The Voice of the Maltese No. 129 by The Voice of the Maltese

The Voice of the Maltese (driven by the voice of its readers )

Issue 129

o on nlliin ne e m ma ag ga az ziin ne e

June 7, 2016

Vivid Sydney Festival 2016

Sydneyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hidden stories on Customs House Between May 27 and June 18, Sydney has been transformed into an orgy of lights as visitors experience the eighth edition of the Vivid Sydney Festival 2016 recognised as the largest event of its kind in the world combining light, music and ideas. But in the last few days, torrential rain and high winds that have pummelled NSW are dimming Australia's major event. (See page 3)

Storms leave three dead and many homes in danger. (page 17)

2 The Voice of the Maltese

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Freedom of speech ‘Life itself’ F

reedom of speech the right of the individual to say what they think - is arguably the by BarryYork foundation of all other rights. It is commonly regarded as having two components: freedom of opinion and freedom of expression. The latter relates to any medium, including written and oral communication, the media, public protest, broadcasting and artistic works. As an issue and an ideal, freedom of speech goes back a very long way in western culture: from ancient times through to the seventeenth and eighteenth century revolutionary struggles in England, France and America, and the European Enlightenment. It is still relevant and sometimes controversial in today's democracies, and still being fought for in many places. Freedom of speech has had strenuous opponents. In late feudal times when the new printing presses were allowing a wider range of people to challenge the ruling class, the monarchs, aristocrats and clergy stood against it. The philosopher Thomas Hobbes gave expression to their view when he said, 'It is utterly essential to the common peace that certain opinions or doctrines not be put before the citizens'. Free speech has also had courageous defenders, like the seventeenth century poet, John Milton. After the English parliament adopted the censorious Licensing Order in 1643, Milton delivered a speech that was published as Areopagitica: A speech of Mr. John Milton for the liberty of unlicensed printing to the Parliament of England. In it, he made an impassioned plea for free speech. He argued: '(for) when complaints are freely heard, deeply considered and speedily reformed, then is the utmost bound of civil liberty attained, that wise men look for.' During the French Revolution of 1789, when freedom of the press

was on the agenda, Dr Barry York is a historian. For many years he worked at the clergy argued for the Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament the suppression of House. He played a big part in the museum’s Oral History works that 'offended Programme. He was awarded a PhD in History by the Unireligion, the general versity of New South Wales in 1988. He has authored and order of things, public co-authored several books of political history and immigration history and was awarded the Order of Australia in 2005 decency and the hon- for his services to the recording of immigration history. our of citizens'. Notions of harmony of race. The Section carries no crim- 'the common peace' - and opposi- inal penalty but was regarded by tion to offensiveness are frequently the then Opposition Coalition parused by those who seek limits to ties as being too vague in its criteria free speech. A problem arises, and therefore a danger to free though, when one considers who speech. should be the arbitrator of such noDuring the 2013 election camtions: the state or the people? paign, the Coalition promised to In more recent times in Australia, amend Section 18C but the Prime a similar view has been expressed Minister Tony Abbott declined to by Tim Soutphommasane, Aus- implement any change to it. tralian Race Discrimination ComAustralia is signatory to the missioner, who has asserted: 'Free United Nations' Universal Declaraspeech is a fundamental human tion of Human Rights of 1948 right but it is not an absolute right'. which says that, 'Everyone has the To Soutphommasane, the protec- right to freedom of opinion and extion of minorities from offence and pression; this right includes freethe pain that may accompany it is dom to hold opinions without a legitimate reason for restriction interference and to seek, receive on what individuals may say. and impart information and ideas He has argued: “As for fighting through any media and regardless bad speech with good speech, that of frontiers.' can be an easy thing to prescribe if To mark the 50th anniversary of one were an articulate and well-ed- the Declaration in 1998, the Ausucated professional or someone ac- tralian Parliament reaffirmed its customed to enjoying the privilege principles. of social power. But the marketAustralia is also a signatory to the place of ideas can be distorted; it is United Nations' International not an arena of perfect competi- Covenant on Civil and Political tion, as economists might put it. Rights which similarly asserts the We cannot realistically expect that right to free expression. the speech of the strong can be However, the reality is that Auscountered by the speech of the tralia does not have free speech in weak”. any unrestricted sense and the AusTo Salman Rushdie, the author of tralian Constitution makes no speThe Satanic Verses, 'Free speech is cial reference to freedom of speech. the whole thing, the whole ball In 2015, the Australian Governgame. Free speech is life itself'. Fur- ment's Law Reform Commission isther, he asks, 'what is freedom of sued its report Traditional Rights expression? Without the freedom to and Freedoms-Encroachments by offend, it ceases to exist.' Commonwealth Laws that revealed In 2010 and 2011, the issue of free the many laws that interfere with speech became controversial when free speech. conservative journalist, Andrew These range from criminal laws Bolt, was subject to a complaint by against treason and sedition a group of Indigenous Australians through to defamation, secrecy, inover opinion pieces he wrote for tellectual property and anti-terror The Herald Sun newspaper. laws. Debate ensued about Section 18C Whether or not these are reasonof the Racial Discrimination Act able, or go too far, will undoubtedly which allows for action on the basis continue to be debated. of speech that is reasonably likely (Museum of Australian Democracy at to 'offend, insult, humiliate or inOld Parliament House, Canberra timidate' someone on the grounds http//moadoph.gov.au/)

The Voice of the Maltese 3

Tuesday June 7, 2016 Vivid Sydney 2016: Laser-Dragon Water-Theatre at Darling Harbour

