Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1525429
3 gozotoday | FRIDAY • 16 AUGUST 2024 NEWS GozoToday is a weekly newspaper focused primarily on Gozo. It hopes to serve as a source of information on business, culture, entertainment and of course current affairs. Gozo has a special charm about it but it is also a bustling Island with an identity of its own. We will strive to bring you the news over the next three months. At this stage we are planning to take advantage of the influx of local and foreign visitors to this marvellous Mediterranean Island. But we could be tempted to continue with this newspaper project beyond the Summer months. GozoToday will be published every Friday and is available to numerous outlets in Gozo and on the ferries that carry so many visitors to Gozo from Malta and beyond. GozoToday MediaToday Co. Ltd Vjal ir-Rihan San Gwann SGN 9016 EDITOR: PAUL COCKS Tel: (356) 21 382741-3, 21 382745-6 Website: www.maltatoday.com.mt E-mail: dailynews@mediatoday.com.mt GozoToday is published by MediaToday in collaboration with the Ministry for Gozo and Planning MINISTERU GĦAL GĦAWDEX U LIPPJANAR FLIMKIEN għal Ambjent Aħjar has condemned the treatment meted out to archaeologist Dawn Adrienne Saliba, Ph.D., the president of NGO Malta Arch, who was threatened with legal action by the Superin- tendence of Cultural Heritage (SCH) when she exposed the presence of ancient man-made caves and megalodon fossils under the roadworks being car- ried out connected to the wid- ening of Triq Marsalforn. Some of the fossils were actu- ally retrieved from beneath the bulldozer tracks, in spite of the presence of an SCH archaeolo- gy monitor. Gozo Today carried an exten- sive article penned by Dr Saliba in last week's issue, in which she recounted her discovery and ensuing experience when reporting it to authorities. "This shocking discovery is made more outrageous by the fact that the SCH threatened Dr Saliba with legal action for having exposed these facts publicly, demanding an apolo- gy," FAA said in a statement. "This is outright intimidation, very serious harassment which violates the EU Directive on Public Access to Environmen- tal Matters, (Aarhus Conven- tion) Section 3: 8. Each Party shall ensure that persons exer- cising their rights in conform- ity with the provisions of this Convention shall not be penal- ized, persecuted or harassed in any way for their involvement. This provision shall not affect the powers of national courts to award reasonable costs in judi- cial proceedings." FAA said that the destruc- tion of archaeological remains in the course of works, and in the presence of SCH monitors is not a one-off as it has been reported several times over the years. "Just a few months ago at a site within the Brockdorf Circle in Xagħra Gozo ritualised hu- man remains in ancient caves were reported by residents and immediately cleared by the developers, lost for posterity," it said. "Why did the SCH not take legal action, in line with the Heritage Act then?" FAA said it cannot remain silent when development is approved in the heart of an archaeological zone, claim- ing that the site will be closely monitored, as monitors are of- ten entirely absent or experi- ence problems in carrying out their work. "One shudders to think how much heritage has been lost over the years, not just archae- ology but also architecture, from an Arab-period house in Safi, Medieval houses in Siggie- wi, the magnificent 1537 Ar- moury of the Knights in Qormi and the Bovile at Manoel Is- land, to mention just a few." FAA accused the very author- ities responsible for protecting Malta's cultural or natural her- itage with betraying their remit. It said ERA justified the de- struction of Malta's most high- ly protected mature trees to be destroyed by the Marsalforn project on the grounds of sup- plementary plantings which will never replace the unique ecosystems being destroyed. Dr Saliba said that the road project during which she found the fossils is not only going to destroy vital ecological habitats but also two fossil-containing layers (C1 and C2). "If I found two megalodon teeth and one possible large rib bone in this tiny patch, how much more is there to be destroyed under Triq Marsal- forn?" she asked. FAA condemns cultural heritage watchdog's 'intimidation' of archeologist after Marsalforn find Man-made caves and megalodon fossils were uncovered under roadworks being carried out connected to the widening of Triq Marsalforn