tthhee ttrreeaassuurreess ooff mmaallttaa the grand master’s...

Issue160

Fortnightly magazine for the Diaspora August 1, 2017Fortnightly magazine for the Diaspora

(driven by the voice driven by the voice of its readersof its readers)

The Voice of the Maltese

The Grand Master’s Palace in Malta’s capital Vallettahas been the administrative centre of the Mediter-ranean island for almost three and a half centuries.The original palace, built in 1571, was the seat of theGrand Master of the Knights Hospitalliers of St Johnand later, during the British colonial period, served asthe Governor’s palace. It was also the home of theHouse of Representatives of Malta and today it is theoffice of the President of the Republic of Malta.

The Council Chamber is home to a rare collection ofexotic Gobelin tapestries depicting hunting scenesfrom different continents, its State Dining Room isadorned with portraits of the Presidents of Malta anda painting of Queen Elizabeth II. The Supreme CouncilHall has a cycle of twelve frescoes by Mattia Perezd’Aleccio depicting the Great Siege of 1565. The Am-bassador’s Hall and main corridors are lined with por-traits of European monarchs and Grand Masters.

The Grand Master’s The Grand Master’s Palace in VallettaPalace in Valletta

The treasures of MaltaThe treasures of Malta

2 The Voice of the Maltese Tuesday August 1, 2017

Kif di©a` t˙abbar f’The Voice ofthe Maltese, dan l-a˙har ̇ ar©uxi riΩultati mill-a˙˙ar çensi-ment li sar fl-Awstralja fid-9 ta’Awwissu tal-2016. Kul˙add jaf li kull˙ames snin il-Gvern Federali jim-barka fuq ezerçizzju massiçç u fermimportanti biex ikun jaf diversi as-petti ta’ dan il-pajjiΩ fejn ng˙ixu.

Iç-çensiment hu importanti biexisiru l-kalkuli mill-Gvern dwar is-servizzi tas-sa˙˙a, l-edukazzjoni, is-servizzi soçjali u kull aspett ie˙or lijolqotna.

B˙ala eΩempju ta’ min isemmi li l-Gvern ikun irid jaf kemm hawn niesjg˙ixu fi djar, f’appartamenti (flats),fil-kiri, x’inhuma l-etajiet, kemmhawn nies ja˙dmu jew bla xog˙ol u˙afna statistika o˙ra li l-ebda gvernma jista’ jg˙addi ming˙ajrha biexjiggverna.

Min˙abba f’hekk iç-çensiment humhux biss importanti g˙all-GverniΩda wkoll g˙alina g˙ax jekk ma na-g˙tux lill-Gvern it-tag˙rif li jitlobminna jistg˙u isiru ˙afna Ωbalji lijolqtuna fil-la˙am il-˙aj.

L-a˙˙ar çensiment ta’ Awwissu tal-2016 qajjem ˙afna kontraversja u©ab mieg˙u ˙afna tgergir g˙ax is-sis-tema elettronika li ntuΩat kienetdifettuΩa, tant li wara xi ˙inijiet dinis-sistema ikkollassat. Çertament lidan hu riΩultat xejn feliçi f’ezerçizzjuNazzjonali b˙al dan. Barra dawn l-iskossi kien hemm dif-

fikutajiet o˙ra g˙all-komunita` Mal-tija, min˙abba li din id-darba ç-çen-siment tista’ tg˙id sar kollu online.Fil-komunita` Maltija fl-Awstra-ljag˙andna ˙afna li ma jag˙mlux uΩumill-kompjuters, u allura façli li jkunhemm min jinqabeΩ.

G˙alhekk dejjem jibqa` d-dubjukemm hija eΩatta l-konkluzjoni ta’kemm hawn Maltin fl-Awstralja litwieldu Malta u kemm minnhom lijitkellmu bil-Malti fid-dar. Minndawn l-a˙˙ar riΩultati jidher li ç-çen-siment tefa’ ˙afna iktar dubju dwardan.

Li nafu Ωgur li skont iç-çensimenttal-2016 fl-Awstralja, Maltin li twiel-du Malta illum g˙andna biss 37,613.Minn dawn, 17,873 jg˙ixu fl-istat ta’Victoria u 14,481 o˙ra fi New SouthWales. L-o˙rajn huma mxerrdinmal-kumplament tal-kontinent Aw-straljan.

Fiç-çensiment ta’ qabel tal-2016,ji©ifieri tal-2011, l-g˙add ta’ Maltin lijg˙ixu fl-Awstralja imma li twielduMalta kien ta’ 41,270. Dan ifisser lif’˙ames snin inqasna bi 3,657.

Issa, dawk li qalu li jitkellmu bil-Malti fid-dar huma ta’ 31,987, jigi-fieri hawn ukoll kellna nuqqas ta’2,409 minn tal-˙ames snin ta’ qabel.

Dawn il-figuri li ˙ar©u juru biç-çarnuqqas sostanzjali fl-g˙add ta’ Mal-tin imwielda Malta u li jg˙ixu fl-Aw-stralja. Dan kien mistenni g˙aliexl-emigrazzjoni minn Malta lejn l-Aw-stralja waqfet kompletament. F’dawn l-a˙˙ar 20 sena ftit jew xejn

kellna emigrazzjoni minn Malta,

g˙alhekk dawk li waslu hawn fl-eqqel tal-emigrazzjoni fil-˙amsinijietillum xja˙u u ˙afna minnhom lan-qas biss g˙adhom mag˙na.

Niftakru li fit-tmeninijiet fl-Aw-stralja l-g˙add ta’ Maltin li jg˙ixu fl-Awstralja imma li tiweldu Malta kienta’ 58,000. Li jfisser li fl-a˙˙ar 36sena l-Maltin imwielda Malta naqsub’madwar 21,000. Li hu nuqqas tas-sew sostanzjali.

Sewwa ng˙idu li l-komunita` Mal-tija fl-Awstralja mhux biss qed tixjie˙iΩda qed ftit tosfor bir-rata ta’ mad-war tnejn fil-mija kull sena.

Izda mbag˙ad sintendi g˙andna l-ispettaklu l-ie˙or li illum fl-Awstraljag˙andna ̇ afna aktar Maltin ta’ niselMalti, ji©ifieri dawk li ma twielduxMalta iΩda fl-Awstralja minn ©enituriMaltin. Dawn jammontaw ˙afnaaktar mis-37,000 li twieldu Malta,jigifieri skont ir-riΩultat tal-a˙˙arçensiment.

Huwa stmat li jekk ng˙oddu wkollit-tieni ©enerazzjoni, fl-Awstralja ha-wn 175,557 li huma ta’ dixxendenzaMaltija. Nafu wkoll li g˙al ˙afnara©unijiet strambi mhux kul˙addjimmarka li hu Malti jew ta’ dexxen-denza Maltija, g˙alhekk dejjem tridtag˙mel ukoll spazu g˙al dawn in-nies li jiç˙du l-identita` tag˙hom u lildawk li ma jimlewx il-formola taç-çensiment.

IΩda ç-çensiment dejjem jibqa`b˙ala stampa li tmexxina biexinkunu nafu fejn qeg˙din u kifnistg˙u nservu a˙jar lill-komunita`tag˙na g˙all-©ejjieni.

Xi fatti li jo˙or©u dwar il-komunita`Maltija fl-a˙˙ar çensiment tal-2016

LawenceDimech

Tuesday August 1, 2017 The Voice of the Maltese 3

A. As you are only 27 years old you willbe unable to touch your superannuationmoney until age 60 at least. For this rea-son I would recommend that you investthese funds in a managed fund out of su-perannuation and do not touch it. Howeverif in the future you purchase a property andneed a deposit on the house, you will beable to access these funds. Knowing thatyou have access to this money you have putaside should give you peace of mind.

Q. My husband is in an aged care facil-ity and is terminally ill. We had paid arefundable accommodation deposit of$153,000. We are both on the full pen-sion but we only have around $10,000 inliquid funds. We each have a term allo-cated pension with around 12 years be-fore maturity. I was planning to cash histerm allocated pension in for liquiditywhen he passes away which, as the doc-tors say, is only a matter of weeks. Whatdo you recommend?

A. . When he passes away you should re-ceive the $153,000 from the refundable ac-commodation deposit in full. This willprovide you with a great deal of liquidityand it will also then be treated as an assetfor Centrelink purposes.

If you wish to maintain most of the agepension you should consider continuing histerm allocated pension in your name. Thiswill provide you with ongoing income for

the next 12years and yourage pensionentitlement willalso be higherthan if youcashed this in-vestment in.

Q. My hus-band and Ihave just gotmarried. Wehave recentlybought a houseand have amortgage of $640,000. We both have goodjobs, and can still service the loan comfort-ably if I had to stop working for a while tostart a family. We are concerned however,if my husband lost his job through injuryor sickness as this would completely crip-ple us. I know that we can get ourselves in-sured, but we need to know whether it isbetter to insure ourselves through our su-perannuation fund or otherwise?

A. There are different insurances you shouldbe contemplating on but the most importanttype of insurance in your case is incomeprotection. You need to protect your incomeand you need to protect both of your in-comes. I believe that you should have in-come protection insurance out ofsuperannuation because you are young and

Investing or Retiring?Understand your options. Talk to Fiducian.

Marie-Louise Muscat is �uent in Maltese and English and can assist you in:

Wealth CreationPre Retirement and Retirement AdviceMaximising Centrelink Bene�tsTax effective strategies in retirement e.g. sale of propertyRearranging �nances to minimise ongoing fees prior to entering Aged Care facilities

Call Marie-Louise for acomplimentary consultation on:

(02) 9231 2133

Marie-Louise Muscat is a representative of Fiducian Financial Services Pty LtdABN 46 094 765 134 AFSL and Australian Credit Licence 231103

www.fiducianfs.com.au

This document contains factual informa-tion only and is not intended to provideany recommendation or opinion in rela-tion to the topic/s discussed. Fiducianrecommends that you seek advice froma professional to address any issues thatmay be raised by this article. Fiducianaccepts no liability for any loss sufferedby anyone who has acted on any infor-mation in this document

Q&AQ&A

This is a monthly service offered by The Voice of the Maltesein which Marie Louise Muscat from the Fiducian Finan-cial Services helps our readers understand the complexitiesassociated with financial planning. If you need more advicesend an email to Marie Louise via: [email protected].

you need the money to be paid to you ratherthan to your superannuation fund if a claimwas made. The Income Protection insurancepremium is also tax deductible. I would rec-ommend you visit an insurance broker sothat he can advise you accordingly.

Q. I was widowed two years ago and Ilive in a small house in Neutral Bay. Myhouse has been valued around $2 mil-lion because of its locality. I am a pen-sioner and have nothing else apart frommy house. I am finding it hard to makeends meet now that my husband passedaway and I have only my pension as in-come. I have been living in this housefor the last 55 years and have a greatdeal of memories and do not wish to sellit. Can you give my some advice please?

A. Your house is a very valuable propertyand you are in a position of using some ofthe equity in this house to be able to livemore comfortably. You are able to get areverse mortgage from one of the majorbanks. This will entitle you to a lump sumof money without the need to pay it untilsuch time as your house is sold.

In order to make this really worthwhile,you should, say, take a payment of$10,000 and top up your bank accountand do this every time you need to top upyour bank account. You would not be required to pay any in-

terest as the interest will just build up onthe amount that you take out and will allbe settled once the house is sold.

If you were to take out say, $20,000 ayear from this reverse mortgage the valueof the house may grow by more than thatamount annually. Therefore your benefi-ciaries would still have the same amountof equity left as inheritance.

Q. I am 27 years old and have just lost my father a fewmonths ago. I inherited $250,000 and wish to investthese funds in a way that I would not be touching them.I was thinking of investing them in superannuation. Doyou agree with me or should I invest the funds else-where?

