Charles Xuereb (August 29) wrote: “The same (1971-1987 Mintoff) government also erected monuments to Maltese heroes Dun Mikiel Xerri (1799) and the Sette Giugno victims (1919) and placed them in the heart of the city on St George’s Square”. I wish to make some observations on this statement.

The monument to Dun Mikiel Xerri u Sħabu was never placed on St George’s Square. It was erected beside the large palm tree in the centre of Independence Square, where it still stands today.

Sculpted by Anton Agius (1933-2008), it was realised after about 30 years of meetings and fund-raising activities by the Kumitat Dun Mikiel Xerri u Sħabu (1967-1987), presided over by Philip A. Farrugia and Walter Ganado. I was on this committee, together with, among others, Spiru L. Mizzi, Ġużi Attard, Paul Galea and Ġużè Cardona. Others formed part of the committee along the years, too.

The committee, and Mr Cardona, had asked the authorities to have the monument placed on St George’s Square, facing the Sette Giugno one. It is believed that the Maltese priest and his co-conspirators had been shot by the French against the wall facing the Palace on St George’s Square – hence a place befitting the monument.

Mr Cardona was informed that Fr Marius Zerafa, then director of museums, had been asked about the possibility of having the monument placed on St George’s Square. Fr Zerafa had to contact the committee members to confirm that they agreed with this proposal. I do not know of any further contacts, if any.

Through Mr Cardona the committee was also ‘officially’ told that: a)there was no place for another monument on the Palace Square; b) some members of the committee were not against placing the monument on Independence Square; and c) there were too many objections to placing the monument on Palace Square.

There was strong public support for the monument, either through a fund-raising lottery (with a car as the main prize) or through direct contributions. I had succeeded to rope in many friends and even parish priests from all over Malta and Gozo to sell lottery tickets.

Unfortunately, in the last years before the monument was completed, because of a misunderstanding about my being exclusively authorised to collect money from various entities, I resigned from the committee and was not even invited for the unveiling ceremony held on July 31, 1986. But that is another story.