Vivid Sydney Festival - the world's largest festival of light and ideas F

or 23 days and nights, May 27June 18, visitors to Sydney are able to enjoy and experience Vivid Sydney Festival as the city has been transformed into an orgy of lights in what is Australia's major event in winter recognised as the largest event of its kind in the world combining light, music and ideas. Although inclement weather has dimmed the spectacle in the last few days, one hopes that the weather improves so people could enjoy the fruit of the hard work by the organisers, Vivid Sydney, in its eighth year, managed by Destination NSW, the NSW Government’s tourism and major events agency, includes controlyour-own digital fireworks, artwork projected onto the walls of the Contemporary Arts Museum, and a laserfountain water theatre with 30-metre coloured jets spurting into the sky. During the world's largest festival of light and ideas, Sydney’s most important landmarks are illuminated, and transformed by 3D projections and over 60 light installations. They include, Circular Quay, the Sydney Opera House, The Rocks, Martin Place, Darling Harbour, Walsh Bay, Central Park, Chatswood, Carriageworks, on Sydney Harbour the, Taronga Zoo, The Royal Botanic Garden and The Galeries. Vivid Sydney is where art, technology and commerce intersect. The programme features large-scale light installations and projections (Vivid Light); music performances and collaborations (Vivid Music including Vivid LIVE at the Sydney Opera House); and creative ideas, discussion and debate (Vivid Ideas). All three celebrate Sydney as a creative hub of

the Asia-Pacific. Visitors to Sydney recognise that in the daytime, Sydney is ravishing. But when dusk descends and the installations light up the skyline, visitors are even more impressed, particularly during this festival that began in 2009 as an idea to attract tourists to Sydney in winter. Now the Vivid light and music festival is attracting tourists from all over, including the much-coveted Chinese to Australia. Traditionally, winter is a low tourist season in Sydney. But, according to the festival's organisers, the festival is fast becoming a key weapon in the battle to attract the tourists and local restaurants, cafes and bars report that their takings at festival time can increase anywhere from 100% to 500%. Ben Baxter, one of the festival's founding artists, recalls that when Vivid was first launched no one knew how big it would get, but ever since, this visual spechas become the largest festival of its kind in the world and one of Australia's most important events on the tourism calendar. According to Baxter part of the festival's success is its unique mix of technological innovation, ideas and art. "When Vivid started, the LED (lighting) revolution also really started to kick off. Although LEDs had been around for a while the capabilities of programming and what you could do increased," he explains. Last year, 1.4 million people attended Vivid, up 79% from the previous year. It added an estimated A$41.3m to the NSW economy. When this year’s is over, it should have been even more successful. The Vivid Light Walk, this year fea-

tures installations from light artists around the world, ranging from giant Siamese fighting fish to "Light Origami" and an enormous Geometric Eye. Everybody can enjoy it as a visual spectacle. Celebrating First Nations' spirituality and culture through the songlines of the land and sky, this year’s Lighting the Sails is about painting and celebrating country through a pattern of sharing systems, interconnected history lines and trade routes. Lighting the Sails Director and Head of Indigenous Programming at Sydney Opera House Rhoda Roberts selected six artists of different clans, national estates and territories for an immersive projected artwork that weaves through time and distance. This year Vivid has been featuring iconic contemporary works from Karla Dickens, Djon Mundine, Gabriella Possum Nungurrayi, Reko Rennie, Donny Woolagoodja, and the late Gulumbu Yunupingu. To deal with the increased visitor numbers, during the event, 3,500 extra trains, ferries and buses would have been running with all grid-connected lighting installations powered by renewable energy for the first time.

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4 The Voice of the Maltese

Tuesday June 7, 2016

his is a monthly service offered by The Voice of the Maltese Q. I am 64 years of age and my wife is 58. We are both in which Marie Louise Muscat from the Fiducian Finanworking and our combined income is $150,000 per annum. We are currently salary sacrificing the maximum amount. cial Services helps our readers understand the complexities We are planning to retire together in five years’ time. Our associated with financial planning. If you need more advice combined superannuation amounts to $630,000. Is there send an email to Marie Louise via: maltesevoice@gmail.com. anything that we should be considering in the meantime in order to be able to retire and live comfortably? A. I agree that you should continue to salary sacrifice up to the limits that are currently $35,000 each per annum. Once you retire you can transfer some of the funds that are in superannuation in your name to your wife’s name. Funds in superannuation in accumulation are not treated as assets by Centrelink for those individuals under age pension age. In five years’ time you will be 69 and your wife 63 and therefore you will be able to qualify for a part age pension at least until such time as your wife is age pension age herself. Q. I am 35 years old and recently lost my job. I received a payout of $100,000 after tax. Should I invest these funds into superannuation or should I invest elsewhere? A. Investing in the superannuation environment is one option but at 35 years of age investing this lump sum in superannuation may not be the most prudent. You need to be aware that you are unable to touch funds in superannuation unless you reach a condition of release, which in your case is not before you are age 60 and retired. You should therefore consider paying off any debts, mortgages etc., and/or invest-

these ing funds in either managed funds or direct shares, where if you needed liquidity you could sell and receive the funds within a few days. Also be aware that if you have not as yet found another job, these funds may be useful to subsidise your living expenses and therefore keeping some in accessible accounts may be very beneficial. Q. I have a 7-year-old granddaughter. I wish to commence a savings plan for her so that when she is 18 years of age and entering University, she can access these funds. Is there any particular investment that I should consider using to achieve this purpose? A. Yes I believe insurance bonds should be a consideration. If you are a pensioner the maximum you can gift is $10,000 per annum with no more than $30,000 over a