Wara li Julia Gillardb˙ala Prim Ministrutal-Awstralja ddeçidietli twaqqaf il-Kummis-sjoni kontra l-abbuΩi tat-tfal fit-12ta’ Novembru tal-2012 kellmet lill-Kardinal Pell li dak iΩ-Ωmien kien il-mexxej tal-Knisja Kattolika fl-Aw-stralja. Kif spjegat hi stess fil-ktiebdwar ˙ajjitha, ma ridetx li l-Kum-missjoni tie˙u xejra li tidher li setkun kontra l-KnisjaKattolika.

Is-s˙ab kienilu ©ej. L-ak-tar li bdew©ejjin kienuakkuzi kon-tra saçerdotiu Brothers tal-Knisja. Dankien il-biza’ tal-Prim Ministru,li l-Kumissjonis s i r / t i d h e rb˙ala ‘witch-hunt’ kontra isti-tuzzjoni wa˙da.

Ma nafx kienetx tistudja l-kwie-keb jew xi ballun ma©iku imma fil-fatt hekk se˙˙. Matul l-istorja tal-Kummissjoni, minn jistudja x’©araf’dawn l-a˙˙ar ˙ames snin, jara lise˙˙ eΩatt dak li Gillard bezg˙et li seji©ri.

Fil-fatt il-midja ˙ar©et bi ˙©arhakontra il-bniedem wie˙ed li kien il-Kap ta-Knisja Kattolika, u l-isem tal-Kardinal Pell ©ie assimilit ˙afna,jew g˙al kollox mal-Kummissjoni.Ma rridx niddefendi lill-Kardinal:x’g˙amel jew x’kien messu g˙amelhija kwestjoni legali li g˙adha sejra.

Li be˙siebni nag˙mel hu li nag˙ti˙arsa lejn x’g˙amlet il-Kummissjonili hi ‘Rejali’ u li suppost hi l-og˙la is-tituzzjoni ta’ riçerka legali fil-pajjiz.

Óarsa lejn il-fatti jistg˙u jg˙inubiex inkunu nafu çerti fatti li se˙-˙ew, fil-proçess li nnaddfu s-soçjeta`minn dan il-gwaj. Se nie˙u ftit kaΩili juru li l-profezija, jew il-beΩg˙atta’ Julia Gillard se˙˙ew.

Fl-istess ˙in naraw kemm il-Kum-missjoni kienet u hi pre©udikatakontra il-Knisja Kattolika, li matistag˙©ibx, u fl-istess ˙in jidherukoll li ç-çans li kien hemm litnaddaf u tnaqqas dawn l-abbuΩitar mar-ri˙.

Filwaqt li l-Kummissjoni qattg˙et15-il jum tistudja u tikxef l-abbuΩital-Knisja Kattolika, g˙amlet nofsta’ nhar biss tist˙arre© dwar ‘Kni-

sja’ o˙ra, The Uniting Church of Aus-tralia.

Aqraw x’qal wie˙ed mill-Avukatistess li qieg˙ed iservi fuq il-Kummis-sjoni: “F’dawn l-a˙˙ar 40 sena litwaqqfet il-Uniting Church, kienhemm, u sirna nafu li kien hemm2,504 inçidenti ta’ abbuΩi fuq it-tfal,u li se˙˙ew f’istituzzjonijiet u fil-kne-jjes tag˙ha. Dawn ©raw bejn l-1977,meta twaqqfet din il-knisja sal-lum.”

M’hemmx g˙alfejn tkun g˙arefwisq biex tqabbel id-differenza fil-figuri mal-kaΩi tal-abbuΩi tal-Knisjajew allegazzjonijet tag˙hom. Ìie al-legat li fil-perijodu ta’ bejn l-1950 u2015 fil-Knisja Kattolika kien hemm4,445 kaz.

Hawn nistg˙u narawkemm u kif il-Kummis-

sjoni tal-Ìustizzjabiddlet ix-xibka biextaqbad l-abbuΩi,jew iktar biex tqar-ras u tixli lil xi˙add u tipprote©i lil˙addie˙or.

Xibka wa˙da g˙at-tiet 40 sena; l-o˙ra

qabdet 65 sena. Tajjebli insemmi wkoll li l-Knisja

Kattolika hija xi ˙ames jew sitt dar-biet ikbar mill-Uniting Church!

Tajjeb li insemmi wkoll li din il-Knisja Protestanta ©iet iffurmata fl-1977 meta ng˙aqdu flimkien tlietknejjes protestanti o˙ra ta˙t l-um-brella tal-Uniting Church. Dawnkienu, il-Presbyterian, il-Congregation-al u l-Methodist churches. L-onorevolisinjuri avukati tal-Kummissjoni g˙o-©obhom jinjoraw x’se˙˙ qabel l-1977, ji©ifieri meta skont l-istatisticil-abbuΩi kienu fl-aqwa tag˙hom, fis-sittinijiet u fis-sebg˙inijiet.

Allura jidher çar li skont dawn il-figuri tifel jew tifla kienu iΩjed pro-tetti f’istituzzjonijiet Kattolici millif’o˙rajn. Imma din l-istatistika u l-qbil u d-daqs tax-xibka ma nstem-g˙u mkien, l-anqas f’dawk il-gaz-zetti/stazzjonijiet tar-radju li jifta˙ruli huma indipendenti, b˙all-ABC,The Guardian, 60 minutes, the Project,Sydney Morning Herald u o˙rajn.

L-Im˙allef McClellan iddefenda l-Kummissjoni meta qal li ding˙andha dritt li tinda˙al fl-attivita-jjiet tal-Knisja Kattolika. Kollox sew.Imma kien messa li l-KummissjoniwΩat l-istess regoli u kejl, u wkoll l-istess tiftix fil-fond dwar istituzzjoni-jiet o˙ra. U x’©ara dwar l-akkuzi kontra l-Je-

hovah Witnesses li ‘per capita’ humatant og˙la minn dawk kontra l-Knisja Kattolika u l-Uniting Church?Biex ma nsemmix istituzzjoni o˙rakbira li g˙al xi ra©uni jew o˙ra˙add ma jsemmi!Meta tist˙arre© il-proçess kollu tal-

Kummissjoni hemm ˙afna x’juri lil-li©i li hi m˙addma minn nies,avolja illawrjati u ta’ krettu, immamhux dejjem iwarrbu l-inklinaz-zjonijiet tag˙hom. Nista’ ng˙id l-ist-ess g˙all-©urnalisti li suppost lijag˙tuna analiΩi çara u newtrali ta’dak li ji©ri.

Biss id-detttalji kultant juru modie˙or. Meta jkun hemm kaΩ legalifil-qorti, normalment biex issir ©us-tizzja, jew almenu tidher li qed issir,joqog˙du attenti li l-Im˙allef/Ma-©istrat u l-©urati ma jkunux, jewkellhom x’jaqsmu mal-akkuΩat,biex hekk ma jkunx hemm ‘ind˙il’personali. Mhux int min int immax’g˙amilt jew x’g˙amel l-akkuzat!

Allura l-Avukata Gail Furness litg˙in fil-prosekuzzjoni x’qed tag˙-mel fil-Kummissjoni meta ˙afnajafu li g˙andha lanΩita ˙oxnag˙all- Kardinal Pell?

Tajjeb ukoll niftakru li l-memorjatibda tiddallam, iktar u iktar metajg˙addi Ω-Ωmien. Li jag˙tik litit˙awwad iΩjed g˙ax dawn il-kaΩihuma kollha allegazzjonijiet li ap-puntu huma bbaΩati fuq il-memo-rja. Kif qal u kiteb il-Kap tal-Kum-missjoni stess, l-Im˙allef McClellan,il-memorja hi xi ˙a©a perikoluΩa,g˙ax kif spjega, dak li ©ara jew ji©rifil-passat jista’ jiddakkar b’˙afna af-farijiet o˙ra, l-aktar meta wie˙edikun sofra xi abbuΩ. Nag˙laq billi nikkwota l-©urnalista

tal-ABC Geraldine Doogue li mhix xi˙abiba kbira tal-Knisja Kattolika: “Il-Knisja Kattolika fl-Awstralja hi l-ikbar istituzzjoni bil-˙idma tag˙hafil-qasam soçjali u ti©i biss wara l-˙idma tal-Gvern… NibΩa’ li fid-diskors li g˙amel Francis Sullivan, (lihu s-CEO tal-Kummisssjoni) id-deçieda li ma jg˙id u juri li hemmxejn tajjeb fil-Knisja. Li qal u jiktebma jurix l-istorja kollha tal-Knisja.”


VictorVVella

(...jid˙ol wara l-kwinti tar-Royal Com-mission into Child Abuse’ u jiΩvela det-talji li ftit li xejn ˙ar©u g˙all-arja!)

Il-faccata l-ohra

Julia Gillard u l-Kardinal Pell

Victor V. Vella

i icc th

Xbiek differenti skont il-knejjes


A proud sponsor of A proud sponsor of The Voice of theThe Voice of the

MalteseMaltese

Breakaway Travel 94 corner of Main & CampbellStreets, Blacktown NSW

...... for all your travel needs.

website: www.breakawaytravel.com.au

[email protected]

Tel (02) 9622 7799

Afew weeksago MaltesePrime Minis-ter Joseph Muscatinaugurated the‘Eternal Flame’monument, abronze monumentat Castille Squarein Valletta, de-signed by architectValerio Schembrithat commemo-rates Malta'semancipation fromcolonial powers.

At the inaugura-tion ceremony thePrime Minister saidthat the Maltesepeople are cur-rently “living thedream” that theforefathers hadfought for – that ofan independentand flourishingcountry.

“We were a con-quered nation forcenturies, but wehave now just fin-ished a tenure atthe head of the EUPresidency that hasbeen described as asuccess,” he saidadding, “We suc-ceeded because wekept on believingin ourselves.”

Muscat said thatMalta’s economy is currentlybooming like never before andthat the newly-created wealth isbeing “distributed to every cornerof the country”.

He went on to say that while thenation shouldn’t live in the past,it should not forget about it ei-ther but rather take lessons fromit to keep driving the country for-ward.

Prime Minister inauguratesthe Eternal Flame in Castille

Please be advised that the next issue (No. 161) of The Voice ofthe Maltese will be published On August 29. During August,most of our Maltese readers will be on holiday, many of themtravelling. So particularly those Maltese living abroad whowould be visiting their loved ones in Malta, would be more in-terested on spending time with their loved ones than anything.The Voice will be back with issue No. 161 on August 29

We will be back on August 29


Replacing a lost passport is anabsolute pain in the neck,but just imagine trying to ex-plain that you lost one of the rarestpassports in the world, this appar-ently being one of only three pass-ports exclusively granted to thethree highest ranking officers by theSovereign Military Order of Malta.So leaving one on the train wouldbe a big deal.

It's hard to find much concrete in-formation about the enigmaticpassport granting process of thesovereign order, but Sovereign Mil-itary Order of Malta (SMOM) doeshave the power to issue diplo-matic passports for its highest-ranking officer bearers.The chosen few in possession of

the prized red book are thegrand master, deputy grandmaster, and chancellor of theOrder.Currently, the Internet is kind

of swamped with yarns aboutthis rare passport, a conceptthat seemed to have goneviral in the past few weeks.On the other hand, it is alsoreliably understood thatdiplomatic passports are is-sued to all diplomatic staff,of which there are a fewhundred. However, despitethe passport’s rarity, youwon’t get too far if you areone of the owners.

Along with many other countriesand territories who have similarrules, including the United King-dom, United States and NewZealand, don’t accept the passportfor travel.

In fact, it is understood that only12 countries recognise the passports,they being, Malta, the Czech Repub-lic, Germany, Spain, Italy, Latvia,Hungary, Austria, Poland, Portugal,Slovenia and Slovakia.It is kind of difficult to find official

documentation about the restrictionof just three passports being issued,but the earliest reference one hasbeen able to find of it came from awhatdotheyknow.com commenta-tor, Becky Bbear, in 2012. She saidthat, “The Order only issues threepassports which carry diplomaticimmunity."

