[WATCH] One in five Maltese unaware their country has a Constitution

One in five Maltese are unaware their country has a Constitution – survey • Video by Ray Attard

Over one-fifth of the population does not know that the country has a Constitution, according to a newly-published survey.

The survey – conducted amongst 717 people by a committee to promote Constitutional awareness – indicates that 21% of respondents were unaware whether Malta had a Constitution or not, whilst a further 4% said that a constitution “doesn't exist”.

"Having 151 people from the sample study – 21% of the general public – indicating that they have no knowledge of whether Malta had a Constitution provides a formidable challenge for us," the committee wrote in the survey results.

Communications department dean Saviour Chircop told a press conference at the Grandmaster’s Palace in Valletta that the majority of these unaware people were males and youths.

Respondents who were aware of the Constitution claimed varying degrees of knowledge about it, with the majority (28%) rating their knowledge at five out of ten.

The committee's chairperson Franco Debono described the Constitution as a symbol of the country’s national identity, and said that the committee intended to promote “love and appreciation” towards its current version, ahead of planned reforms.