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five-year period. You should therefore consider investing say $10,000 in the first year and add to it annually. You can add up to a 125% per annum on the previous year’s investment amount. As this investment does not pay any distributions your young granddaughter will not be paying any tax on earnings. At the age of 18 this bond would have been running for more than 10 years and therefore if it is cashed in, in part or in full, there will be no capital gains tax to pay. This type of investment pays 30% tax on earnings annually even though you would not be receiving any distributions. Q. My mother is moving into an aged care facility. She has been asked to pay a Refundable Accommodation Deposit (RAD) of $350,000. She is happy to sell her home that has been valued at $700,000. She has very few other financial assets. Will she lose her pension if she sold her home and had around $350,000 of surplus funds? A. Once she enters the aged care facility she will be treated by Centrelink as a non-homeowner and she will be able to have $354,500 of assets prior to losing part of her age pension. The RAD is not an asset. Her surplus funds however will be deemed for the Income Test and if the deemed income is higher than $162 per fortnight she will lose a small part of her age pension. However what she loses on the pension she can more than make up for, by investing her surplus funds wisely. This document contains factual information only and is not intended to provide any recommendation or opinion in relation to the topic/s discussed. Fiducian recommends that you seek advice from a professional to address any issues that may be raised by this article. Fiducian accepts no liability for any loss suffered by anyone who has acted on any information in this document

The Voice of the Maltese 5

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Laqg˙a f’Malta bejn il-˙bieb

ull meta l-ko-editur ta’ The Voice of the Maltese, Lawrence Dimech, flimkien ma’ martu Marlene iΩuru Malta, b˙al ritwal, minbarra l-laqg˙at privati ma’ familjari u ˙bieb, ikollhom ukoll ikla informali g˙all-a˙˙ar ma’ kontributuri u l-editur min-na˙a ta’ Malta, Joseph Cutajar. Din id-darba din l-ikla li fiha l-ir©iel kienu akkumpanjati min-nisa tag˙hom, qattg˙u sag˙tejn flimkien jifir˙u b’xulxin u jirrakkontaw dak li jkunu g˙addew minnu milla˙˙ar laqg˙a saret f’atmosfera rurali f’ristorant mag˙ruf g˙all-ikel Malti f’Óad-Dingli. Din is-sena attenda wkoll il-Kummissarju G˙oli ta’ Malta fl-Awstralja, Charles Muscat li flimkien ma’ martu Victoria

jinsabu Malta g˙al-laqg˙at tal-Ambaxxaturi Maltin ta’ barra msej˙a mill-Ministeru tal-Affarijiet Barranin li fiha ©ew diskussi g˙add ta’ materji, partikolarment il-Presidenza ta’ Malta tal-Kunsill tal-Unjoni Ewropeja s-sena d-die˙la. Il-lejla Ωiedet issa˙˙a˙ il-˙biberija bejn persuni li ilhom jafu lil xulxin snin twal, ˙afna minnhom permezz tal-©urnaliΩmu. Kienet ukoll okkaΩjoni li fiha, bejn gidma u o˙ra ta’ xi koxxa tal-fenek jew ta’ ti©iega, bra©oli, fwied jew qarag˙abag˙li mimli wie˙ed seta’ jirrilaksja, jirrakkonta u jg˙id xi çajta, sakemm jekk il-Bambin irid, ner©g˙u niltaqg˙u sen’o˙ra. Fuq: L-okkaΩjoni bejn il-˙bieb ta’ The Voice f’ÓadDingli

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6 The Voice of the Maltese

Tuesday June 7, 2016

IL-Konkatidral ta’ San Ìwann Gojjell mill-isba˙ f’pajjiΩna J

iena wie˙ed minn dawk li nissa˙˙ar bil-kobor u l-majjistrija tal-Konkatidral ta’ San Ìwann fil-kapitali Maltija Valletta li dis-sena qed tfakkar l-450 sena mill-bini tag˙ha. Kull min siefer jaf bil-kobor u s-sbu˙ija ta’ diversi knejjes li seta’ ra, jew fl-Ewropa, inkella f’na˙at o˙ra tad-dinja, pereΩempju fejn g˙andhom x’jaqsmu l-Maltin li jg˙ixu barra, Ωgur li jimprssjonaw ru˙hom bilkatidrali f’çerti stati fl-Awstralja, u dawk ta’ Londra, biex insemmi biss Ωew© pajjiΩi, imma fil-fehma tieg˙i, dak ta’ San Ìwann huwa uniku. Bih, il-Kavallieri ta’ San Ìwann ˙allewlna ©ojjell kbir. Jidhirli li dan ilpost, hu l-isba˙ ©ojjell ta arti u arkitettura Barokka tag˙hom f’pajjiΩna bil-Kavallieri isemmuh g˙all-qaddis patrun tag˙hom - San Ìwann l-G˙ammiedi (San Ìwann il-Battista) li l-festa tieg˙u ssir fl-24 ta’ Ìunju. Grazzi kbira lill-Gran Mastru Jean de la Cassière li kien il-mexxej tal-Ordni mill-1572 sal-1581 u li fi Ωmienu nbena l-Konkatidral ta’ San Ìwann. Gran Mastri o˙ra u g˙add ta’ Kavallieri imlewh b’rigali artistiçi u ta’ valur u ˙admu ferm biex isebb˙uh b’xog˙lijiet tal-arti. Sa daΩΩmien dan il-Konkatidral g˙adu post importanti, u minbarra li hu wie˙ed mill-aktar postijiet imfittex mit-turisti f’Malta, matul issena ©ieli jsiru fih xi attivitajiet kulturali. Niççassa u nimmeravilja ru˙i li Knisja Konventwali b˙al din damet tinbena biss erba’ snin, u dan fi Ωmien meta lg˙odod li jintuΩaw fil-bini kienu g˙adhom, nistg˙u ng˙idu, primittivi. L-ewwel ©ebla tqieg˙det sena biss wara li La Cassière ng˙ata t-tmexxija tal-Ordni. Il-perit kien il-famuΩ Malti Ìlormu Cassar, imwieled f’Malta g˙all˙abta tal-1520 lil familja minn Sqallija li kienet tg˙ix f’Malta sa mill-1440. Minbarra San Ìwann kien ukoll l-arkitett ta’ g˙add ta’ bini ie˙or fil-Belt. Ta’ min jg˙id ukoll li fl-img˙oddi, ilfesta ta’ San Ìwann Battista kienet im˙arsa b˙ala btala pubblika li fiha s-saçedoti kienu jqaddsu tlett quddisiet u minn lejlet sa sbie˙ l-24 ta’ Ìunju, jum il-festa, kienu jsiru sig˙at twal ta’ talb. Wie˙ed jista’ ja˙seb x’festa kienu jag˙mlu l-Kavallieri u l-Maltin f’dan il-

