm curfew and generating so much noise that it even drowned out the television in his living room.

Anton Camilleri, who operates the venue, denied the claims, saying the site was fully licensed and always complied with the law.

Dean Camilleri's apartment is perched right above St George’s Bay, and the bars at the foot of Triq Santu Wistin are just a few metres away.

One time, I actually drove down, picked the police up and took them there myself

He explained how the noise had started when just one establishment began operating as a nightclub but quickly spread across the rest of the bay. Most of them had since stopped, but Villa Rosa was persisting, he claimed.

Mr Camilleri said he had been fighting the “unbearable” noise pollution for several months, but the authorities seemed powerless or uninterested in taking action.

Back in the summer of 2015, he collected signatures from more than 100 residents, petitioning the government to enforce noise limitations on the entertainment venues, however this had been ignored. “There are regulations in place. Venues cannot go on playing music after 11pm, and there are other regulations that say they cannot cause public disturbance.

“The authorities shy away from their responsibilities and nothing is done,” Mr Camilleri said. He added that he had turned to the police so many times he had lost count.

“One time, I actually drove down, picked the police up and took them there myself,” he said.

Mr Camilleri also claimed to have written to Prime Minister Joseph Muscat several times over the matter.

In the correspondence, he said, Dr Muscat had pledged to look into the matter.

On other occasions, the Prime Minister had allegedly said the operators would be coming into line.

“I’ve been to ministries, chiefs of staff, permanent secretaries and many others, but I’ve gotten nowhere. Enough is enough. This can’t go on,” Mr Camilleri said.