High-rises, petrol stations in outside development zones, destruction of town houses, obliteration of age-old streetscapes, unauthorised possession of land in the countryside…
There would seem to be no end to overdevelopment, abuse and the gradual erosion of Malta’s old charm. It will, of course, be wrong to argue against any development but what is going on in this country is rampant overdevelopment and, in many cases, complete disregard to the historical environment and heritage.
A call by the Democratic Party for mismanagement and destruction of Malta’s patrimony to be made subject to criminal liability reflects not just the concern steadily building up over the seemingly uncontrolled development going on practically everywhere, including Gozo, but also the anger at certain decisions made by the authorities set up to protect the island’s heritage.
Actually, there would seem to be no need for new laws because the Cultural Heritage Act already provides for penalties for infringements. However, the Democratic Party is clearly concerned about loopholes in the rules and regulations allowing developers to bypass legislation. In its call, the party brought up a proposal for the removal of the topsoil in the Tal-Wey area of Mosta, a Class A area of archaeological importance, on the pretext of an archaeological investigation. Din l-Art Ħelwa is asking the Superintendent of Cultural Heritage to intervene to discover the real intentions behind the proposal.
Meanwhile, the party noted, the Tal-Qares site in Mosta had suffered an archaeological survey, which led to its utter destruction. It pointed out it was undeniable that there is a routine effort to exploit loopholes and for developers to come up with all sorts of pretexts to annihilate the island’s patrimony for short-term gains.
The issue over this site has already been widely discussed with the Superintendent for Cultural Heritage saying no archaeological features were found. However, despite the assurances given, others are not so convinced.
The Planning Authority had said in a statement that the Mosta site had low archaeological value and was part of a larger area of land that was included in the development zone through the 2006 rationalisation exercise. Silos and parts of a historic rubble wall formed part of a separate, adjacent site, which would be preserved in the course of development.
But it is not only archaeological sites that need to be fully protected. Far too many buildings worth preservation have either been destroyed or defaced, robbing their localities of traditional landmarks and, in quite a number of cases, distinct charm. One of the latest to fall under this unbridled march towards the defacement of the national patrimony is Villa St Ignatius, in Balluta, a 19th century building believed to be the first neo-gothic building in Malta.
Despite all the protests made over the works, Din l-Art Ħelwa has just been notified that a request for the scheduling of the villa has been turned down. The trust did not quibble in its reaction: “Clearly, the authority has the ear of the developer and the development lobby only and is acting to enable the developer to demolish this house for speculation.”
No wonder it is interpreting all that is happening in this regard as a national attack on the cultural heritage.
What is the Guardian of Future Generations doing to check such regress?
This is a Times of Malta print editorial