The post went on to say that theorder's Grand Master, Deputy GrandMaster and Chancellor were thelucky three.

The Order, a Roman Catholic layreligious Order founded in 1099 in

Jerusalem, wasofficially recognised by PopePaschal in 1113 and is one of theoldest institutions in the Christianworld.

SMOM currently operates as acharitable organisation offeringmedical aid around the globe, anddespite having diplomatic relationswith more than 100 states doesn’tcontrol any territory of its own.

There are more than 13,500knights, dames and chaplains inthe Order, along with 80,000 volun-teers and 25,000 medical employ-ees. As already reported (in IssueNo. 158 of The Voice), last JuneQueensland’s capital, Brisbanehosted the Biennial National Con-ference that was attended byaround 150 Knights and Damesfrom all over Australia and NewZealand. Two prominent Australian-Maltese

business and community leaders,Confrere Paul Zammit and ConfrerePaul Sant were among the attendeesat the conference.

By the way, the group’s sovereigntyis also expressed on licence

plates, stampsand coins.Despite los-

ing visa-freeadmission toone countryGermany hasretained theNo. 1 positionas the countrywith the mostpowerful pass-port in theworld. It hasvisa-free accessto 176 countries.Sweden also re-

mains static insecond place with175 countries to itscredit, and Den-mark, Finland,Italy, Spain and theUS jointly rankthird, with their na-tionals enjoying ac-cess to 174 countrieswithout a visa.

The UK, however,has slipped down tofourth, having sharedfirst place with Ger-many for three consec-utive years from2013–2015. Brits havevisa-free access to 173countries.

Syria, Pakistan, Iraqand Afghanistan sit at

the very bottom of the Visa Restric-tions Index, each with visa-free ac-cess to less than 30 countriesworldwide.

In total, 48 countries lost groundover the past year, dropping be-tween one and three ranks, andonly 42 countries showed no move-ment at all. Meanwhile, the chang-ing geopolitical climate could wellaffect the rankings over the next 12months.

Several major events witnessed re-cently are likely to have an impacton global mobility – includingBrexit and the election of US Presi-dent Donald Trump. Both can be in-terpreted as steps toward restrictingmovement and creating barriers toentry.

Australia’s passport in classifiedseventh overall sharing the placewith that of South Korea, Malta’sranks in t0 position with that ofHungary.

World’s rarest passportonly has three holders


The Voice of the Maltese is explaining in parts the 2016Census, primarily its effect on the Maltese commu-nity. In this issue, we are looking at the electorate of

Greenway in NSW. Greenway covers an area from Prospect and Girraween

in the south to Riverstone (part) and Vineyard (part) in theNorth. Suburbs and towns include Blacktown (part), Glen-wood, Girraween, Kellyville Ridge, Kings Langley, KingsPark, Lalor Park, Parklea, Prospect, Quakers Hill (part),Riverstone (part), Rouse Hill (part), Schofields (part), SevenHills, Stanhope Gardens and Vineyard (part).

It is named after Francis Greenway (1777–1837), an ar-chitect under Governor Macquarie. It covers an area of 81sq km.

Greenway is a young electorate. The median age is 34,younger than the median age of Australia as a whole at38. Greenway is multicultural. Over 55% of Greenway res-idents have parents who were both born overseas, a totalof 94,950 people. The national average for this category is34.4%.

Greenway residents are multi-lingual. 45.5% of house-holds in Greenway have a language otherthan English spoken at home, more than dou-ble the national percentage of 22.2%.

The Voice of the Maltese spoke to MichelleRowland, Shadow Minister for Communica-tions after the release of the latest census. Shetold us that 4,355 people residing in Greenwayidentified as having Maltese heritage, with atleast one parent born in Malta before emigrat-ing to Australia. In 2011 this number was4,519 with the population remaining largelythe same.

In NSW as a whole, 175,557 residents haveMaltese heritage, largely comprising first andsecond-generation migrants. 1,181 peopleborn in Malta call Greenway home, equatingto just over 3% of the 37,609 Maltese-born res-idents living in NSW.

The Census results help all levels of govern-ment guide the best use of public resourcesand planning to ensure that areas of growth,including Blacktown and the North West Pri-ority Growth Area, are recognised and receivethe services and infrastructure needed.

“Greenway has a wonderful local Maltesecommunity, and it has been a privilege towork alongside this community as their localFederal Member. The recent census has pro-vided a snapshot of our growing, vibrant, andmulticultural community in Greenway,”Member for Greenway, Michelle Rowland toldThe Voice of the Maltese.“The census provides crucial data on our pop-

ulat iona n dcommu-nity inWesternSydney,g i v i n gme as al o c a lMemberof Par-liamentthe in-f o r m a -tion Ineed tofight forour fairshare of resources. Greenway is a microcosm of modernAustralia, reinforced by the latest Census results", Ms Row-land said.

Analysing the electorateof Greenway NSW

BMichelle Rowland is a lawyer, born in Black-town and raised in Seven Hills. She was educatedat Our Lady of Mercy College, Parramatta and theUniversity of Sydney. Rowland was a seniortelecommunications lawyer with law firm Gilbertand Tobin in Sydney. She lives in the electorate at Glenwood. Rowland,

was a Director of the Western Sydney Area HealthService from 2000 to 2004 and is a former localcouncillor and deputy mayor of Blacktown andwas elected to Parliament representing the LaborParty at the 2010 election.

More from the 2016 Census

Michelle Rowland


Have your say/Xi trid tghid?Your letters/ L-ittri tag˙kom ...

for tn ightly magazinefor tn ightly magazine

The Voice of the Maltese

is is a bi-lingual (in Englishand Maltese) fortnightly mag-azine that specifically targetsall Maltese living abroad with

emphasis on the Australianand Maltese scenes.

e magazine can also be read inflipbook format online. A pdf copy

is also sent via email on request. If you require a printed copy we

can also oblige.Editors: Malta: Joseph CutajarAustralia:

Lawrence Dimech: MOM,OAM, JP

email address:[email protected]

for tn ight ly magazinefor tn ight ly magazine

Letters for publication in The Voicemagazine, either in Maltese or Englishshould include name and e-mail ad-dress of the writer and be e-mailed to:[email protected].

Now you can alsojoin us on facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/thevoice-ofthemaltese

Away but still so much in love with our Malta

Attivita` ta’min ifa˙˙arha

Il-festa ta’ Santa Marija

Louis Calleia, from Harvey, SW writes:

Along with many Maltese who like mehave been living for a number ofyears in Australia, our second home,every few years I like to visit my relatives inMalta. That is why I have done once againthis summer. However, I can say that I amnot in the minority.

Last week a group of friends who are alsovisiting, and who like me also made the tripon their own, met for a buffet lunch in a hotelin the north of Malta. But lo and behold, atthe venue we met a group of other Maltesewho are visiting Malta not only from Aus-tralia, but also from Canada and the UK.

It was such a great occasion. We mingledtogether as a group, talked and laughed andrecounted our experiences. We eventuallyfound out that we still have one thing in com-mon despite living away from this lovely is-land: We still have it at heart and though wewere diverse politically when we emigratedin order to find a better future for our fami-lies, if it were possible we dearly love to re-turn to Malta for good.

Those living in the UK are much luckierthan us because they can hop on a plane andin less than three hours they could find them-selves on the island. I found out that manyof them in fact visit Malta on a regular basisand their kids are frequent visitors to Maltato join other Maltese youths to take part inthe entertainment that the locals produce. Some of these youngsters have taken up the

option as Maltese and also EU citizens to fol-low their studies in the Maltese University.Their parents are so proud of them and theyhave even been pushing them to take upwhat Malta has to offer and in a few yearstime, some will be taking up posts in a num-

Don Deguara minn Kensington NSWjikteb:

Ftit ilu mort f’Wenthortville NSW g˙all-Folkloric Festival li ©ie organizzat mill-G˙aqda Kulturali ta’ NSW. Qed niktebdwaru g˙ax tant ˙adt pajcir mhux biss bil-varjeta` li ©iet ippreΩentata, imma l-aktarg˙ax rajt tant Maltin, ̇ afna minnhom li kontilni ma niltaqa’ mag˙hom snin twal.

Na˙seb li kien hemm fuq it-350 persunafis-sala, kollha fer˙anin, almenu hekk deh-ru. Impressjonajt ru˙i wkoll bil-˙afna stallsbl-o©©etti tal-arti u s-snajja. Jien dilettanttaΩ-Ωfin rock & roll u stajt nara kemm il-Maltin mhux biss huma dilettanti iΩda wkollΩeffiena tajbin ta’ dan it-tip ta’ muΩika.

Nifra˙ minn qalbi lil dawk kollha li ˙adusehem u lill-organizzaturi. Óadt pjaçir ukollukoll bl-istand tal-Maltese Language Scho-olta’ NSW fejn sibt ukoll tag˙rif kif nista’ nab-bona fil-magazine The Voice of the Maltese.

Stajt ninduna kemm hi popolari din ir-riv-ista mal-komunta` Maltija, tant li fl-ewwelsieg˙at tal-attivita` l-kopji li kien hemmg˙ad-dispoΩzzjoni tal-preΩenti n˙atfuf’kemm trodd salib. Çert li kieku kellhomaktar biex iqassmu kienu jqassmuhom ukoll.

Joe Portelli North Sunshine, jikteb:

Nifra˙ lill-kumitat tal-festa ta’ Santa MarijaAssunta li ti©i ççelebrata f’Deer Park Mel-bourne g˙all-ktejjeb interessanti li ppubb-likaw g˙al din il-festa li se ssir bejn 18 u l-20ta’ Awwissu.

Dan ktejjeb tassew sabi˙ mimli ritratti bil-kulur u ˙afna ritratti o˙ra tal-istatwi kollhata Santa Marija f’Malta u G˙awdex. Prositmill-qalb g˙ax ktejjeb tassew interessanti.

ber of hospitals, public or private that seemto be mushrooming on the island.

Good for themOne other thing we found out is that manyof those at the luncheon are avid readers ofThe Voice of the Maltese magazine, whichalso seems to be getting popular among thelocals too. We spent time discussing the lasttwo issues and I can tell you that we all lovewhat you graciously offer us. Soon we mightalso be sending you some suggestions thatwe think could further enhance the popular-ity of the magazine.


Four Maltese students fared remarkablywell in Malta’s first participation in thefinal of the 4th International Mathemat-ics Without Borders Tournament in Nessebar,Bulgaria. Despite strong opposition from a fieldof 16,000 students from 13 countries, aged be-tween eight and 18 who took part in three pre-liminary rounds, the students managed highscores and in the end won a total of 14 medals,six of them in the final, one of them gold.This tournament offers a platform to students

to showcase their exceptional abilities and lovefor mathematics. It not only encourages a com-petitive spirit amongst participants, but alsoprovides them with opportunities to work col-laboratively and to think in innovative ways.

Ten Maltese students participated in all thepreliminary rounds, they being, the AutumnRound (2016), Winter Round (2017) and SpringRound (2017). Along with another 1,000 students, Malta’s

Mark Azzopardi, Eric Bader, Nicolai Bonello,Daniel Pisani and Matteo Stagno qualified tothe final round that was held from June 30 toJuly 3. Each of the finalists competed in an in-dividual challenge and a team challenge, ac-cording to their respective age groups.

On their arrival in Malta the students andtheir local teachers were received by the Edu-cation minister Evarist Bartolo who congratu-lated them on their performance and forobtaining such high placings, both in the indi-vidual and the team challenge.The Ministry for Education also thanked edu-

cators and parents who embraced this oppor-tunity as together they provided anotherlearning opportunity for the students to growin their mathematical thinking, develop usefullife skills and boost their self-esteem. As the most successful participant among the

Maltese students, Eric Bader was awarded thetitle of Maths Star of the Tournament. He wasalso presented with a cup and a laurel wreathas his performance was considered to havebeen amongst the most outstanding in his agegroup across all participating countries andthroughout the tournament.

