Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1133773
19 LETTERS & EDITORIAL maltatoday | SUNDAY • 23 JUNE 2019 Mikiel Galea The ECHR I write in the national interest to clarify what appears to be a misconception by many of the island's legal relationship with the European Court of Human Rights, this to avoid a perpetual influ- enza to the contrary with disastrous le- gal effect on our legal system as a con- tracting state. The European Court is not a Court of Appeal from our Court of Appeal, and is meant to deal with cases of unfair hearing in procedure regulating justice, with suitable reparation of damages in a case. But it certainly cannot touch the merits of a case as expressed by our Supreme Court after all the tribunals involved have been gone through and res judicata is reached. Our Court of Appeal can never toler- ate instructions as to what to do as this step is infinitely ultra vires, and is con- sidered an insult even to our judges. In fact, it is a well-known principle that "the right to a fair hearing before a Tribunal must be interpreted in the light of the Preamble, which declares the Rule of Law to be part of the com- mon heritage of the contracting states. One of the fundamental aspects of the Rule of Law is the principle of legal certainty which requires that where the Courts have finally determined an issue, their ruling should not be called into question". Procedures before a Court which do not lie within our domestic jurisdic- tion cannot have any effect on our procedures in Malta. This is to be made clear. J. Zammit Tabona, Valletta Brexit uncertainty means pound drop EARLIER this week, those of us inter- ested in the fate of our country were taken by the debate between the con- tenders for next UK prime minister. I take note of the comments made by deVere CEO Nigel Green, who said the chaos and uncertainty triggered by Brexit – which has recently intensified by the race for a new Tory Prime Min- ister – has put the pound on a consid- erable downward trajectory. "An already battered pound has lost almost 5 per cent of its value against the US dollar since the start of May. Similarly, it continues six straight weeks of falls against the euro…. The debate on Tuesday night – the first one in which Boris Johnson, the frontrun- ner, has taken part – underscores in the most dramatic way that there is still no single realistic way forward out of the Brexit quagmire. None of them could answer how they would get their version of Brexit over the line. As it stands, the facts remain that parlia- ment will not back the deal as agreed with the EU; it will not back a no-deal scenario; and it will not back a second referendum. As such, there is still no path through this – and it has already been going on for three years." Against this backdrop of growing uncertainty and a looming deadline, the pound and UK assets will likely have further to fall. Unlike what is happening in Malta, it is hardly surprising that international investors are responding to the Brexit- fuelled uncertainties by considering removing their wealth from the UK. I feel sorrow for those who are suffer- ing the absence of real answers on the most pressing issue for a generation. Alistair Farrell, Mellieħa Qawra rubbish AS a Qawra resident, I get to see a lot of what is happening in St Paul's Bay. I'm not sure if our street cleaners are even doing their job, or whether it is residents who are unclear about the hours they take out the trash, or per- haps it is the local council that is not taking action with respect to the state of cleanliness? What's true is that our towns here look like one big trash dump. Various neighbours say they have downloaded the Clean&Upkeep app which sends complaints to the cleansing depart- ment. But despite numerous complaints, no action seems to be taken. And with the summer heat now fully with us, organic waste is bound to be- come a problem with the smell of rot- ting food. Unfortunately, the problem of trash in Malta is becoming a serious one, which affects the lives of residents as well as the product that tourists are witnessing. I hope local councils can come together to take this problem seriously. Florian Weber, St Paul's Bay Letters & Clarifications