PeterPaulCiantar jum li kien meqjus fost il-festi ewlenin f’Malta. Skont il-kitba taΩ-Ωwie©, lg˙arus kellu jie˙u l-g˙arusa g˙al dilfesta u jixtrilha xriek qubbajt milli t˙obb hi. Meta wie˙ed jitkellem dwar il-festa ta’ San Ìwann, mill-ewwel ikollu f’mo˙˙u wkoll il-famuΩa purçissjoni bid-drieg˙ ta’ dan il-qaddis li l-Kavallieri kienu ©abu minn Rodi . Il-purçissjoni biddrieg˙ kienet issir mill-Konkatidral u ddur mat-toroq ewlenin. Fil-fatt il-poeta Nazzjonali u Ûebbu©i Dun Karm Psalia ˙allielna dehra mist˙ajla imma ˙ajja ta’ din il-purçissjoni f’wie˙ed mis-sunetti tieg˙u li j©ib l-isem ‘Nhar San Ìwann’:

G˙addew mijiet ta’ snin u le˙nek baqa’ Sabi˙ u qawwi nhar il-G˙id ewlieni Tal-Kbir Battista jidwi kmieni kmieni Fuq din il-belt li nbniet biex qatt ma taqa’. Naturalment, meta wie˙ed jitkellem dwar il-festa ta’ San Ìwann il-Battista, jrid jiftakar ukoll fil-famuΩi ˙©ejje© ta’

San Ìwann: ˙afna huma tal-fehma li dawn bdew bi drawwa pagana meta fl-a˙˙ar jiem ta’ Ìunju kienu jsiru l-festi ˙alli ifakkru l-itwal jum tas-sajf. IΩda, la qabel semmejt id-drieg˙ ta’ San Ìwann il-Battista li l-Kavallieri kienu ©abu mag˙hom minn Rodi, nixtieq li ng˙id li jien personalment rajt drieg˙ ta’ San Ìwann il-Battista f’wie˙ed millisba˙ muΩewijiet li g˙andhom f’Istanbul, it-Turkija. Qed nirreferi g˙all-muΩew ferm mag˙ruf, Topkapi, fejn wie˙ed jara u j˙oss l-istorja tal-Ottomani fl-aqwa tag˙ha. Meta kont hemm, f’wa˙da mis-swali rajt din il-relikwa jew a˙jar dan iddrieg˙ ta’ San Ìwann. Tistg˙u ta˙sbu kif sirt!!!! B’rog˙da qbadt il-kamera tarritratti li kienet mo˙bija fil-but, u minnufih ˙adtilha ritratt. Ìew ji©ru fuqi b˙al ilpup feroçi xi membri tas-sigurtà, izda kont g˙amilt ta birru˙i li ma kont qed nifhem xejn u bqajt sejjer kutu kutu g˙as-swali l-o˙ra. L-aqwa li r-ritratt kien merfug˙ fil-kamera di©itali. Hawn nistaqsi jekk dan hux l-istess drieg˙ ta’ San Ìwann il-Battista li kien hawn Malta u li ©abu mag˙hom ilKavallieri. Kieku nixtieq li jkolli twe©iba, imma jidher li din hija diffiçli g˙ax ma’ dan id-drieg˙ hemm marbuta g˙add ta’ stejjer o˙ra.