L-G˙aqda Óbieb ta’ Don Bosco NSW or-ganizzat laqg˙a speçjali g˙all-membri

biex flimkien ifakkru s-60 sena tas-saçerdozju ta’ Fr John Briffa (SaleΩ-jan) li g˙amel Ωmien twil direttur spiritwali tas-soçjeta’. Il-Membri at-tendew g˙al quddiesa u wara riçeviment fis-sala Marion Horsley Park.Nifir˙u lil dan is-saçerdot Malti li hu residenti f’Engadine g˙all-˙ajjahekk twila spiritwali u produttiva tieg˙u fost il-Maltin ta’ NSW.

Sittin sena SaleΩjan

U˙ud mill-membri tal-G˙aqda Maltese PastPupils & Friends of Don Bosco flimkien ma’Fr J. Briffa (is-sitta mil-lemin) wara nett)

Maltese Maths students excel

kitba ta’

IVAN

CAUCHI


PerspettivaA version of this series inEnglish may be found inthe author's blog at: https://ivancauchi.blogspot.com

Il-vot tal-kuxjenza

Referenzi

1. https://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20170720/local/edwin-vassallo-is-still-waiting-for-punishment.653686, retrieved 24/7/20172. http://www.afr.com/news/politics/election-2016-majority-of-voters-would-say-yes-in-gay-marriage-plebiscite-20160701-gpwg3z, retrieved 10/7/2017

Wie˙ed mill-aspetti sekondarji li ˙ar©u mill-vot fil-Par-lament Malti favur iΩ-Ωwie© g˙al persuni tal-istesssess, kien il-fatt li membru parlamentari wie˙ed ivvotakontra, Edwin Vassallo mill-Partit Nazzjonalista (PN), li g˙ameldan kontra l-istruzzjoniji li rçieva mill-partit tieg˙u. Jidher li kienhemm o˙rajn li kienu kontra imma ddeçidew li jobdu l-istruz-zjoni tal-partit.1Il-membri tal-partit l-ie˙or, il-Partit Laburista, kollha obdew l-

istruzzjoni li jivvutaw favur, g˙alkemm ma smajtx li kien hemmxi ˙add li ma kienx favur din il-miΩura.

Tarawha stramba b˙ali li l-vot fil-Parlament kien 66 favur uwie˙ed kontra, ji©ifieri 98.5% favur, u 1.5% kontra, meta fil-pa-jjiΩ huma 77% li huma stmati li huma favur?2

Kieku l-vot fil-Parlament kien iktar jirrifletti s-sentiment tal-pajjiΩ, xorta l-miΩura kienet tg˙addi, madankollu dawk it-23%li huma kontra ˙assewhom irrappreΩentati mill-Parlament Malti?Qed ng˙id dan, mhux g˙ax ma naqbilx mar-riΩultat a˙˙ari tal-

vot, ji©ifieri li din il-miΩura tg˙addi, b˙al ma argumentajt fil-˙ar©a ta' The Voice li g˙addiet, imma assolutament naqbel ma'Edwin Vassallo li vvota skont il-kuxjenza tieg˙u.

G˙alija g˙ajb li m'g˙amlux l-istess l-o˙rajn li wkoll li ˙asse-whom b˙al Vassallo.Il-membri parlamentari, lil min nistennewhom jirrappreΩentaw?

Lill-eletturi, jew lill-partit?Jien in˙oss li dritt wara li l-vot ikun ing˙add fl-elezzjoni ©en-

erali, ir-rappreΩentanza tal-poplu tispiçça, u l-membri parlamen-tari jibdew jirrappreΩentaw lill-partit tag˙hom, u mhux aktarlill-poplu. Anke jekk il-partit jimxi skont il-programm elettoralitieg˙u, huwa meta ti©i biex tivvota favur jew kontra li©i litressqet fil-konkret fil-parlament li tista' t˙ares lejn id-dettall, utara fil-fatt jekk din tirriflettix dak li int fhimt li kont weg˙idtlill-poplu.Óafna drabi, inqis li l-membri eletti jkunu qed ja©ixxu ta' pap-

pagalli meta jirrepetu u jit˙ambqu biss fuq il-linji li jg˙idulhomtal-partit, u ta' pupazzi meta jkollhom jivvutaw favur jew kontral-proposti tal-parlament skont l-istruzzjonijiet tal-partit. A˙narobots bir-remowt kontrol irridu fil-parlament, jew nies li juΩawmo˙˙hom, jafu l-eletturi tad-distrett tag˙hom u impenjati li jir-rappreΩentawhom?

Jien din il-˙a©a li jkun hemm xi ˙add bil-frosta ji©ri warajkbiex jg˙idlek x'tg˙id u x'tag˙mel, hija difett tas-sistema tal-par-titi. Fil-prinçipju, huwa tajjeb li nies jing˙aqdu madwar ideja,jew grupp ta' idejat, fejn isibu appo©©, jistg˙u jiΩviluppaw soluz-

zjonijiet ta' fejda g˙all-problemi soçjali, ekonomiçi u ta' sigurtàta' llum. Huwa wkoll tajjeb li jkun hemm kunsens, imma li tisforza dal-

kunsens, bit-theddida ta' xi sanzjoni jew theddid ta' konsegwenzijekk ma tobdix, g˙alija mhux etiku jew aççettabbli.

Naturalment, nifhem g˙alfejn il-partiti i˙ossu l-bΩonn li jim-ponu d-dixxiplina fuq il-membri tag˙hom f'sistema demokratika,fejn it-twettiq tal-programm elettorali jiddependi fuq voti lijing˙addu u li jridu jkunu iktar mill-voti tan-na˙a l-o˙ra.Madankollu, in˙ossuna komdi nkunu nafu li r-rappreΩentantitag˙na 'l ˙in kollu b'xi ˙add wara jilwilhom idhom?

F'demokraziji madwar id-dinja, qieg˙ed ji©i nnutat f'kuntestidifferenti li n-nies mhumiex kuntenti bir-riΩultati li qed jaraw,qed jistaqsu lilhom infushom jekk ir-regoli li l-parlamentari qedjille©islaw humiex favur il-poplu jew il-˙bieb tal-˙bieb, jekk il-patt li sar mal-eletturi hux mittiefes.Mhux ta' b'xejn li l-partiti tradizzjonali (©eneralment) qeg˙din

inaqqsu mill-appo©© tag˙hom, u l-eletturi qed iduru g˙al˙addie˙or. F'Malta forsi din g˙adha mhix tin˙ass, imma qeg˙dinin˙ossuha fl-Awstralja, fl-Istati Uniti, u dan l-a˙˙ar fi Franza.

Hemm limitu kemm il-partiti jistg˙u jitbieg˙du mill-kos-titwenza tag˙hom qabel dawn jabbandunawhom.Biex ni©u lura g˙al Edwin Vassallo, dan (naturalment) g˙andu

t-theddida ta' kastig mill-partit g˙all-isfida tieg˙u g˙all-ordnijietli irçieva. Jien ma nemminx g˙al nofs sekonda li se jkun hemmkonsegwenza g˙al li g˙amel, imma nifhem g˙alfejn isir dan is-suspense b˙ala twissija g˙al min fil-futur jaΩΩarda li jag˙mel xi˙a©a simili.

Int imma©ina, kieku kull membru tal-Parlament jivvota skontil-kuxjenza tieg˙u, b'sinçerità skont dak li verament jemmen huu mhux iktar kif jisfurzawh jag˙mel. X'g˙arukaΩa tkun, hux?

Il-membru ParlamentriNazzjonalista EdwinVassallo: Ivvota ‘skontil-kuxjenza’ u kontradak li ried il-partittieg˙u


Nhar id-19 ta’ Awwissu waqt kunçert kbir fuq il-Fosos fil-Furjana t-tenur mag˙ruf Malti JosephCalleja se jfakkar l-g˙oxrin sena tal-karriera operi-stika tieg˙u. Folol kbar mistennija jattendu g˙all-avven-iment li l-pubbliku se jkun jista’ jsegwih ming˙ajr ˙las.

Fil-fatt ta’ kull sena fl-ista©un tas-sajf it-tenur Maltijag˙ti kunçert fil-miftu˙ li ©eneralment dejjem isir fuq il-Fosos tal-Furjana. Imma ta’ din is-sena se jkun speçjali,u bix-xieraq, marbut mal-anniversarju operistiku. Dis-sena, fost il-kantanti mistiedna flimkien ma’ Joseph

se jkun hemm ukoll tenur ie˙or popolari – it-Taljanbravissimu Andrea Bocelli, ukoll ta’ fama internazzjon-ali. Minkejja li Bocelli huwa ming˙ajr dawl, xortarnexxielu jkabbar ir-repertorju operistiku fil-popolaritàg˙ax il-Bambin Ωejnu b’le˙en mill-isba˙.

Lura lejn Joseph Calleja, niftakar lit-tenur Paul Asciakjg˙idli li f’idejh kellu vuçi straordinarja li g˙ad timxisewwa ’l quddiem. Minnufih kont staqsejtu min kienimma dakinhar qalli li ma kienx g˙adu l-waqt li jisvelaliminn kien, iΩda li aktar tard kellu jintroduçihuli.

Kien qed jirreferi g˙al Joseph Calleja li aktar tard kienstedinna d-dar tieg˙u f’Ó’Attard biex g˙all-ewwel darbanisimg˙u l-vuçitieg˙u.

Dakinhar Josephkien g˙adu Ωg˙ir(twieled fit-22 ta’Jannar tal-1978 ullum g˙andu 39sena). Kien deher bitbissima fuq fom-mu u beda jkanta.Mamma tieg˙i x’le-˙en smajt! Wara lispiçça, bil-fer˙ li˙assejt kont pront mort ng˙annqu . Paul Asciak qalli minnufih li Calleja kien g˙ad fadallu

triq twila iΩda jasal. Naturalment, jien minnufih kont ste-dintu g˙all-programm tar-radju li kont immexxi fuq FMBronja, bl-isem ta’ Siesta. MaΩ-Ωmien, isem Joseph Calleja beda jingrana. Niftakar

lil missieru Charles (meta kien jitla’ jara lill-ommu fid-dar tal-anzjani ‘Villa Messina’ ˙dejn San Duminku r-Rabat) jag˙tini l-a˙˙ar tag˙rif dwar ibnu Joseph.

Niftakru meta qalli li Joseph kien iltaqa’ mat-tenurPlacido Domingo u li reba˙ l-premju presti©©juΩ Cultur-Arte, konkors internazzjonali tal-opra Operalia mwaqqafmit-tenur famuΩ Domingo. Darb’o˙ra missieru qalli li Joseph kellu jirrekordja g˙ad-

ditta Decca. Niftakar ukoll lit-tenur Asciak, li kien b˙alseqer fuqu, isegwih sal-a˙˙ar nifs tieg˙u. Kien jg˙idlidwar Joseph u r-riΩultati li kien qed jikseb. Fi ftit kliem,kont dejjem infurmat sewwa dwaru.

Dan kollu ©ie quddiem g˙ajnejja meta qrajt li fuq il-gazzetta FrançiΩa Le Figaro, Joseph Calleja hu msemmifost l-aqwa g˙axar kantanti operistiçi r©iel fid-dinja.Hawn ̇ assejt quddiemi lil Paul Asciak jg˙idli... “Qed taraPeter kif kont ng˙idlek sewwa!”

Ng˙idilkom ukoll li l-USA’s National Public Radio id-deskriva lil Joseph Calleja b˙ala ‘arguably today’s finestlyrical tenor’.

Joseph Calleja ra l-mag˙mudija operistika tieg˙u bis-sehem tieg˙u fl-opra ‘Macbeth’ ta’ Verdi li saret fit-TeatruAstra tar-Rabat, f’G˙awdex. Dakinhar, f’Mejju tal-1997… 20 sena ilu, kien intepreta l-parti ta’ Macduff. Kellubiss 19-il sena u d-dehra tieg˙u fuq il-palk kienet daqstenur professjonali. Dakinhar kont fost il-folla nsewgih..

