Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/744537
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 30 OCTOBER 2016 12 RECENTLY shortlisted in the investigative journal- ism category and in the best scoop category at the News- brands Ireland Journalism Awards 2016, Colm Keena – of the Irish Times and the International Consortium for Investigative Journalists – will be in Malta to address a talk on the protection of sources, and the challeng- es of covering business and politics. With the ICIJ, Colm Kee- na has worked on all major tax exposés, including Lux- embourg Leaks, Swissleaks, and most recently Panama Papers. In his home coun- try, the Irish government is fighting a European Com- mission ruling on the tax deal it negotiated with Ap- ple. "As this and previous ICIJ leaks have shown, the use of 'offshore' is deeply embed- ded in the world economy. It is not just that it includes jurisdictions such as Swit- zerland, Luxembourg and Ireland as well as the more classic tax havens such as the Bahamas. The fact is that just about every coun- try has its own 'offshore' niche that it tries to protect and exploit. "The leaks have also il- lustrated how 'offshore' is used by small and medium- sized investors and business figures as much as it is by non-resident business ti- tans, giant corporations and cash-rich crooks." Colm Keena's talk is on Wednesday, 2 November, at Le Meridien, St Julian's at 6:30pm. Entrance is free and refreshments will be served after a Q&A with Keena. "Anyone with an interest in journalism and media law, or with questions about journalism's continued in- terest in offshore, is encour- aged to attend," MaltaTo- day editor Matthew Vella said. "There is much we can share of our experiences reporting tax leaks and the political tribulations that ensued with Panama Papers in Malta." "We hope our inaugural 'Encounters With Journal- ism' talk will be the first of many to bring over to the island trusted and experi- ence names in journalism and the media, to share with us their experiences, and create a convivial meeting place for colleagues to dis- cuss more the realities of our industry and jobs," Me- diatoday managing director Roger de Giorgio said. Keena worked as a report- er with the Irish Press group before moving to The Irish Times in the late 1990s. He has worked on a range of ar- eas associated with business and politics, including long- running tribunals into pay- ments to politicians and Ire- land's awarding of its first ever mobile phone licence to a private operator, as well as controversies concerning company and personal tax avoidance and evasion, and business scandals generally. His story about payments to an incumbent Irish Taoi- seach, or Prime Minister, in 2006, caused a political crisis and led to a landmark Supreme Court judgment in 2009 recognising the right of journalists to protect their sources. Keena has exposed hid- den links between business and politics that fermented over an unprecedented ten- year period of economic boom in Ireland. While the Irish revelled in newfound prosperity, Keena exposed scandals that rocked the political and social elite. He broke stories of corruption and conspiracy at every lev- el of Irish government, and forced this small nation to review its social and moral values. Following a degree in zo- ology, he cut his teeth in small local papers. "There's a limited amount you can learn about journalism in educational institutions, re- ally it's a thing you learn on the job. You're trying to ap- ply the principles while ac- tually doing it. It's the best way of learning," he says in an interview to Colman Candy. "In a way, I'm a bit against the academic path towards journalism because in the old days you had people be- coming journalists because of a vocation, and that's good." Keena also believes a jour- nalist's code of ethics comes from within. He recalls an editor who once prom- ised him a job provided he didn't write "all that save- the-world shit". He soon realised that ethical stand- ards weren't universal, and from then on he gravitated towards newspapers that shared his own core values. Keena says he admires newspapers that don't "overstate the case, and who simply want to get it right". But he dislikes tabloids that "wouldn't have too much interest in what's correct or incorrect, or in checking their sources." He warns that a journal- ist should never be more prominent than the story they are reporting on, and must always verify their information: "The first thing is accuracy," he says, "if you're not accurate the whole thing falls apart. Opinion is cheap enough, so I admire someone who pro- vides a lot of information." News We would like to inform the General Public that our offices will be closed all day on Thursday, 3 rd November 2016. We apologise for any inconvenience Millennia 2 nd Floor, Aldo Moro Road, Marsa, MRS 9065 Encounters With Journalism The journalists' journalist: Colm Keena on covering politics and business BOOK NOW Reserve your place today on email Ms Bianca Clarke Freddi on bcfreddi@ mediatoday.com. mt. The event is on Wednesday, 2 November, at Le Meridien, St Julian's (parking available on hotel premises). The talk starts at 6:30pm, with a Q&A to follow, and free refreshments served to all attendees. University students interested in learning more about starting a career in journalism are encouraged to attend and register interest with Ms Bianca Clarke Freddi. "If you're not accurate the whole thing falls apart. Opinion is cheap enough, so I admire someone who provides a lot of information." Stables approved in ODZ land in Dingli JAMES DEBONO THE Planning Authority has ap- proved a complex of six stables, a store and a manure clamp on a foot- print of 150 square metres of agricul- tural land in Tal-Imgejjel in Dingli. The Environment and Resources Authority had decreed the develop- ment as "unacceptable" from an envi- ronmental point of view, noting that the area was "relatively unspoilt" and that the approval of the structures could "result in the proliferation of new structures" in the area. But the case officer who recom- mended approval noted that the 2014 policy regulating stables only ex- cludes protected areas such as Areas of Ecological Importance from such development. The area is identified in the local plan as one of "agricultural value." The project will involve the up- rooting of five almond trees and will be surrounded by two-metre high rubble walls. But the developer has committed himself to plant six olive trees, six pomegranate trees and nine zafzafa trees. The owner had presented docu- ments showing that he is a registered horse owner and that his horses are currently hosted in a rented stable in Marsa. Din l-Art Helwa objects to hotchpotch on Britannia Flats JAMES DEBONO THE development of six new storeys on part of the roof of an iconic Brit- ish era building in Tower Road known as Britannia Flats will result in an ar- chitectural hotchpotch, conservationist group Din l-Art Helwa said. This is because the de- velopment is only being proposed on part of the existing block, leaving the other half as it is today, thus creating a new blank party wall. Din l-Art Helwa, which is also objecting to the design of the building for introducing "blue frames which jar with the exist- ing building," insisted that any development should not be approved on just half of the block but should "be designed together with the neighbour roof space" in a way that the "exten- sion will speak one architectural language." The Superintend- ence for Cultural heritage has also ob- jected to the proposed façade, calling for amendments. The Sliema council has also objected, not- ing that the develop- ment will result in an existing blank wall in Tower Road and that the proposed height exceeds the six-storey limit laid down in the local plan. The owners of the re- maining airspace over Britannia Flats, have also objected to the plans, arguing that the addition of six floors will constitute "an eye- sore" and that while they do not exclude "the possibility of fu- ture development on their air space", they are commit- ted to retain "the original charac- teristics of the building."