Tuesday June 7, 2016

The Voice of the Maltese 7

Malta with second cleanest beaches in M Europe, survey finds

alta has been classified as having Europe’s cleanest beaches, with all of its sites rated very highly, 97.7 per cent. In the survey by Europe’s environmental watchdog, the European Environment Agency that analysis the beach water quality and publishes it annually, LuxemThe report is complied after analysis Bu©ibba Beach also recently won Blue bourg, that has no beaches, was ranked as having the cleanest bathing water, of water sampled at more than 21 000 Flags, while two other beaches in Gozo, but as to beaches Cyprus classified first coastal and inland bathing sites across Hondoq Bay and Marsalforn Bay, the EU, Switzerland and Albania indi- achieved a Beach of Quality status. followed by Malta. Malta is certainly small in size, but it Malta has been classified as having cating whether or not it has been conEurope’s cleanest beaches, with all of taminated by faecal pollution from can boast of a number of beaches, that can satisfy a spectrum of tastes, from its sites rated very highly, 97.7 per cent. sewage or livestock. While 96 % of bathing sites met the windsurfers to sunbathers who prefer In the survey by Europe’s environmental watchdog, the European Environ- minimum requirements, over 84 % met either sandy or rocky ones. It has beaches with ment Agency that golden or red analysis the beach sand, rocks, blue water quality and lagoons and even publishes it annuinland seas. ally, Luxembourg, Some beaches that has no and rocky shores beaches, was are off the beaten ranked as having track, but worth the cleanest seeking out for bathing water, but their seclusion. as to beaches With Malta's cliCyrus was first mate, beach life followed by Malta. lasts from The report ranks April/May to well the water quality into October. of Malta's bathing The main coastal sites as 'excellent'. The remaining The clear blue waters at resorts and larger 2.3% of beaches theBlue Lagoon in Comino sandy beaches are in the northern have been graded part of Malta, the most popular being, as 'good'. In compiling the study, Envi- the more stringent ‘excellent’ level. Karmenu Vella, European Commis- Mellieħa Bay, G˙ajn Tuffie˙a and ronmental health inspectors took samples at swimming spots around the sioner for the Environment, Maritime Golden Bay. For smaller, quieter Affairs and Fisheries, said: “European beaches, one should try those at the tip Maltese Islands each week. Across Europe, only 385 bathing sites bathing water is at 96% acceptable and of Malta, overlooking Gozo - Paradise were assessed with poor bathing water 84% excellent standards. That is the re- Bay and Armier. In Gozo, perhaps the most beautiful quality in 2015. The share of bathing sult of 40 years investing in water and sandy beach is at Ramla l-Óamra, a water sites rated ‘poor’ dropped to 1.6 wastewater infrastructure.” He went on to say, “It is a sign of EU large beach of unusual red sand % in 2015 from 1.9 % in 2014. According the study, topping the bill legislation working well. And it is a nestling by countryside. Marsalforn is Luxembourg (all 11 reported bathing perfect testimony to the fact that a Bay, San Blas Bay, M©arr ix-Xini and water sites). Then come Cyprus (99.1 % highly evolved economic area such as Xlendi are also quite popular. Santa of bathing water sites), Malta (97.7 %), ours can produce equally high environ- Maria Bay and the Blue Lagoon in Greece (97.2 %), Croatia (94.2 %), Italy mental standards.” Comino with their clear waters are out (90.6 %), Germany (90.3 %) and Austria More than 90% of bathing sites in eight of this world. No wonder it always so (90.2 %). European Union Member States had crowded in the summer months. Τhe highest numbers of bathing sites excellent water quality in 2015. The sister island, along with Comino with poor water quality were found in The news comes just weeks after Malta also offer plenty of out-of-the-way Italy (95 bathing sites, 1.7 %), France (95 won a record number of Blue Flags for rocky inlets with clear waters and perbathing sites, 2.8 %) and Spain (58 beach cleanliness. The top ones in fect snorkelling. bathing sites, 2.6 %). Malta are St George's Bay, Riviera Bay, Sports enthusiasts can enjoy water The share of bathing water with excel- Mellie˙a Bay, Paradise Bay, Golden sports and activities like windsurfing, lent quality increased from 78 % in 2011 Bay and Ramla Bay. Fond G˙adir Bay, jet and water skiing, parakiting and fun to 84 % in 2015. Westin Dragonara Resort, Qawra Point, rides.

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8 The Voice of the Maltese

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Have your say/Xi trid tghid? Your letters/ L-ittri tag˙kom ...

G˙andna nag˙tu laqg˙a kif jixraq lill-President ta’ Malta The Voice of the Maltese on nlliin ne e m ma ag ga az ziin ne e o

is is a bi-lingual (in English and Maltese) fortnightly online publication specifically targeting all Maltese living abroad with emphasis on the Australian scene. is online magazine is sent via email by request. Subscription is free. Editors: Malta: Joseph Cutajar Australia: Lawrence Dimech: MOM, OAM, JP email address: maltesevoice@gmail.com Letters for publication in The Voice either in Maltese or English should be e-mailed to: maltesevoice@gmail.com.

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Frank Camilleri minn Campbelltown, NSW jikteb:

a˙seb li ma nkunx qed nesa©era meta ng˙id li l-a˙bar li qrajna fl-a˙˙ar ˙ar©a ta’ The Voice of the Maltese niΩlet ferm tajjeb mal-Maltin li jg˙ixu fl-Awstralja. Qed ng˙id g˙all-artiklu fejn ©ejna mg˙arrfa li l-President ta’ Malta mistennija ti©i g˙al Ωjara fl-Awstralja. Din xi ˙a©a li a˙na fl-Awstralja ilna nistennew b’çerta ˙erqa sa minn meta sentejn ilu, lEççellenza tag˙ha Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca ng˙atat il-˙atra ta’ President, u l-aktar u l-aktar wara li kif issemma’ mill-ewwel qalet li minbarra li t˙ossha b˙ala l-President tal-Maltin kollha, huma fejn huma, xtaqet iΩΩur dan il-pajjiΩ li fih laqg˙a l-akbar g˙add ta’ Maltin b˙ala emigranti. Nittama li kif qed nistenna, din iΩ-Ωjara li minnha Ωgur jista’ jo˙ro© ˙afna ©id, il-Maltin ituha l-mer˙ba li jixirqilha u kull g˙aqda talMaltin, u anke individwalment, kul˙add g˙andu jag˙mel minn kollox biex nuru li g˙alkemm barra minn art twelidna ng˙oΩΩu l-pajjiΩ fejn twelidna u wkoll kapaçi li nibqg˙u mag˙quda. IΩ-Ωjara tal-President g˙andha sservina biex ukoll nuru lill-komunitajiet etniçi o˙ra li g˙alkemm barra l-pajjiΩ, g˙all-Maltin il-gΩira tag˙na tibqa’ ti©i l-ewwel u qabel kollox. Kif stajt nara ma’ min tkellimt, dawk li ilhom Ωmien twil fl-Awstralja g˙andhom çerta ˙erqa biex jiltaqg˙u mal-President u m’g˙andix dubju li se ji©u organizzati laqg˙at mag˙ha biex ingawdu l-preΩenza tag˙ha. Imma rrid nissu©©erixxi wkoll biex dawk li g˙andhom ulied imwielda fl-Awstralja, u