L-arja impenjattiva tat-te-nur - Ah, la paterna mano -f’din l-opra ta’ Verdi, Cal-leja fil-veru sens tal-kelma‘qaxxarha’.

G˙ajnejh xeg˙lu bil-fer˙x’˙in sema’ dawk l-ap-plawsi kbar fit-teatru. Minnfuq il-palk kien ta ˙ajr lildawk preΩenti … imma˙arstu ssammret fuq Paul

Asciak li kien ta˙tu fl-ewwel filliera. Rajt kollox u mallintemmet l-opra, Paul b’©irja kbira tela’ fuq il-palk tal-Astra, b˙alma kowç tal-futbol jo˙rog fil-grawnd wara xilog˙ba importanti li jkun reba˙.

Ma nafx x’©ara eΩatt bejn il-kwinti ... iΩda Ωgur li fostaffarijiet o˙ra Paul qallu, “Prosit Joseph … bdejt it-triqiebsa iΩda sabi˙a”.

Tassew li Joseph kien beda t-triq iebsa li wasslitu biexjidher fl-aqwa teatri operistiçi fid-dinja. Fl-istess sena liCalleja deher fuq il-palk tal-Astra g˙all-opra Macbeth,reba˙ premju fil-Konkors Internazzjonali tal-Kant HansGabor Belvedere, u fl-1998 reba˙ ukoll il-Konkors Internaz-zjonali tal-kant liriku Enrico Caruso f’Milan. Sena wara,kif semmejt, rea˙ il-Premju Internazzjonali ‘CulturArte’.

F’Novembru tal-2012, l-Università ta’ Malta onorat lilJoseph Calleja bid-Dottorat fil-Letteratura Honoris Causab˙ala g˙arfien tal-kisbiet tieg˙u b˙ala tenur ta’ fama in-ternazzjonali. Irrid ng˙id li Calleja dejjem rabat it-talenttieg˙u ma’ pajjiΩu, Malta.

Forsi ˙afna jiftakru meta waqt l-a˙˙ar lejla tal-Promsf’Londra fl-2012, Joseph Calleja wie©eb g˙all-a˙˙ar ap-plawsi kbar lejh billi quddiem it-televiΩjoni f’xandiramadwar id-dinja, wera li huwa tassew Malti permezz tas-salib bi tmien ponot - is-Salib ta’ Malta - fuq sidru. Ankemeta jag˙ti intervisti lil stazzjonijiet barranin, huwa de-jjem ikun jixtieq li jintroduçuh b˙ala t-Tenur Malti.

Fil-fatt Joseph i˙obb sewwa lil pajjiΩu, u Malta tantt˙obbu. Çert li s-Sibt 19 ta ’Awwissu, il-poplu Malti (uanke barrani li se ji©i apposta) se jag˙tih l-akbar ap-plawsi fil-karriera brillanti tieg˙u.

Ng˙idulu, Grazzi Joseph u awguri f’dan l-anniversarjuspeçjali.

It-tenur Joseph Calleja20 sena ta’ karriera operistika

PeterPaulCiantar

It-tenur Malti Joseph Calleja

Four politicians will contest the National-ist Party leadership that is scheduled forSeptember 16. Of the four, only one is cur-rently a parliamentarian, 46-year-old Gozitanlawyer Chris Said. He has been a NationalistMP for the past nine years and has also oc-cupied the post of Justice Minister.

The other three are: Adrian Delia, 47, apartner in a legal firm, who has never occu-pied any role in the Nationalist Party. He iscurrently the president of Premier Leaguefootball club Birkirkara; Alex Perici Calascione, 55, who has been

occupying the post of NP treasurer for thelast two years and is a member of the Ad-ministrative Council He unsuccessfully

contested the June 3General Elections.

Frank Portelli, who isin his 70s, is a formermember of the MalteseParliament. He servedfor five years in the Na-tionalist Party duringthe 1987-1992 legisla-ture. He was NP execu-tive and was president of theexecutive between 1995 and 1998. Heis also CEO of St Philip’s Hospital.

On September 2 the General Council ofthe Nationalist Party will vote on the nom-inations for party leadership from the four

nominees and the top two contenders willthen take part in a run-off election on Sep-tember 16 with paid-up party members cho-osing their preferred leader.

In the past few days, President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca made two histori-cal state visits to countries on twodifferent continents. First she travelled toSouth America and the Republic of Chileand then to the Western African country ofthe Republic of Ghana.In Chile she was accompanied by

the Minister for the Environ-ment, Sustainable Developmentand Climate Change José Herrera,and in Ghana with Minister forForeign Affairs and Trade Promo-tion Carmelo Abela. Her husbandMr. Edgar Pre-ca also formed partof both delegations.

Aside of the official state meet-ings with the respective heads ofstate, the President also took partin bilateral talks in both countries.

In Chile she also participated ina wreath-laying ceremony, at thefoot of the monument dedicated toBernardo O'Higgins, Chilean independenceleader who freed Chile from Spanish rule inthe Chilean War of Independence. She wastaken round Santiago’s Museum of Re-membrance and Human Rights that amon-gst other objects exhibits instruments oftorture that were used during the Pinochetdictatorial regime, and a picture gallery ofpersons who disappeared during the regimeand have not yet been traced since.

It has always been said that there’s no placeon earth where one cannot find a Malteseresident, so too in Chile, and during hervisit President Marie-Louise Coleiro Precatook the opportunity to meet a couple of thefew Maltese living there.

One of the meetings was with a Maltesepriest by the name of Henry Balzan a for-mer Óamrun Parish Priest who has beenserving the Catholic Church in Chile forover 12 years, the last two as Parish Priestof a town in northern Chile called El Sal-vador. Fr Balzan made a 14-hour trip to theChilean capital to meet with PresidentMarie-Louise Coleiro Preca.

Another Maltese resident that the Presi-dent made it a point tomeet was EU Embassy of-ficial Ruth Bajada. Shemet her when she was in-vited to visit the Embassyin Santiago. Ms Bajadahas been working there forthe past two years.

In Ghana the President,who was also leading acommercial delegation,held bilateral talks with hercounterpart Nana AddoDankwa Akufo-Addo andlater expressed her beliefthat the two countries

could do more to further explore their po-tential, deepen opportunities, and enhancethe excellent bilateral relations in the socio,political and economic areas.

President Coleiro Preca remarked thatwhile Malta was uniquely placed in a su-

perb geostrategic position in thecentre of the Mediterranean Seabetween Africa and Europe,Ghana was fast becoming a re-gional hub for opportunities inother West African markets. Thisfurther widened the opportunitiesfor Maltese businesses looking fornew markets.

She said that while Malta wasuniquely placed in the centre of theMediterranean, between Africaand Europe, Ghana was fast be-coming a regional hub for oppor-tunities in other West Africanmarkets, which further widenedthe opportunities for Maltese busi-

nesses looking for new markets.In fact, Minister Abela and a trade delega-

tion from Malta even took the opportunity tostudy the potential, resulting in the signing,presided over by President Coleiro Preca, ofa memorandum of understanding on politicalconsultations between the two governments,and agreements between the Chambers ofCommerce of both countries.

Speaking at a forum on Business Oppor-tunities, President Coleiro Preca andGhanaian v/President Mahamudu Bawumiaexpressed optimism that the visit would befruitful for both countries.

The Maltese head of state also visited theHope X Change hospital in Kumasi, whichwas built with donations by the Maltese peo-ple. On the occasion she unveiled a com-memorative plaque and d said that thehospital, known throughout Ghana as theMaltese hospital, is a miracle of the work, thegenerosity, the solidarity and the love that theMaltese people are capable of giving.

The hospital that caters for thousands ofpatients in a community of 2.5 million alsoflies the Maltese flag.

Roundup of News About Malta


Fruitful visits by President to Chile, Ghana

Four contestants for Nationalist Party leadership

The 4 contenders (from left): Chris Said, AdrianDelia, Alex Perici Calascione and Frank Portelli

The President in her meeting inChile with Maltese priest Fr HenryBalzan (right). Centre is the Presi-

dent’s Chief of Staff Mr. John Camilleri

President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca unveilingthe commemorative plaque at the hospital in

Ghana in the presence of Minister for Foreign Affairs, Carmelo Abela (left) and

her husband Mr. Edgar Preca

MIA predicts 20% increase in

passenger traffic

Malta International Air-port predicts that bythe end of this year, around5.8 million passengerswould have gone its termi-nal establishing a new traf-fic record for the airport. Inthe first half of the yearMIA has already registered2,639,712 passenger move-ments, amounting to an in-crease of 20 per cent overthe same period in 2016.

This solid six-month per-formance encouraged thecompany to revise its origi-nal forecast announced inJanuary, taking into accountthe growth rate reached sofar and other trends.

Starr Companies, agiant world companyin the insurance busi-

ness, has chosen to come toMalta to operate from afterBrexit.

Announcing this on Sun-day, Prime Minister JosephMuscat said Malta facedharsh competition fromother European countries,however, after discussionsin his first meeting with thecompany last November, hemanaged to convince themto relocate to Malta.

He further announced thata Brexit taskforce aimed atattracting to Malta busi-nesses looking to relocate toEurope following Britain’sexit from the 28-countrybloc, is to be formed.

Given the favourable tax cli-mate, Malta’s vibrant tourismsector, and its historical appeal asbusiness-friendly investment loca-tion, giant Dubai-based propertydeveloper DAMAC Properties thathas been at the forefront of theMiddle East’s luxury real estatemarket since 2002, is consideringexpanding its operations to Malta.Concluding a recent tour of the is-land where he had a private meet-ing with Maltese Prime MinisterJoseph Muscat during which thetwo discussed the increasinggrowth of tourism in the Mediter-ranean country, company Chair-man, Hussain Sajwani said, "Maltapresents an ideal mix of investmentbenefits that make it a very attrac-tive place for luxury and hospital-ity developers looking to expandinto the EU zone.

The company, that is known todeliver luxury residential, commer-cial and leisure properties across

the region, including the UAE,Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan,Lebanon and the United Kingdom,believes that Malta presents anideal mix of investment benefits,and “thanks to favourable tax in-centives for foreign investors aswell as a stable government andleadership that continue to driveeconomic growth through thetourism sector, Malta is a destina-tion that we are keeping an eye onas we continue to explore expan-sion opportunities there.”

Making its mark at the highestend of stylish living, DAMACProperties has cemented its placeas the leading luxury developer inthe region, having delivered over18,500 homes, with a developmentportfolio of more than 44,000 unitsat various stages of progress. Thisincludes 13,000 hotel rooms, serv-iced hotel apartments and hotel vil-las that are managed by DAMACHotels & Resorts.


Roundup of News About Malta

In the past four years,18,000 more women haveentered the labour market inMalta. Education and LabourMinister Evarist Bartolo saidthis was the result of a newstrategy for women jobs. Headded that the next stepwould be for more women tobecome entrepreneurs withtheir own business.

Figures just issued indicatethat the number of employedwomen has reached almost90,000, which is an increaseof 20% over 2012.Meanwhile, Economy Min-

ister Chris Cardona said therewas more need for women inthe entrepreneurial sector andto show their capabilities andcreativity, which is so bene-ficial to the economy of thecountry.

The number of personsseeking employmentduring June dropped to2,432. The figure is 1,000less than the correspondingmonth last year.

Figures released by the Na-tional Statistics Office, NSO,show tht unemployment hasdropped in all categories ex-cept for the under 20s.

In 4 years18,000 morewomen joinwork force

Giant company relocates Malta

post Brexit

The next issueof The Voice ofthe Maltese is set

for August 29

Dubai-based propertydeveloper eyes Malta

Ivan Bartolo, 47, a newly-elected Parliamen-tarian on the NP ticket, who in his ownwords, has a large phobia of needles, blood andanything to do with hospitals, was praised forhis altruism by the Speaker of the house of Rep-resentatives Dr Anglu Farrugia, for a noble ges-ture he made by donating one of his kidneys toan unknown patient.

