Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1495215
13 NEWS maltatoday | SUNDAY • 19 MARCH 2023 MATTHEW VELLA THE Maltese government has kicked back against accusations of discrimination by the company that took control of a vast swathe of lands in Gozo, under control of a medieval fiefdom, when it de- registered its title over parcels of lands in Nadur. The finance ministry said it had acted in the public interest when it issued a legal notice that cut off at the knees the 17th century foundation's controversial claim on the lands. The constitutional case con- cerns the Abbazia di Sant Anto- nio delli Navarra, the foundation whose property titles are owned by the company Carravan Ltd – comprising the Stagno Navarra heirs, former magistrate Dennis Montebello, and lawyer Carmelo Galea. Through the Abbazia's so- called 'rector' – the lawyer Pat- rick Valentino – the company in question is calling on the govern- ment and the Lands Registrar to reinstate the foundation's title in Nadur, and declare a breach of rights, with compensation for damages allegedly suffered. The case was filed as a reaction to the introduction of Legal No- tice 73 of 2022 in February, which resulted in the revocation of all land registrations in a large area of Nadur, which included the Ab- bazia's titles. The introduction of that Legal Notice had been prompted by complaints made by several of the affected area's residents, whose title over the land is being chal- lenged by the businessmen who have joined forces with the Abba- zia heirs, who claim the lands are theirs. But the finance ministry has insisted its legal notice does not deny the Abbazia or Carravan its right to private property as guar- anteed by the European Conven- tion for Human Rights. "Deregistration does not im- pugn the principle of peaceful en- joyment of possession... it did not preclude the applicants from the property title they are claiming, if this even exists. For the same reasons, deregistration does not create either control of or inter- ference with the property the applicants claim they own," the State Advocate told the Court. "The deregistration has made been in the public interest, espe- cially in consideration of the ob- jectives that land registrations are expected to achieve; and creates a justified balance between the general interest, and the interest of those who like the applicants had a property registered in their name." The Abbazia – a foundation created in the 1670s by the no- blewoman Cosmana Navarra to administer the lands for her heirs – alleges that the government's legal notice was published right before the 2022 general election, in a bid to satiate "private individ- uals occupying the land... who in- stead of having recourse to judi- cial fora, launched a campaign on the media and in street protests to put pressure on the Govern- ment, resulting in the legislation that is being impugned." In the year 1675, Navarra en- trusted the control of her land to the Abbazia, and also granted the Archbishop the power to appoint a rector to administer the lands for the benefit of the foundation – specifically a male descendant of Cosmana's nephew Federico or, in his absence, a priest. Fast forward to 1992, when Richard Stagno Navarra – claim- ing to be a descendant of Cos- mana Navarra – demanded the right to be the Abbazia's rector. The Archbishop's Curia initially resisted the claims, and it was on- ly in 2013 that it obtained a court judgement in 2013 confirming the Archbishop's right to appoint the rector. But in 2017, much to the con- sternation of the residents and farmers of the Gozo lands con- cerned, Archbishop Charles Sci- cluna accepted the Stagno Navar- ras' ancestry claims, appointing the rector of their choice, lawyer Patrick Valentino, for the sum of €200,000 that is supposed to be 'spent' in pious acts for the repose of the soul of Cosmana Navarra. As rector, Valentino immedi- ately set out to transfer the Abba- zia's lands to Carravan, the com- pany now developing the lands, which it also does by challenging property titles of homeowners in Qala and Nadur, with residents fighting their pretensions in ex- pensive court cases. The legal notice froze these reg- istrations, bringing a stalemate to proceedings that for the time be- ing, stopping Carravan from put- ting out the land for development as it did in Qala. The legal notice was always set to be challenged in the Maltese courts, given that the LRA (land registration area) in Nadur regis- tered in 2019 gave rise to proper- ty registrations that brought with them "legitimate expectations" of asset value. LRAs are designated areas in Malta where an effective title to land must be registered by those who own it. Notaries register property sales falling inside LRAs within two weeks, whether they are a first-time or subsequent registration. This also means that pretenders to a property's title can challenge any registration by filing a cau- tion against it. After 10 years pass the first reg- istration, that title is converted into a guaranteed title – as long as no caution was filed against that title during that period. mvella@mediatoday.com.m Gozo lands claimed by Abbazia 'deregistered in public interest' Finance ministry says deregistration of property titles claimed by medieval foundation was made in public interest