Mgr Giovanni B. Gauci was this morning awarded €9,000 in damages after the Magistrates' Court found that he was libelled in an article carried in the Church newspaper Il-Gens on April 21 last year.
The article, under the heading Nafu x'ahna naghmlu?! was signed by 'asterisk' .
Magistrate Silvio Meli said that the editor had allowed himself, his newspaper and the Archdiocese which owned it, to be used and manipulated in a scandalous manner. The author had manipulated facts and made serious allegations against Mgr Gauci and his relatives.
The court observed that the editor had not sought to rectify the situation and had not appeared before the court.
The false allegations which had been made had libelled not only Mgr Gauci but also his relatives who were also members of the Cathedral Chapter and ultimately also the Bishop of Gozo as the highest authority of the diocese.