His reaction to being told that that the kidneyhe donated is functioning was “like being toldthat he had just had a child.The recipient is a 31-year-old man.

The Chairman of the Constituent Coun-cil of the Global Council for Toler-ance and Peace (GCTP) Ahmed bin Moh-ammed Al-Jarwan, together and his ac-companying delegation paid a workingvisit to Malta to formally register the dis-tinct interest of his organisation to estab-lish its headquarters in Malta.

On behalf of the government, formerMinister for Foreign Affairs George W.Vella welcomed the interest of the GCTPto establish its headquarters in Malta. He

positively noted the GCTP’s objectives toact as an international space and a globalplatform to serve the ideals of tolerance,peace, and high humanitarian objectives.

The GCTP also aims to launch in theshort term a major international award tocontribute to the protection of interna-tional peace.

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, who alsoreceived the delegation, commended theaims of the Global Council since they re-flected Malta's foreign policy objectives.

Malta to serve as headquarters for GCTP

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat (right) with Mr Hussain Sajwani

Unemployment down to 2,432

MP makes kidney donation

...u fil-knejjes?


B˙alissa ninsabu fl-aqwa tal-ista©un tal-festi... festi lihuma parti essenzjali mill-kultura Maltija. Attwalment fist˙arri© li sar dan l-a˙˙ar dwarliema attivitajiet kulturali jie˙dusehem fihom il-Maltin u l-G˙awdxin, instab li l-aktar at-tivita` kulturali popolari fostnahija dik tal-festi. Infatti f’dan l-ist˙arri© instab li l-og˙la perçent-wal u l-akbar attendenzi ntla˙qufil-festi parrokkjali b’attendenzata’ 67%.

Imma hawn forsi wie˙ed jis-taqsi, kemm attwalment il-festihuma attivitajiet kulturali u, fuqkollox, kemm dawn il-festi qedjil˙qu dak li suppost hu l-akbarvalur tag˙hom, il-valur reli©juΩ?

Bla dubju li fil-festi Maltin il-valur kulturali fejn wie˙ed jista’jammira t-tiΩjin, ix-xog˙ol artis-tiku, kemm fil-knejjes kif ukollfit-toroq tal-belt jew ra˙al fejntkun qed ti©i ççelebrata il-festa,ma jonqosx.

Lanqas ma tonqos il-laqta’muΩikali, dik ferrie˙ija u mon-dana barra l-Knisja, fejn il-banediffer˙u lis-semmieg˙a bil-marçi,u siltiet broijjuΩi, u dik aktar lirikafil-Knejjes.

U t-tiΩjijn mhux limitat biss g˙at-toroq ul-knejjes iΩda wkoll jinfirex fil-kaΩini u d-djar li g˙al jiem il-festa’ jkunu m˙ejjijin fl-aqwa tag˙hom. Matul it-triqat tilma˙ twieqimΩejna bid-damask u b’xi statwa, aktarxreplika tal-istatwa li to˙ro© purçissjonal-ment mill-Knisja.

Sintendi ma jonqsux il-bnadar fuq il-bjutli, fejn hemm aktar minn banda wa˙da jurubiç-çar liema banda tappo©©ja dik il-familja. Kul˙add jimpika min g˙andu l-itwal arblu u l-ikbar bandiera. F’çerti r˙ula

Dejjem intqal li l-qofol tal-festi g˙andhomikunu ç-çelebrazzjonijiet fil-Knejjes… uhawn jibda t-t˙assib.Il-˙e©©a biex il-Knisja fejn tkun qed issir il-

festa tkun imΩejna mill-aqwa g˙adha hemm,bid-damask a˙mar jiddomina fil-Knejjes

kollha. Ma janqsux l-aqwa linef tal-kristall,bukketti tal-fjuri, artalimill-isba˙, x’aktarx b’xistatwi, gandlieri u o©-©etti o˙ra tal-fidda.G˙all-okkaΩjoni lanqas

ma jonqos l-aqwa lbiestas-saçerdoti, xi orkestrau kor maghruf. IΩdambag˙ad sfortunata-ment, bil-mod il-modqed naraw l-attendenzag ˙ a ç - ç e l e b r a z z j o n if’çerti parroççi kulmatmur tonqos, u t˙aresmadwarek x’aktarx taranies ta’ çerta eta’.

Óafna Ωg˙aΩag˙ aktar

jimpurtahom miç-çelebrazzjonij ta’ barra, umhux li jisimg˙u xi pani©ierku (diskors ta’tif˙ir lill-qaddis jew qaddisa tal-festa) li majispiçça qatt. G˙ax filwaqt li l-kleru qed ji©im˙e©©eg li jillimita l-omelija tal-quddiesatal-Óadd g˙all-ftit minuti, donnu m’hemmebda regola kemm idum il-pani©ierku. Sa˙ansitra Ω-Ωmien ©ab bidla wkoll fl-ilbies

tal-festa, kemm tal-knisja minn ©ewwa ukemm minn barra.Sa ftit ilu waqt il-quddiesa tat-transulazzjoni

(lejliet il-festa) u dik pontifikali (tal-jum tal-festa filg˙odu) kont tilma˙ kwaΩi l-ir©ielkollha b’libsa ntiera, u n-nisa bl-aqwa lbies.L-ir©iel irew˙u l-palju (li llum skarsa) u n-nisa jag˙tu kemm jifil˙u bl-imreww˙a.

Illum, minkejja li l-Knejjes kollha g˙and-hom il-fannijiet (u˙ud sa˙ansitra l-arja kkun-dizzjonata) ftit hemm postijiet fejn tara nieslebsin eleganti b˙al ma kienu jag˙mlu qabel.

DaΩ-Ωmien in-nies qed tmur g˙all-ilbieskaΩwali, sa˙ansitra f’çerti postijiet ankeb’tee-shirts u lbies tassew sajfi.

U fejn qabel ˙afna kienu jΩanΩnu xi libsa©dia issa jag˙mluha g˙al xi tie©.

Il-festi reli©juΩi Maltin

...u Ω-Ωg˙aΩag˙ jifir˙uu jferr˙u. Addijo l-il-

bies tradizzjonali, issalbies ˙afif, sajfi

jispikkaw ukoll il-bnadar ta’ pajjiΩi barraninli jindikaw li xi membri ta’ dik il-familja

jew ba˙˙ru nkella g˙amlu xi Ωmien jg˙ixuf’xi pajjiΩ b˙ala emigranti.

Sfortunatamet, il-festi m’g˙adhomxdak li kienu. Bil-mod il-mod, ˙afnanies aktar qed iffittxu dak li ji©ri barramill-knisja, milli ç-çelebrazzjonietreli©juΩi. X’aktarx li l-marçi huma l-akbar attrazzjoni kemm g˙al dawk lisempliçament joqog˙du j˙arsu, u dawkli attwamlment jie˙du sehem.

Fost l-aktar li jie˙du sehem fil-marçihuma Ω-Ωg˙aΩag˙, u hu propju huma lijo˙olqu l-akbar briju bil-kant u Ω-Ωfin,jew a˙jar qbiΩ tag˙hom, b’g˙add ta’ tfa-jliet jie˙du l-okkaΩjoni biex jie˙du rikbaminn fuq spallejn il-©uvintur. S’hemm kieku kollox sew. IΩda sfortu-

nament dan il-briju kultant jit˙assarb’çertu kant u kliem ta’ tmaqdir, kultantsa˙ansitra nsulti fil-konfront tal-kaΩinjew il-festa opposta. Veru li spiçça dakl-inkwiet ta’ dari fejn kien ikollhatinda˙al il-pulizija (fi tfulitna niftakruanke l-uΩu tal-kavallerija waqt il-festi),iΩda xorta l-festa g˙andha tkun xi ˙a©ali tferrah mhux li tmaqdar u titg˙ajjar.

Inwkiet ie˙or huwa x-xorb, u kultantsa˙ansitra s-sess u d-droga.Hawn min jsostni li g˙add ta’ ©uvintur,

u adulti jinqdew bil-festa biex jixorbuΩΩejjed, jie˙du d-droga u jag˙mlu atti lixejn m’huma ta’ ©ie˙. Fil-fatt fi studju lisar xi Ωmien ilu nstab li fil-festi anke tiΩ-died l-prostituzzjoni u l-kriminalità.

PoΩittivIΩda kollox ma kollox u t˙ares kift˙ares lejhom, na˙seb li l-festi g˙and-hom aktar poΩittiv milli negattiv.

Minkejja li g˙edt aktar ‘il fuq, xortajibqa’ l-fatt li l-festi jattiraw in-nies lejnil-Knejjes, g˙alkemm u˙ud aktar biexjaraw il-Knisja u t-tiΩjijn tag˙ha millibiex jitolbu.

Il-festa hija mezz biex in-nies tissoçjal-izza u tal-inqas g˙al ftit jiem twarrab il-klassi, fejn il-˙addiem tal-id jit˙allat ma’dak tal-pinna, fejn in-na©©ar jit˙allat mal-avukat, fejn g˙al mument wie˙ed tintnesad-distinzjoni tal-klassi, li g˙alkemm bil-mod qed tonqos imma g˙adha hemm, umeta wkoll tintnesa’ l-firda politika.

Fuq kollox il-festi juru li l-poplu Maltij˙obb jiççelebra, i˙obb juri l-fer˙ tieg˙u,u j˙obb iferra˙.

Bla dubju li l-festi ji©©eneraw negozjukbir. Dan jibda ferm qabel il-festi g˙axdak li jkun ja˙seb kif se jΩejjen id-dar,ja˙seb g˙all-ikla tal-festa, u g˙ax-xorbmhux biss g˙al tal-familja, imma wkollg˙all-mistednin. Sintedni t-tiΩjin tal-Knej-jes u tat-toroq ji©©enera wkoll çertu ne-gozju, kif jag˙mel in-nar tal-art u tal-ajru....u tasal il-festa..

Fejn qabel kont forsi jsib xi mejda jew

tnejn tal-qubbajt, illum issib toroq b’gabanawa˙da wara l-o˙ra jbieg˙u dak kollu liwie˙ed jixtieq jiekol, kiesah jew s˙un. Majonqsux il-karettuni u tilari armatib’©ugarelli g˙at-tfal.. u li kultant i˙ajruanke lil kbar. Insomma ssib suq s˙i˙.

Fejn qabel, l-aktar fl-ir˙ula, biex tixrob xi˙a©a kont tid˙ol ©o xi ˙anut tax-xorb, illumkull ̇ anut, kull kaΩin, kemm jekk tal-banda,tal-futbol jew politiku, jarma l-imwejjed fuqbarra, fit-triq, u joffri mhux biss xorb u©elati, iΩda wkoll diversi kwalitajiet ta’ ikel,bil-pizza forsi l-aktar popolari wara l-pas-tizzi tal-©obon u l-piΩelli.

G˙alkemm hemm min jg˙idlek lihuma l-anzjani u dawk ta’ çerta eta’li g˙adhom iffisati fil-festi, u li maΩ-Ωmien hemm il-periklu li malli dawnjispiççaw il-festi jie˙du daqqa ta’ ˙arta,il-fatti juru xort’o˙ra.Attwalment g˙ad g˙andna bliet u r˙ula

fejn il-festi huma b’sa˙˙ithom, u kemmkemm wie˙ed ma jistax jg˙id li l-mod kifqed ji©u ççelebrati juri li attwalmentdawn qed jisoktaw jikbru. Hu propju fejniΩ-Ωg˙Ωag˙ jag˙tu sehemhom fejn l-aktarli l-festi qed ji©u ççelebrati bil-kbir.


