Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/384358
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 21 SEPTEMBER 2014 News 11 : Citizenship and Malta's capital with justice. But his long contribution as a lawyer and minister of justice had been super- seded by other parameters once he became president. After 50 years of independence with the young nation-state still missing a proper mon- ument to national memory that links together social bonds at the heart of its own capital, a general impression has been formed: monu- ments are removed from prime sites (Sette Giugno and Dun Mikiel Xerri went to Hastings in 2009), erected in the wrong place (La Valette in a small square behind the Teatru ruins with- out a decent epitaph in 2012) and introduced in core city areas with little or no socio-cultural planning. In her investigation on identity and place making in re-unified Berlin Luise Hei- denrejch encourages politicians and architects to show sensitive, future-oriented interactions with the city and its inhabitants before taking such decisions. Props for social cohesion Creating citizens in a new state has never been easy but colonies normally face stiffer challenges. After years of indoctrination about their masters' 'superior' history, it takes time for authorities to push one's own 'humbler' na- tional story to the front of education, the me- dia and the public sphere, the latter considered to be the virtuous place of citizenship. Erecting statues of prominent personalities in the hub of the capital, in other words using communal props to remember collectively and selectively experiences in the hope of achieving social cohesion through memory, should ideally be approached with a sense of long-term plan- ning and careful attention. Each monument's relation – in importance, space, size and lo- cation – to other monuments, especially in a small place like Malta's capital, should be given much serious thought. Honouring public protagonists soon after their demise as a rule appears to be a laudable gesture, but without allowing an adequate lapse of time to put into proper perspective the con- tribution that the distinguished deceased gave to his or her country, one could risk repeating what happened with the George Cross on the flag. Besides it may also risk, without deeper investigation, the overlooking of other monu- ments that could be blocking memory. An overhaul revision of Valletta's monumen- tal landscape – not only from an aesthetic point of view and/or political exigency – should start a healthy reassessment to determine which non-Maltese monuments could perhaps move to more suited areas or locations outside the city. Given the historical context of the memo- rial, such action may in the long run benefit the remembrance of the person concerned. It could certainly help local generations get rid of a possible 'historical malady' that usually per- verts the social relationship between experi- ence and expectation. If one were to promote, say the Upper Barrakka, as a Maltese Pantheon – the Mall in Floriana already seems to enjoy this status – then spaces could be created after certain monuments with little or no significant relation to our history (the column in front of the Upper Barrakka lift comes to mind), move to more appropriate locations like military cemeteries in Floriana or Pietà. The regained prime space can then be used for more deserv- ing notions with better possibilities of national import. The missing collective monument Having gained independence after decades of political, cultural and economic upheavals Val- letta would be rendering its citizenry on these Islands a much needed boost to identity if it were to erect a collective patriotic monument in homage to our generational path to self-re- liance and maturity as a nation-state without having to be anti-any foreigner. The new work of art would be executed in a modern idiom compatible with its surround- ings (not necessarily Austin Camilleri's beau- tiful three-legged horse), ideally carrying an epitaph to relay the message it purports. This 'national monument', mirroring seven thou- sand years of history need not be pedantic or outlandish. It could easily be placed on St George's Square, which would then ideally be renamed Pjazza Malta, or in Republic Square instead of the empirical remnant. In the lat- ter option the fine-looking statue of the queen could then join other monuments in Hastings Gardens, which could be designated to cover the British era. Cultural empowerment Building a new Maltese identity after inde- pendence does not only depend on econom- ics; identity and memory feed each other with historical commemorations that over a period of time, are meant to induce national con- sciousness. All politicians deserve respect and appreciation but rushing to 'decorate' the capi- tal's streets and corners with formal statues of men in various poses may prolong further lethargy in a community that still seems to be confused about its distorted and fragmented collective memory. It would be a great pity if our actions do not engage future generations in appreciating a cohesive and meaningful monumental landscape meant to honour and respect our past enabling identity formation. The public sphere embellished with interactive monumental art works has an important role – it can contribute handsomely towards cultural empowerment and citizenship. Charles Xuereb is the author of 'France in the Maltese Collective Memory – Perspectives, Per- ceptions, Identities after Bonaparte in British Malta' which is to be published by the Malta University Press. The first monument in Valletta to a former President sharing a prime public space with Malta's foremost collective identity monument Blocking memory to more deserving national memorials, Edwards' column adorns the entrance to the Barrakka lift. The epitaph on his pedestal speaks of his irrelevance to Malta A monument to the founder of the city, French Grandmaster La Valette, was erected after 450 years without an epitaph, on a small square behind the ruins of the old Teatru Rjal, seemingly attending to a parking lot in his city