While visiting Malta Stay at: The Diplomat Hotel, 173 Tower Road Sliema

Email: sales@diplomat.com.mt Tel: (00356) 23497000

forsi anke neputijiet, i˙e©©uhom ukoll biex jekk jista’ jkun huma wkoll jiltaqg˙u mag˙˙a. Çert li Ω-zg˙aΩag˙ li diga’ ltaqg˙u mal-President f’Malta u li wrew tant entuΩjaΩmu, g˙all-inqas fil-kitbiet tag˙hom u permezz tarritratti li mlew fuq il-facebook tag˙hom, meta kienu ©ew lura l-Awstralja, se jkunu minn ta’ quddiem biex jilqg˙uha.

Let’s give Our President a great welcome

Sandra Borg from St Albans, Victoria writes:

he Maltese community in Australia parT ticularly is thrilled with the news about the possibility of a visit by Her Excellency the President of Malta, Marie-Louise ColeiroPreca, and also the Minister for Foreign Affairs George Vella. We all must make an effort to give them a great welcome, not only because they represent the government and our country of birth, Malta but for all the work they have been doing to improve Malta’s stature and that of its people, and that includes us who are not living there anymore, or were not even born there, but also for the progress Malta has made in the international fora. We are so proud of Malta and whatever one’s political affiliations we need to express our thanks for what successive governments have done for the people. Malta is small but it has a big heart and we are part of it, so President Coleiro-Preca is also our President. I feel so strongly about this and hope to be one of the first to give the Maltese representatives a great welcome.

Tassew diΩgustanti Eugene Calleja from Harvey, WA writes:

ont na˙seb li f’Malta spiçça Ω-Ωmien talK konfrontazzjoni fil-politika, imma g˙arrali bil-kbir. Bla ma nid˙ol fil-mertu ta’ min hu t-tajjeb jew il-˙aΩin, imma ddiΩgustajt ru˙ek wara li qrajt l-a˙barijiet bil-Malti f’The Voice, u l-item bit-titlu, “Iva issa anke fil-Eurovision? Possibbli g˙ad hemm (jew re©a’ hemm) min hu daqstant mitluf fil-politika parti©-©jana li j˙amme© u jdeffes fin-nofs ukoll lil kantanta li rrappreΩentat lil Malta quddiem id-dinja g˙all-finijiet ta’ mo˙˙u? Imbag˙ad ng˙idu li a˙na l-Maltin mo˙˙na miftuh u mmaturajna fil-politika?

The Voice of the Maltese 9

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Some of the guests on a tour of the new technical area

The new building housing the 3ZZZ radio studios at Brunswick

New studios for 3ZZZ Community radio

ommunity Radio 3ZZZ (Melbourne) recently moved from its old studios in George Street, Fitzroy to new premises in 309 Albert Street Brunswick that boasts of five new state of the art studios with new modern technology to meet the needs of produce their programmes. Community Radio 3ZZZ broadcasts in over 60 different languages, including Maltese. It has 5000 members and an audience of 400,000 listeners each week. The Maltese Community produces three one-hour weekly programmes , on Mondays and Fridays (5-6 pm) and another on Saturday (10-11am), apart from another one on the last Wednesday of each month (1-2 pm) The Maltese programmes include news from Malta, the Gospel of the following Sunday, Maltese music, Maltese Literature and other items of interest to the community in general. Every second Saturday, the programme "Inservik" is dedicated to requests from the listeners celebrating a birthday or special occasions. At the moment there are four Maltese broadcasters, namely, Convenor Lewis Stafrace, Mario Sammut, Paul Vella and Emanuel Brincat. Listeners from all over Australia, the UK, USA, CANADA, Malta and even France follow the Maltese programmes. Over 250 people attended the official opening celebration on Sunday May 22. Mr Victor Borg, the president of the Maltese Community Council and Mrs Rosemary Attard, Welfare Director of the same Council were among the guests from the Maltese Community. Mrs Rajdeep Kang, who acted as MC, introduced the 3ZZZ President, Mr George Salloum who on his part welcomed the special guests and spoke about the work by 3ZZZ over the years. He thanked the untiring, creative and selfless work by the 400 volunteer broadcasters, their 60 communities, and the wider multicultural community. He said that the 3ZZZ story spanning over 25 years is one of tremendous success. From the humble beginnings in the basement of the Victorian Trades Hall in 1988 broadcasting in 30 languages to the modern premises in George Street, Fitzroy, in 1992 to 2016, it

now broadcasts in over 60 languages in a new modern building. Its target is to do even better and more. Ms Jan Garrett, Minister for Emergency Services and Member for Brunswick, representing the Premier of Victoria who unveiled the Commemorative Plaque wished all the best to the station in its new premises. Other speakers included Mrs Inga Peulich, MP, Shadow Minister of Multicultural Affairs representing the Leader of the Opposition; Senator Mitch, Fifield, Minister for Communication; Senator Kim Carr, Shadow Minister Higher Education, Research and In-

dustry representing; Hon. Jason Clare, Shadow Minister for Communications; Cr Lita Gillies, Deputy Mayor, City of Moreland; Mr Eddie Micallef, Chair Person ECCV and Deputy Chair FECCA; Mr Russell Anderson, Executive Officer Nation Ethnic and Multicultural Broadcasters Council; Mr Peter Batchelor, President Community Broadcasting Foundation; Ms Lew Wheeler, Deputy Chair, Fair Go for Pensioners Coalition; and Mr Jim Remedio, Manager 3KND Indigenous Broadcasting Station, and Mr George Zangalis, the Secretary of 3ZZZ.