Il-festa nbidlet ... u bil-kbir

Is-sehem taΩ-Ωg˙aΩag˙

Mhux kollox ward u Ωahar

In-Negozju

G˙ a l k e m mn i s t g ˙ ung˙idu li baΩi-kament ir-ritwaltal-festi ftit lixejn inbidel: il-festa baqg˙etiΩΩomm l-istessmod kif issir il-purçissjoni u r-ritwali marbutinmag˙ha, il-˙ruqtan-nar tal- art utal-ajru, il-marçital-baned matulil-jiem tal-festa,eçç.

IΩ-Ωmien, b˙alf’kull settur ie˙-or bidel il-modkif ji©u ççele-brati l-festi.

Per eΩempjusemmejt in-nar.Il-murtali u l-kaxxi nfernalibaqg˙u iΩda f’˙afna kaΩi llum dawnspiççaw fi spettakli mhux biss ta’ murtalikkuluriti li jpaxxu l-g˙ajn imma wkollb’akkumpanjament muΩikali. Kollox im-˙addem bi preçiΩjoni billi tintuΩa l-a˙˙arteknologija tal-kompjuter, li fuq kollox

jag˙mel il-˙ruqtan-nar anqasriskjuΩ g˙al minjisparah, g˙axspiçça l-bΩonnli wie˙edjixg˙el il-miççab’xi suffarell, lipos-tu ˙aditu l-key- board tal-kompjuter.

Illum post is-santi tal-pat-run/a tal-beltjew ra˙al ˙aduhstampar tal-pa-trun fuq bnadarΩg˙ar, tee shirtsu anke maggi-jiet (xellug)).Ìieli x-xbiehatal-patrun/a fuqna˙a tat-teeshirt tkun ak-k u m p a n j a t aminn xi reklam

fuq in-na˙a l-o˙ra. Sa˙ansitra l-uçu˙ saspiççaw fuq il-bottijiet tal-kunserva billikumpanija li tag˙mel dal-prodott, biext˙ajjar lil min jixtri l-prodott tag˙ha,˙ar©et konsenja ta’ bottijiet tal-kunservabl-uçuh tal-patruni ta’ parroççi (ta˙t) ta’

Malta u G˙awdex (b’kollox 32) fosthomta’ Santa Liena ta’ Birkirkara, il-Bambinatax-Xag˙ra G˙awdex, Santa Marija u SanÌor© t’G˙awdex, is-Salvatur ta’ Óal Lijau o˙rajn.

Federal Minister for Resources and Northern Territory SenatorMatthew Canavan (Nationalist Party) has resigned from thecabinet as he may have contravened section 44 of the AustralianConstitution dealing with dual citizenship.He will remain in Parliament while the government makes an ur-

gent application to the High Court to determine the matter. The government argues that because Senator Canavan's registra-

tion as a citizen was obtained without hisconsent, his Italian citizenship is invalid andhe is not in breach of section 44 of the Con-stitution, which prevents dual nationalsfrom serving as federal MPs.

It emerged that Canavan’s mother hadsigned him up for Italian citizenship withouthis knowledge.

The government has no plans to changesection 44 of the Constitution, which hasnow claimed three political scalps thismonth - Senator Canavan and formerGreens' Senators Larissa Waters and ScottLudlam.The current ambassador for Malta to China,

John Aquilina a former parliamentarian hadto renounce his Maltese citizenship whenthis matter of dual citizenship was raisedduring his time in the NSW Parliament.

Defence Industry MinisterChristoper Pyne (left) said hewould like to see Australia “de-sign, build and export ships, vehi-cles, (and) missiles” with the 200billion Australian dollars the gov-ernment has set aside for defenceover the next decade.

“My ambition and the govern-ment's ambition is to reverse thecurrent situation,” Pyne told Fair-fax Media, “There's absolutely noreason why we can't be as capableas Italy, Germany, France, Great

Britain.”Currently, Australia is the world's sixth largest importer of de-

fence goods, while it is the 20th largest exporter. Pyne said thatwithin two decades, Australia should be exporting arms at similarlevels to Germany, Britain and France, behind the United States

and Russia as the world's largest defence hardware exporters.Pyne said that creating a competitive arms industry would do

wonders for the alliances which Australia holds with key MiddleEastern nations such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE).“Why wouldn't we want to cement our relationship with a coun-

try like the UAE, which shares many of our values in terms ofthe geopolitical issues that we face through things like defenceexports?” Pyne said.

Australia, Spain and France werecompeting for two vacant seatson the United Nations Human

Rights Council, with the winners to bedecided by a vote of all United Nationsmember countries in October. But Francewill postpone its bid until 2021.

Unless there is a late candidate, Aus-tralia’s two-year long campaign will re-sult in being elected later this year.

Australia and Spain will still need towin the majority-approval of the UNGeneral Assembly in October, but Pro-fessor Donald Rothwell from the Aus-tralian National University points out theUN will have little choice but to approvethe bids unless another applicant materi-alises.

The Turnbull government has beenpushing hard for a place on the HRC,with former Liberal minister Philip Rud-dock flying around the world as thecountry's Special Envoy on HumanRights in a bid to shore up votes.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop’s officewould not comment on reports ofFrance's withdrawal but said Australia'sbid would continue.Australia has made a series of “pledges”

to the United Nations as part of its HRCbid. It promised to hold a referendum torecognise Indigenous people in the Con-stitution, campaign to end violenceagainst women and girls, and advocatefor the protection of journalists and free-dom of speech amongst other issues.

A quick glimpse at AustraliaA quick glimpse at Australia


Australia wants seat on the UN Human Rights Council

Australia aims to be a major arms exporter

While visiting Malta Stay at: While visiting Malta Stay at: The Diplomat Hotel, 173 Tower Road SliemaThe Diplomat Hotel, 173 Tower Road Sliema

Email:Email: [email protected] Tel: (00356) [email protected] Tel: (00356) 23497000

Increase in full-time jobs

Dual citizenship creates havoc

Figures released by the Australian Bu-reau of Statistics show that Australiahas achieved its ninth straight month of jobgains, with 14,000 new jobs added to theeconomy in June. Full- time employmentgrew by 62,000 jobs while part-time em-ployment decreased by 48,000.

Full-time jobs have now increased by115,4000 positions in the past two months– the strongest streak of full-time job gainsin 29 years. The unemployment rate hasheld steady at 5.6 per cent, which remainsnear its lowest level in four years.NSW and Victoria did the heavy lifting in

trend terms, adding 11.600 and 7300 jobsrespectively. Prime Minister MalcolmTurnbull welcomed the figures but warnedsustained economic growth was not guar-anteed, “Tomorrow’s prosperity can onlybe delivered by today’s reforms. So whenwe consider how we change the world inwhich we live, we can’t hide under thedoona,” he said.

Last year a report by Save the Chil-dren and Unicef found Australiantaxpayers had spent as much as $9.6

billion on offshore immigration enforce-ment since 2013, while a Parliamentary Li-brary report released in 2016 found ManusIsland had cost taxpayers about $2 billionsince it was reopened – more than $1 mil-lion for each of the 2000 people who havebeen imprisoned there.

The Gillard government's moves to re-open the Manus Island detention centre inlate 2012 saw Australia spend $358.77 mil-lion on operating and capital costs for thetwo centres.

Those costs dramatically increased to$1.1 billion in 2013-14, following MrRudd's pre-election announcement and theAbbott government's election on the backof promises to turn back asylum seekerboats and significantly ramp up border pro-tection.In 2014-15, the two offshore centres cost

taxpayers $1.31 billion, increasing to $1.38billion in 2015-16. Last financial year thecost fell to $980 million as the number ofdetainees reduced.

In June, the government agreed to pay$70 million in compensation to about 1900asylum seekers currently or formerly heldon Manus Island, considered one of Aus-tralia's largest ever human rights court set-tlements. About 1200 people remain in thetwo offshore processing centres, the mostrecent figures from the Department of Im-migration and Border Protection show.The department told Senate estimates the

nationalities of those being held in deten-tion or in the community on Manus in-

cluded nationals from Iran, Bangladesh,Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Iraq and Afghanistan.

There were 233 people found not to berefugees at the end of May, of which 193were living within the processing centre in-cluding six who were receiving medicaltreatment in Port Moresby.A further 32 had returned to their country

of origin voluntarily, while six had been re-turned against their will. The departmentsaid at the end of April, the average timespent in onshore detention in Australia forpeople found to be stateless was 836 days.The longest period in onshore detentionwas 1345 days, more than three and a halfyears.


A quick glimpse at AustraliaA quick glimpse at Australia

Costly offshoredetention

In a statement completely at odds with the Turnbull gov-ernment's public position that no refugees now in offshoredetention would set foot in Australia, the UN High Com-missioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said the agency hadagreed to help administer the deal between Australia and theUnited States on the understanding there would be excep-tions for vulnerable people with family ties in Australia.The angry statement accusing the Turnbull government of

failing to honour the understanding has led to an extraordi-nary public standoff between the UN agency and Immigra-tion Minister Peter Dutton, whose office dismissed the UNclaim, saying the government had been clear about its posi-tion all along.

“Last November, UNHCR exceptionally agreed to helpwith the relocation of refugees to the United States follow-

ing a bilateral agreement between Australia and theUS,” UN commissioner Filippo Grandi (picturedleft) said in a statement.

“We agreed to do so on the clear understandingthat vulnerable refugees with close family ties inAustralia would ultimately be allowed to settlethere.”

He said that the UNHCR had “recently been in-formed by Australia that it refuses to accept eventhose refugees. An understanding was clearly reach-ed over a number of months, and over a number ofmeetings, including with Minister Dutton himself.”

A spokeswoman for Mr Dutton said that “the po-sition of the Coalition government has been clearand consistent: those transferred to [regional pro-cessing centres] will never settle in Australia”.

When pressed further on details of the meetingswith UNHCR she said the office had nothing fur-ther to add.

UN accuses Australia of breaking deal on refugees

The Manus Island detention centre

L-G˙aqda Kulturali Maltija ta’ NSW ip-preΩentat lejla speçjali b˙ala parti mill-hekkmag˙ruf b˙ala l-Locale Festival Program tal-Kunsill Lokali ta’ Cumberland. Il-Maltese FolkloricFestival (Festival Folkloriku) li ppreΩentaw fir-RedGum Centre f’Wenthworthville kien suççess kbir,tant li ©ibed lejh x’aktarx wa˙da mill-akbar fololli rajt ta’ Maltin f’sala wa˙da f’dawn l-a˙˙arΩmienijiet.

Is-sala kienet ippakkjata u g˙al iktar minn sittsieg˙at gew ippreΩentati attivitajiet varjati, fos-thom kant, Ωfin u daqq, fil-waqt li l-premijiet libdew ˙er©in mill-hekk mag˙rufa b˙ala ç-Choco-late Wheel, kienu popolari daqs il-konfetti. Wara

kollox kien hemm ukoll xi w˙ud dilet-tanti li ppreΩentaw ix-xog˙lijiet tag˙-hom g˙all-wirja tal-arti u s-snajjatradizzjonali Maltin. Biex iΩid fid-divertiment, ˙adu sehem

ukoll g˙add ta’ kantanti Maltin fos-thom il-popolari Charles Muscat. Kienhemm ukoll final bil-kbir mill-kor tal-G˙aqda Kulturiali.

F’kumment li tat lil The Voice of theMaltese Marisa Previtera, l-organizza-triçi ta’ dan il-festival folkloriku, qalet,“ksibna suççess g˙ax sibna ko-operaz-zjoni minn g˙aqdiet o˙ra speçjalmentta’ San Nikola. Kul˙add ©ibed ˙abelwie˙ed. Grazzi lil kul˙add. L-atten-denza tqawwilna qalbna”

Malti ie˙or qalilna, “dawk li dejjemimaqdru lill-komunita` u jg˙idulna limorna l-ba˙ar ˙adu lezzjoni o˙rag˙ax din l-attivita` uriet li l-komunita`g˙adha b’sa˙˙ita u attiva ferm. Fejnkienu dawk li dejjem igergru u jil-mentaw?”

