Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1540671
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. GozoToday is 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 ASSISTANT EDITOR: LAURA CALLEJA Tel: (356) 21 382741-3, 21 382745-6 Website: www.maltatoday.com.mt E-mail: dailynews@mediatoday.com.mt 3 gozotoday | FRIDAY • 24 OCTOBER 2025 NEWS THE Vatican's Commission for the Protection of Minors has praised the Bishop of Gozo for his "strong and admirable lead- ership" in implementing robust Church safeguarding measures, describing the Gozo and Malta Church's approach as "exem- plary" and a model for other countries to follow. In its 2024 annual report, the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors said the Bishop of Gozo and the Arch- bishop of Malta had demon- strated long-term commit- ment to protecting minors and vulnerable adults within the Church. It urged other epis- copal conferences around the world to adopt similar safe- guarding standards. The report highlighted the work of the Interdiocesan Safe- guarding Commission, which operates across Malta and Gozo, for its "conversional jus- tice" approach and a "strong emphasis on a victim-centred process." The Commission not- ed that the Maltese Church had "professionalised safeguarding" through qualified personnel, expert input and strong institu- tional support. "All staff and board members that make up the Interdioce- san Safeguarding Commission and Secretariat are thoroughly trained safeguarding profes- sionals. This is a good practice," the report said. The Vatican also praised the Church in Gozo and Malta for adopting a whistleblowing pol- icy, strengthening data protec- tion, and introducing measures to combat online abuse, de- scribing these as "unique and welcome practices." The report recognised the up- dated safeguarding policy intro- duced across all Church enti- ties last year, which placed the welfare of alleged victims at the centre of investigations. It also commended the leadership of Malta's Head of Safeguarding, Mark Pellicano, for promot- ing awareness and cooperation with Catholic lay groups. The Safeguarding Commis- sion, established shortly after Archbishop Charles Scicluna's appointment in 2015, replaced the earlier Response Team set up in 1999. It provides guidance on policy development, preven- tion, victim support and inves- tigations within the Church in Malta and Gozo. Vatican praises Bishop of Gozo for his 'strong and admirable leadership' in implenting new safeguarding measures CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 The protest follows a #Save- SantaVerna campaign, a Par- liamentary petition signed by over 1,400 people, and inter- national media coverage, yet the government has not in- tervened. The site remains at risk from proposed residential structures, a basement parking garage, and two new roads, one encroaching on the temple's archaeological buffer zone. Reports indicate ongoing con- struction near the Neolithic burial pit, including the remov- al of a rubble wall and the pres- ence of heavy machinery. MALTA-ARCH has planned additional public actions. On 27 October at 5pm, the group distributed signs in front of Valletta's Archaeology Muse- um during the Ġustizzja għal Artna protest. On 4 Novem- ber, members of the public can object to the Santa Ver- na development applications (PA/05171/23 & PA/03174/23) during two consecutive Plan- ning Authority sittings. The performance will feature artists deeply engaged with heritage. Marlene Saliba will read from her bilingual poetry collection Xbihat tal-Antenati / Ancestral Visions, reflecting on Neolithic temples and their contemporary relevance. She says art inspired by Malta's megalithic sites can awaken a connection to the ancient past and underscore its influence on modern consciousness. Dance scholar Shuntaro Yoshida, an ERA Fellow under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie postdoctor- al fellowship, will describe the landscape as "a portal connect- ing the inner world with the natural world" and emphasize its preservation. Polish-born artist Izabela Klara Biskupska, who works with painting, poetry, per- formance, and puppetry, will use the performance to raise awareness of Malta's endan- gered archaeological sites. In- grid Jahn, from Bavaria, says the destruction of the temples is "personally painful," call- ing them "untouchable" and a shared human heritage. Thea- tre artist and scholar Dawn A. Saliba, specializing in Neolithic ritual archaeology, emphasizes the need for authorities to rec- ognize Santa Verna's irreplace- able nature and their responsi- bility to protect it. MALTA-ARCH advocates for the safeguarding of Mal- ta's natural, cultural, and ar- chaeological heritage through campaigns, performances, and public engagement. Artists stage protest performance to protect Santa Verna temple in Gozo The map indicates the locations in Gozo which the group feel are under threat The Vatican's 2024 annual report praises the Bishop of Gozo and the Maltese Church for exemplary safeguarding of minors and vulnerable adults