PaulVella

The ‘SS Arosa Kulm’ passengers’ reunion

he passengers still living that travelled to Australia on the SS Arosa Kulm passenger T ship from Malta to Australia in 1956, on May 16 organised a reunion (that was mentioned in The Voice two issues ago) to commemorate 60 years after their arrival in Melbourne at the Hylands Hotel, Craigieburn. Pictured are some of the Maltese passengers who made the long and arduous trip and attended the reunion where they could reminisce about what could be described as an unforgettable adventure From left: Lina Baldacchino nee Spiteri, Rosemary Attard nee Sapiano, Connie Borg nee Calleja, Pauline Portelli nee Sapiano, Giovanna Sapiano, Mary Scicluna nee Spiteri, Carmen Merrigan nee Sapiano, and Iris Sapiano. The SS Arosa Kulm was launched at Hog Island, Pennsylvania in 1919 and ended as being sold for scrapping in 1959.

10 The Voice of the Maltese

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Perspettiva X'tg˙allimna minn Hiroshima? A version of this series in English may be found in the author's blog at: http://ivancauchi.blogs pot.com

ed nirreferi g˙all-©rajja storika tal-1945 meta l-Istati Uniti kienet tefg˙et bomba nukleari fuq din il-belt ÌappuniΩa, u o˙ra fuq Nagasaki tlett ijiem wara, li kienu nqerdu u wkoll swew il-˙ajja ta’ mill-inqas 140,000 ru˙ sa tmiem dik is-sena. Dan l-avveniment huwa ma˙sub minn bosta storiçi (imma mhux minn kul˙add) li kien ir-ra©uni ewlenija li wassal lill-Ìappun biex içedi, Ωvilupp importanti g˙at-tmiem tat-tieni gwerra dinjija. Fl-a˙˙ar ta' Mejju ta’ din is-sena, waqt it-tifkira ta' kull sena f'Hiroshima, il-President Amerikan Barack Obama kien preΩenti g˙all-ewwel darba. Fid-diskors tieg˙u, il-President Obama fakkar fil-qawwa mostruΩa u tal-biΩa' ta' dawn it-tip ta' armamenti, li s'issa ma re©g˙ux intuΩaw iktar f'xi gwerra. Huwa qal li jittama li d-dinja ssib il-kura©© biex isseddaq il-paçi u timxi fitL-effett tal-bomba atomika mitfug˙a fuq Hiroshima fis-6 triq lejn dinja ming˙ajr arta’ Awwissu tal-1945 mamenti nukleari.1 Din il-viΩjoni ta' Obama mhix wa˙da ©dida, u hija rra©uni g˙alfejn ing˙ata lpremju Nobel g˙all-Paçi fl-2009.2 Dan huwa g˙an nobbli, imma kemm hu fattibbli, jew realistiku? Il-Ìnus Mag˙quda g˙andha t-Trattat g˙an-Non-Proliferazzjoni tal-Armamenti Nukleari (NPT), li da˙al fis-se˙˙ fl-1970, li ©ie ratifikat minn 191 stat (l-Awstralja u Malta nkluΩi), u ffirmat imma mhux ratifikat minn 93 pajjiΩ ie˙or. 3 Dan it-trattat kien immirat li jiffriΩa s-sitwazzjoni li kienet teΩisti fil-1967, permezz prinçipalment ta' dan li ©ej: * il-˙ames pajjiΩi li di©a` kellhom armamenti nukleari (l-Istati Uniti, ir-Renju Unit, Franza, iç-Çina u r-Russja, l-hekk imsej˙a Stati Nukleari) jikkommettu li ma jg˙addux materjal jew itteknolo©ija ta' armamenti nukleari tag˙hom lil ˙addie˙or, ˙lief g˙al skopijiet paçifiçi ta˙t prekawzjonijiet ta' verifika; * li l-istati l-o˙ra ma jfittxux li jkollhom din il-kapaçità ˙lief g˙al skopijiet paçifiçi ta˙t prekawzjonijiet ta' verifika. Dawn l-iskopijiet jista' jing˙ad li fallew, g˙ax pajjiΩi o˙ra llum huma mag˙rufin li g˙andhom armamenti nukleari. L-Indja u lPakistan Ωviluppaw dawn b'seba' mitt g˙ajn fuq xulxin, il-Korea ta' Fuq bil-politika belli©erenti tag˙ha tfittex li tippubblika l-programm nukleari tag˙ha biex tittie˙ed bis-serjetà fuq il-palk internazzjonali, u fl-a˙˙ar irid jissemma l-IΩrael li j˙addan politika ta' ambigwità deliberata f'dan il-qasam, li b'ipokrezija kbira millpotenzi nukleari l-kbar qatt ma ©ie sfidat dwar dan is-su©©ett b˙al ma ©ie sfidat l-Iran f'dan l-a˙˙ar Ωmien. L-NPT ukoll i˙e©©e© id-disarmament totali nukleari. Veru li sar xi progress bl-iffirmar ta' trattat ©did (START) bejn l-Istati Uniti u r-Russja fil-2009, u b’inizjattivi o˙ra b˙al tal-amministrazzjoni tal-President Amerikan Obama li fil-2013 ipproponiet li tnaqqas l-ammont ta' armamenti nukleari Amerikani u Russi b'terz. Dawn huma passi poΩittivi, u jistg˙u jitkomplew 'il quddiem, imma jien xettiku jekk qattx naslu g˙al sitwazzjoni fejn l-armamenti nukleari jinqerdu g˙al kollox. Fl-a˙˙ar mill-a˙˙ar, anke bomba nukleari wa˙da g˙andha l-potenzjal ta' qirda g˙al mijiet ta' eluf ta' nies. L-iktar bomba b'sa˙˙itha li qatt ©iet sploduta

kitba ta’

