Defend the environment, reclaim the future

Like all his predecessors, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat wants a lasting legacy that is tied with honouring his pre-electoral agreements and promises to introduce civil unions and other civil rights.

Rightly so its a legacy which he can be proud of, but the same can’t be said for the Labour government’s exertions to honour its pre-electoral agreements with the hunting lobby, contractors and other ‘investors’.

It’s bad enough that the Gaffarenas of this world are having a banquet off our backs, but giving away ODZ land to contractors who will be the only ones to enjoy the spoils is atrocious. The loss of the little precious countryside and coastline we have left will have a negative effect on all, irrespective of creed, race, gender, sexual orientation and political beliefs.

Saturday’s national protest is not an event for tree-huggers. It’s neither anti-Labour nor pro-PN. It’s a protest whose aims are beyond Labour’s own delusions of grandeur or the PN’s greenwash epiphany.

Thousands of Labourites don’t agree with the cementification of Zonqor. And thousands of voters who chose Labour in 2013 do not agree with the loss of ODZ land.
 Admittedly some might agree with Labour’s model of development, but those in disagreement remain silent because they might fear that opposing the project equates to a betrayal of the party they love.

Others might think that opposing the project equates to ‘becoming a Nationalist’. Others might still want to give Muscat and themselves the benefit of the doubt, or simply do not give a hoot.

But just because you don’t take an interest in environmental protection does not mean that the environment does not affect your quality of life.

If we don’t do our utmost to stop this craziness it will come back to haunt the hubristic Labour government, and the rest of the country .
And that’s why Saturday’s national protest is of utmost importance.

On Sunday morning Muscat will still be in office and in three years’ time anyone finding it hard to oppose the Zonqor development can vote Labour to power again.

Nobody should deny themselves the freedom of standing up for what they believe is right for the country today and for future generations

But there’s no shame in admitting that the party you voted for is wrong: Muscat himself has publicly admitted that his government is not perfect.

In this day and age, nobody should deny themselves the freedom of standing up for what they believe is right for the country today and for future generations.



If you don’t agree with parties acting as investment firms, if you cringe at the sight of contractors cashing in on their investments by grabbing public land, now is the time to act.

If you don’t want future generations to live in a concrete jungle of pollution, you can do your bit.

And despite democracy having been turned into a one-day exercise once every five years, on Saturday we can strengthen the process by sending a message to present and future political leaders to tell them they are accountable to us and not their financial backers.

Democracy “favours the many instead of the few” said one of Ancient Greece’s most prominent statesmen, Pericles. Giving Saturday a pass means the only victors will be the few ‘investors’ who will steam ahead and construct a private university in Zonqor, an airstrip in Gozo, artificial islands in our seas, yacht marinas on our coast and as many towers as they can fit in tiny Malta.

Saturday’s national protest is not an event for tree-huggers. It’s neither anti-Labour nor pro-PN. It’s a protest whose aims are beyond Labour’s own delusions of grandeur or the PN’s greenwash epiphany.

It’s the perfect opportunity to start a debate on a model of development that does not bulldoze over the environment, workers’ rights and democracy; to start discussing whether environmental protection should be enshrined in the Constitution.

Most certainly we cannot afford to be asked the nauseating ‘where were you question?’ – we cannot allow this administration, or future Nationalist or Labour governments to trample upon the last few patches of green that are left in this country, and we cannot allow MPs to rule in the interest of the few who bankroll their electoral campaigns.

Malta does not need to become a Dubai in the Med to prosper: so on Saturday, we are reclaiming the few remaining open spaces for future generations and ourselves. We can make ourselves heard, and send a strong message that the destruction of the countryside and bigger profits for the few is not in the national interest.

When we are asked where we were on Saturday 20 June 2015, the answer is: “in Valletta to reclaim the future.”