Il-festa tal-Imnarja tidher li hi popo-lari ferm mal-komunita` Maltija ta’NSW, tant li erba’ g˙aqdiet differentiorganizzaw attivitajiet li g˙alihom at-tendew il-mijiet. G˙alkemm din tal-g˙aqda kulturali ma kienetx partimill-Imnarja imma wkoll kellha xikonnessjonijiet.


Xag˙ra Association of NSW IncFr Charles Sultana’s NSW

Programme August - September 2017St John the Evangelist Parish, Riverstone 164, Garfield Rd East, Riverstone

Morning Mass times: Tuesday-Saturday: 8:30 amFriday Evenings times: 7:30 pm (August:18th, 25th September: 1st, 8th, 22nd)except Friday, 15th September 6:30 pm at Horsley Park

Saturday vigil Mass times: 6:00 pm (August 19, 26, September 2, 9, 23, except Saturday September 16 at 5:30 pm

Sunday Mass times: 7:00am & 9:00am: August: 20, 27, September: 3,10,17, 24In addition, Sunday September 3: 5:00 pm at Riverstone, September 10:

3:00pm at St Mary’s Cathedral, Sydney, September 17: 3:00 pm Horsley Park,

Sunday 24: 3:30 pm @ Greystanes. Confessions: Saturday: 4:30 pm – 5:30 pm

Thursday, August 31Saturday Sept. 2Sunday Sept. 3Sunday Sept. 10St Mary’s Cathedral

Saturday Sept. 16.Tal-Vitorja Din/DanceSunday Sept. 17Horsley Park FestaTuesday Sept. 19Sunday Sept. 24.Festa at Greystanes

10:15 am 7.30 p.m 6:30 pm 2:30pm 3:00 pm till late

7.15 p.m.2.00 p.m.3.00 p.m.7.00 a.m.3.30 p.m.

Mass for the Elderly who meet weekly for respite @ La Valette Social CentreLa Valette Social Centre to meet the Maltese community who socialise thereHamrun Club to meet the Maltese community who socialise thereRosaryConcelebrates Mass & says homily @ St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney - Annual Celebration by the Maltese Community of the feast of the Nativity of Our Lady. Afterwards to Dinner. Bus will be organised, for bookings or any information refer to contacts belowGuest of Honour @ Annual tal-Vitorja Dinner Dance, Balmoral Function Centre, 49 Balmoral Road, Blacktown. For any tickets refer to contacts belowProcession on church grounds with Statue of Our Lady of Victories.Concelebrates Mass @ Horsley Park Church - Our Lady of Victories.Bus Outing to the Entrance ConCelebrates Mass at Our Lady Queen of Peace Church - Festa Greystanes

Enquiries: Ray/Josephine Bigeni: 9627 4182 or 0439 974 182, 0448 100 034 M'Anne Teuma: 4579 6771

Festival Folklorikuli kien suççess kbir

Parti mill-folla li attendiet fir-Red Gum Hall

Marisa Previtera bil-kor tal-G˙aqdaKulturali ta’ NSW warajha. Inset: Il-kantant/muziçista Charles Muscat

Ireland’s best selling daily news-paper Irish Independent, thatalso has its own news portal,this month carried an article aboutMalta as a tourist destination bydiving enthusiast Jane Doran. Ti-tling the article: Travel: Wine &Dive in Malta, the journalist admitsthat when she visited the island tenyears ago she did not know muchabout the culture, the landscape,the food or the people as her onlyreason for visiting was to practiceher sport of diving in the blue, cleanwaters surrounding the island.

She further admits that to hershame, on that trip to Malta shewas not too bothered to take interestin the island’s other attractions. Butnow she is.

Doran said that the combination ofthe warm Mediterranean, great visi-bility and abundance of reefs, ship-wrecks, caves and sea life have earnedMalta, and its little sister island Gozo,a reputation as one of the top divespots in Europe; “an underwater Dis-neyland if you like”.

But things changed. “Alas, my dive-buddy-to-be's tumble down a flight ofancient steps in the pretty capital Val-letta and the resultant broken leg,scuppered my plans. A miserableweek confined to a hotel room beinga reluctant nursemaid followed. Inever got to paddle, never mind dive.

“I finally read my guidebook (therewas nothing else to do) and learnedabout everything I was missing abovewater: the beautiful land andseascapes, medieval towns and vil-lages, monolithic tombs, superbbeaches and Mediterranean-with-a-twist cuisine. She then visited Vallettaand when she got the opportunity toreturn to the archipelago to dive, shewas rather excited.

Jane Doran writes: “I flew into Val-letta but took the half-hour ferry tripthe next day to Gozo, the smaller, lesspopulated island. Things move slowlyin Gozo; you get a sense not much haschanged since the middle of the lastcentury. It has a hazy, lazy, wildbeauty and is dotted with sleepy vil-lages and megalithic temples olderthan the Egyptian pyramids.In Gozo she went for self-catering, at

a five-bed converted farmhouse inXaghra, a tiny village in the centre ofthe island, home to the UNESCOGgantija Temples that are consideredto be the oldest freestanding structuresin the world.

The huge numbers of dive sitesaround the islands mean there is agood choice of schools, so she divedwith one of them in Marsalforn, theclosest thing to a seaside resort inGozo. They did six dives: a 'getting toknow you' one at Xlendi; two boat

dives - the P31 shipwreck and theComino Caves - and three shore dives- Cathedral Cave, the Inland Sea andthe world-renowned Blue Hole.

On March 9 this year until thenMalta's top tourist attraction, the100ft limestone arch Azure Window,near Dwejra Bay in San Lawrence col-lapsed into the sea after heavy storms.It was one of the most famous land-marks in Europe having also featuredin numerous films and TV series. Mal-tese Prime Minister Joseph Muscatcalled it "heartbreaking"; the nationmourned, she said.But Jane admits that all was not lost,

however, as in the same area lays an-other tourist attraction: the Blue Hole,that she describes as a circular, sink-hole of stunning colour.

“It's a wonderful place to swim,snorkel or just lay about and alsohappens to be one of the best divesites on the planet. It is such an invit-ing-looking dive site - the prettiest,bluest, most light-filled water I haveseen.”This is how she describes it: A choral

garden; an underwater archway; afantastic eight-metre swim-throughcalled the chimney; crystal-clear visi-bility, a cave and diverse marine life -this dive ticked every underwatertheme park box there is and has beenmade even better by the sad collapseof the 'window.'

Its remains - huge glowing whitechunks of limestone yet unsullied bythe sea and its creatures - are every-where; a breathtaking sight. Expertsindicate the limestone will take abouta year to become discoloured byalgae, so don't leave it too long tostrap on a tank.

She continues to say that divinglooks like a gentle enough pursuit but,during an average dive a personburns around 800 calories. So , butluckily for them they were in the rightplace.

She received valuable advice about

Maltese food in Mellieha Bay, andthat on seeing her face when her lob-ster ravioli arrived, a local laughedand said, “light lunch to the Malteseis lunch in the sun”. She adds that theMaltese do not do small portions.They do, however, do great food.

Her description of Maltese food isamazing. “Maltese food is rustic witha focus on fresh ingredients; its longhistory of colonisation bringing anelectric mix of Mediterranean flavoursand colours. There is a very strong Si-cilian influence. I loved gbejniet, thelocal sheep or goats’ cheese, and thenational dish of rabbit stew”. She also had her fill in a Gozo restau-

rant, a former winery and also tastedthe wine, saying that when it comesto Maltese wine, the island’s great se-cret is that is has fantastic, high-qual-ity, reasonably priced wine. “You'venever drunk it or seen it in an off-li-cence because the Maltese keep it allfor themselves.”

In her opinion, the Maltese are oneof the biggest wine drinkers in theworld, with some estimates indicatingconsumption works out at two bottlesper day per person.

Back to diving, she explained howphysically tiring and stressful it couldbe dragging wetsuits on and off. “My mind was slightly frazzled from

navigating through shoals of jellyfishand the low-level anxiety of knowingif I surfaced in the wrong place inCathedral Cave I risked death by boatpropeller. So, a glass of wine, or two,at the end of the day was very wel-come” The Irish writer concludes that Mal-

ta makes a wonderful holiday for themore adventurous wine-lover. Explor-ing the unknown adds excitementand a sense of the unexpected. “Thereare five major wine producers, all of-fering some form of wine-tasting tour.“Wining and diving, it's the perfectcombination for a week away - justdon't do it at the same time.”


A dive, wine & dine adventure in Malta

Jane Doran exploring the P31 shipwreck (Photo Mark ‘Crowley’ Russell)


IL-PARTIÇIPJU JEW AÌÌETTIVREGOLA 26 (tkompli)Verbi li ma jmorrux g˙alkollox ma’ din ir-regola:

(1) Il-verbi neqsin (torox) tal-g˙amla ta’ radd, sadd, ˙attli fl-Imperattiv jag˙mlu rodd, sodd, ˙ott. Is-sura ewlenijata’ dawn il-verbi hija radad, sadad, ˙atat mixruba f’dikta’ rodd, sodd, ˙ott. L-Imperattiv ewlieni tag˙hom huwaardad, asdad, a˙tat li minnhom jo˙ro© l-a©©ettiv jewpartiçipju mardûd, masdûd, ma˙tût fejn il-vokali a jew otal-Imperattiv ti©i li g˙all-˙lewwa tal-le˙en titbiddelf’o˙ra u g˙alhekk ng˙idu misdûd, b˙al minxur flokmonxur (minn onxor). Fuqhom, minn mess, g˙odd, ˙oΩΩniktbu mimsûs (flok mamsûs), mag˙dûd, ma˙ΩûΩ. Hekkukoll minn ˙ass ng˙idu u niktbu ma˙sûs.(2) Il-verbi neqsin (mo˙fijin) tal-g˙amla ta’ sab, ©ieb,Ωied, sar li fl-Imperattiv jag˙mlu sib, ©ib, Ωid, sir u g˙al-hekk ma jsawrux il-partiçipju fuq il-g˙amla tal-verbis˙a˙. IΩda minn sib, ©ib, Ωid, sir, big˙, nag˙mlu misjub,mi©jub, miΩjud, misjur, mibjug˙ u mhux msiub, m©iub,eçç., imma bil-vokali tal-le˙en bejn l-ittra m u l-ewwelkonsonanti tal-g˙erq u bil-konsonanti j b˙ala t-tieniwa˙da tal-kelma flok il-vokali twila î. (Ara s-Sitt Regola

u d-Disg˙a u Tletin Regola tal-Ewwel Taqsima, u l-G˙add22 para. (2) tat-Tieni Taqsima).

Verbi ta’ din il-g˙amla li g˙andhom l-ewwel konso-nanti g˙, isawru l-partiçipju passat fuq il-verbis˙abhom imnisslin. G˙alhekk il-verbi g˙ab, g˙am, g˙er,g˙ex jag˙mlu lpartiçipju passat mg˙ajjeb, mg˙awwem,mg˙ajjar, mg˙ajjex. Imma g˙en jag˙mel meg˙jun.(3) Xi verbi tax-xebh tal-g˙amla ta’ wiret, wiΩen,wa©a(g˙), wiled, jimxu fuq it-tiswir tal-verbi s˙a˙ ujag˙mlu l-partiçipju passat mirut, miΩun, mi©ug˙, milud.Ma’ dawn hemm il-verbi wasal, waqa(g˙), wasa(g˙),we˙el li jimxu fuq is-sura tal-verbi mnisslin u jag˙tumwassal, mwaqqa(g˙), mwassa(g˙), mwa˙˙al. Óa li ©ejminn a˙ad jimxi fuq il-verbi s˙a˙ u jag˙mel me˙ud.(4) Verbi neqsin li g˙andhom l-a˙˙ar konsonanti jew l-a˙˙ar Ωew© konsonanti wa˙da mill-ittri neqsin. Ara:fela(j), mela(j), qara(j), ˙ema(j), g˙

tthhee ttrreeaassuurreess ooff mmaallttaa the grand master’s...

Documents