This time last year Malta was in full swing referendum mode on spring hunting. The referendum resulted in a marginal win for the pro-hunting group, with a slim majority of 2,200 votes. Among the rally cries to stop spring hunting and protect birds during the breeding season were other national requests. One of the most frequent criticisms appearing in the social media was the lack of access to the countryside.
In March 2015, Din l-Art Ħelwa conducted a survey of the Maltese population’s views on the countryside. The results were overwhelming with 97% of the Maltese population believing the countryside needs to be protected. This same survey also revealed that 88% of the population believe we should have more protected nature sites. There is clear national concern on the future of the quality of life if the countryside is eradicated or depleted further with the spread of building.
It is therefore not surprising that the Bill on public domain property tabled in Parliament in April 2015 by the shadow minister for justice Jason Azzopardi was welcomed across the board and described as “a giant leap forward for heritage protection”. This concept was first mentioned by Azzopardi in 2009 in his capacity as Parliamentary Secretary for Lands. In an interview with The Malta Independent in 2009, Azzopardi had already anticipated the public sentiment on accessibility of the countryside: “We are a country with limited open spaces, and therefore what belongs to the public should be available for the public to appreciate…”
The public domain Bill provides protection for the countryside, since it imposes restrictions upon the government as to what it can do with state-owned land. Areas being proposed for public domain listing include valleys, forested areas, nature reserves, open countryside, squares, forts and sites which are part of our cultural, environmental and historic heritage. The Bill also calls for NGOs to participate by recommending State property and land that can be classified as public domain.
This will give us as a nation the ability to designate more natural landscape as accessible to the public with a potential management structure in place
This will clearly give us as a nation the ability to designate more natural landscape as accessible to the public with a potential management structure in place. In fact Din l-Art Ħelwa in conjunction with The Today Public Policy Institute has published a discussion paper on the Future of Nature Parks in Malta. This paper proposes an area in the north-west of Malta to be included in the nature park system.
The success of the Majjistral Nature and History Park set up in Sept 2007, in the aftermath of the government proposal to site a golf course in this area, has only served to encourage similar structures. This report also recommends policies and a management structure to regulate and manage these protected areas in order to allow for enjoyment of the countryside for the benefit of the public. The recent increase in area by government for the natural park at Żonqor was welcomed but much more needs to be done.
The public domain Bill would complement the legal framework required for designation of nature parks. Approval in Parliament is crucial if we wish to protect, conserve and enjoy our natural landscape.
In April 2015, Parliamentary Secretary for Economic Growth Jose Herrera agreed in principle with this public domain law. However, this still leaves us in the dark as to whether the government is going to support this Bill or not. The Bill is due to be discussed in Parliament.
Concerns on loss of countryside have now risen to an unprecedented high. Even more NGOs are being established to support the protection of the countryside such as the NGO coalition Front Ħarsien ODZ, set up in 2015 in the wake of the news of the earmarking of precious ODZ land at Żonqor point for an educational institution. With public domain legislation in place, the government may not have been able to sign away public land at Żonqor point. The question is, will government allow a Bill to be passed which will limit its ability to sign off public land as it wishes?
A wise government would do well to look at its own electoral manifesto and promises made. On page 92 of the Labour Party 2013 manifesto, the public was led to believe that a labour government in power would strive to place Malta at the forefront with its environmental credentials: “We believe that Malta should be at the forefront in its environmental credentials. This should not come about because we have imposed obligations from the EU directives, but because this is what our future generations deserve.”
The manifesto on page 100 promises to create further sites that allow families to enjoy recreational activity in the countryside. The cover page of the manifesto illustrates a family walking in a green field with blue sky overhead, not a building in site. The rallying cry that resulted in an overwhelming majority for the Labour Party was Malta Tagħna Lkoll; this Bill truly allows Malta to be enjoyed by us all but will this government live up to its promises?
Joanna Spiteri Staines is an architect and a council member of Din l-Art Ħelwa.