Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1453707
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 20 FEBRUARY 2022 OPINION 11 what Gozo looks like'… that we can also tell, at a glance, when the picture has been 'dolled up' – if not 'given emergency cosmetic surgery' - to appear a good deal 'glitzier', and more 'glamorous', than it really is. And nowhere was this more visible, last Thursday – well, apart from in a few of the cos- tumes – than in that little snip- pet about 'Xlendi'. As it happens, I conducted a small statistical analysis about that, too: in a clip lasting approximately two-min- utes, all we really ever got to see of 'Xlendi' was: > Part of the road leading down from Fontana (Rabat)… featur- ing those impressive garigue formations, rising above a valley of thick bamboo (but, alas, stop- ping just before they got to the entrance of 'La Grotta'); > The 17th century Xlendi watch-tower, from at least three carefully-chosen camera angles (that never once revealed any of the slightly-less-photogenic 21st century buildings right behind it… not to mention the cranes, the carparks, the ongoing con- structions-sites, the excavations for future developments, etc., etc.) … and, um, that's about it, re- ally. The last shot was just a wide-angle view of the mouth of the bay – taken from the shore- line – which strategically omit- ted any visible part of 'Xlendi' at all… except the sea; a couple of boats; the rocky shoreline on ei- ther side… and a smiling, attrac- tive face in the middle (that took up almost the entire frame). In other words: we didn't even catch a single glimpse of the town of Xlendi itself – you know: the 'picturesque seaside village' that the clip was meant to be 'advertising' – through- out the entire video. It is almost as though… hang on, no: it is EXACTLY as though the cam- era-crew they must have sent, to film all those shots, eventually gave up even trying to find a sin- gle corner of that former Gozitan 'beauty-spot', that was still even worthy of photographing at all... And again: it is precisely be- cause we know, from our own ex- perience, what the rest of Xlendi actually looks like – especially now, that the latest six-storey concrete monstrosity has aris- en, to dwarf its last-remaining 'unspoilt' corner – that… well, I can't say I exactly blame those cameramen, either. All things considered, they ac- tually did a pretty good job… of creating the illusion that Xlendi has NOT, in fact, been archi- tecturally raped beyond recog- nition; and that the most recent aberrations to have permanently disfigured that seaside village, have NOT all taken place in our own time, and under our own watch… But like I already said: that's the sort of illusion that can only ever work with foreigners – i.e., pro- spective tourists, of the kind that such ads normally target – and even then, it is a trick that can only ever realistically work once (if it even works at all). With a Maltese audience, on the other hand, it is far likeli- er to have the opposite effect… and, I daresay, even more to the Gozitans themselves (it was, after all, only last year that ALL Gozo's local councils got together, de- spite their political differences, to protest against the over-devel- opment of their island). In fact, just about everything about those 'mini-clips' you care to name (including that they were even shown at all), can only graphically confirm what we all already know: a) that a 'government/regulator tandem' that was responsible for protecting Xlendi from greedy developers – and also, by exten- sion, so much else of this coun- try – has manifestly, and abjectly, FAILED... and; b) It is now resorting to official propaganda (aired, at our ex- pense, on national TV) to 'doll up', and 'disguise', the ugly re- sults of their own FAILURE. And that is a reality that no amount of 'cosmetic surgery' – no matter how expertly applied – can possibly disguise for long… Karl Schembri Karl Schembri is an author and former journalist karl.schembri@gmail.com Hands off the editor THE chief editor of L-Orizzont and It-Torċa, Victor Vella, has been suspended by his employ- er for the last three weeks. The charges against him are made up and won't stand in an industrial tribunal, where this will end if they proceed to fire him. In fact, the charges are so embarrassing that the Union Print's Chief Executive Officer, Omar Vella, won't state them in public. He accused Victor Vella, who has worked with the newspaper for 27 years, of insubordination for setting head- lines without his permission. He also accused him of not publishing a couple of opinion col- umns by Labour Party candidates. That in itself is very indicative of the union leadership's North Korean idea of the job de- scription of a newspaper editor, but it is also just the icing on the cake. Vella's suspension comes after months of intimidation, threats and an increasingly hostile environment against him, pushed by the union's leadership on orders from the prime minister's office. Their gripe is that Vella has been covering issues that are too inconvenient for our prime minister's election campaign. Poverty, the ris- ing cost of living, immigrants' rights, precarious labour ... in between those bland government propaganda stories on L-Orizzont and It-Torċa, Vella was giving a voice to the voiceless. Inci- dentally, his last main story on It-Torċa's front page was about the unregulated jungle of the courier industry that yesterday led to the death Ajay Shrestha in a traffic accident, but also a homicide by the system. Victor would have been at the forefront uncovering the systemic injus- tices that led to this. And yet, he wasn't even criticising the gov- ernment as much as reminding it of the values of humanity and decency. He was in fact high- lighting the issues that any union worth its salt would be fighting for. Robert Abela's communications henchmen have been so incensed by all this that they have been pushing the narrative – parroted by Un- ion Print's CEO – that L-Orizzont was 'made in Africa' and that it had become the newspaper for black people. Such is the contempt of these people at anyone threatening to dent their illu- sions of a perfectly-run country, they don't even realise how racist and despicable they are. Some people on social media have argued that Victor Vella had it coming in choosing to work for the GWU newspaper. What did he expect, they asked? Since when did we expect L-Oriz- zont not to be Labour's mouthpiece? Didn't he sacrifice his journalistic integrity by working for them? I find this kind of reasoning very frustrating and unfair to Victor and towards journalists in general. Victor was doing the right thing with- in the parameters of his institution's newspaper and now needs our solidarity. There is no ques- tion that a union-owned newspaper will have its editorial line. Victor was pushing the work- ing class bread and butter issues that need to be covered more by our media. If anything, he was reassuring Labour's core constituency that someone was still thinking of them. Having him fired is not only unfair to Victor, however. It is a disservice to the thousands of GWU members who need an explanation from their union's leadership. It is also a disservice to our right to information, particularly in an elec- tion year, where critical voices are needed more than ever, and we're not even talking about downright dissent here. This is also highly indicative of just how un- fit for purpose our politicians are, treating us as mere recipients of their bullshit. Nothing new there – I've seen similar pressure and contempt by the Gonzi administration whenever they dis- liked something in print. And I'm told Bernard Grech's people are equally petty. But the point here is that right now it is Vella who needs our solidarity, and it is for our own sakes. Editors, even of partisan newspapers, are not mere functionaries for the filthy lot at the top of our institutions. Democracy requires more peo- ple like Vella. We require Vella to resume his job and given all the resources necessary to hold the government to account. Even when we disa- gree with him, we need to defend his space and his editorial prerogative, which gives us the very right to respond in the battle of ideas. Nobody, except the vandals of the truth, will benefit from snuffing out Vella. Here's a suggestion to journalists: Leave an empty front chair for Victor, with his name printed and taped, in every press conference you go to, until he is reinstated. And hound Robert Abela and his communications men about their stand on Victor's suspension. It's for your own sake, and ours. Leave an empty front chair for Victor, with his name printed and taped, in every press conference you go to, until he is reinstated