IVAN CAUCHI

kienet wa˙da Russa, b'potenzjal qerriedi tlett elef darba dik ta' Hiroshima! L-Istati Uniti qatt se jafdaw kompletament lir-Russja li qerdet l-armamenti nukleari tag˙ha? Ir-Russja li qabdet u invadiet lillKrimea qisu ma ©ara xejn, u li tix˙et 'il ˙abs lil min jopponi lillPresident tag˙ha? Jew liç-Çina, li bil-kwiet u minghajr fanfarra qed iΩΩid sostanzjalment l-infieq militari tag˙ha sena wara l-o˙ra, u li qed tniΩΩel saqajha fl-ib˙ra kontestati mill-©irien AΩjatiçi tag˙ha? U dawn tal-a˙˙ar se jafdaw lill-Istati Uniti, li qatlet lil President tag˙ha nofs seklu ilu f'attakk bi preçiΩjoni militari ming˙ajr responsabbiltà sallum ti©i attribwita? Li nvadiet pajjiΩ abbaΩi ta' intelli©enza ffabbrikata, u kkonvinçiet lil pajjiΩi o˙ra jag˙mlu listess? Li qeg˙da tikkunsidra tibdel President kawt militarment b'wie˙ed li meta jitkellem qisu qed jispara kanun wara l-ie˙or, f'kull su©©ett li jittratta? L-Indja u l-Pakistan qatt se jafdaw lil xulxin, bilferita g˙adha friska talmiljun persuna li mietu bil-qasma tal-Indja talantik, kapolavur tar-Renju Brittanniku, u bil-©esti Ωg˙ar u rari ta' ˙biberija bejn iΩ-Ωew© pajjiΩi malajr jg˙ibu mal-ewwel sparatura fil-Kashmir? Xi ng˙idu g˙all-Korea ta' Fuq, bil-fta˙ir kontinwu u pubbliku tag˙hom li se jeqirdu lill-Istati Uniti? U fl-a˙˙ar, biex Il-President Barack tafda lil xi ˙add, Obama jpo©©i kuruna fil-Hiroshima tistenna li jkun miftu˙ u trasparPeace Park. enti. Min se jafda lill-IΩrael li l-ambigwità f'dan ilqasam hija l-politika teig˙u? Le, l-armamenti nukleari hawn se jibqg˙u. L-affarijiet veru li jistg˙u jinbidlu g˙alla˙jar, imma jistg˙u wkoll jinbidlu g˙all-ag˙ar. Jiddispjaçini ng˙id li d-deterrenza, ji©ifieri li int ma tfittixx li teqred lili g˙ax jien ukoll nista' neqred lilek, se tibqa'. L-unika ˙a©a poΩittiva li nara f'din l-istorja hija l-possibiltà fantaxjentifika li dawn l-armamenti jistg˙u jintuΩaw fil-futur biex jiddefendu lid-dinja minn xi impatt ta' xi asteroidi li tkun qed thedded lill-˙ajja ta' kull ˙lejqa. Nammetti li qed naqbad it-tentufiet biex infittex il-poΩittiv. Referenzi 1. http://edition.cnn.com/2016/05/27/politics/obamahiroshimajapan/index.html, retrieved 30/5/2016 2.http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2009/pre ss.html, retrieved 30/5/2016 3. http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/npt#, retrieved 30/5/2016

The Voice of the Maltese 11

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Lexi wows Madden Brothers after “fantastic, special” performance on Ch 9’s ‘The Voice’

exi Clark, a 19-year-old soul and R&B singer of Maltese descent (left) who started out as a classical and musical theatre performer wowed the Madden Brothers when she appeared in the first episode of Channel Nine’s ‘The Voice’ on May 1 and rendered Rebecca Ferguson’s hit ‘Nothing’s Real But Love’ Lexi’s appearance on the Australian TV screens during the blind audition stage, had coaches Delta Goodrem, Ronan Keating and the Madden Brothers all turn around to see her sing. But she did not notice that, she told the Weekender newspaper. “I didn’t want to look because it would freak me out so I just focused firmly on my family who were in the audience.” At the end of her performance the Madden Brothers called her, “fantastic” and “special”. No wonder she chose their team, their idols. Her performance attracted raving reports on the May 12 edition of Penrith’s the western Weekender that splashed her photo under a front-page heading: “Lexi finds her Voice” and directing readers to the actual report on the inside pages with a catchy caption of: “Meet our latest reality show queen”. Lexi, who has Maltese grandparents, Jerome (from Msida) and Catherine Pace (from Ûebbu©), whom she affectionately calls “Nunna” and considers as the most important person in her life, has always enjoyed her family’s support. They are her biggest supporters. She has been singing from a young age and likened herself to musical theatre, however it all changed when she suffered from tonsillitis and her voice changed, forcing her to retrain her voice and get to know her new grittier sound.

7 Giugno commemoration cancelled

he current inclement weather in NSW has wreaked havoc with T the commemoration of the annual Sette Giugno event in Sydney organised by the Maltese Community Council of NSW, in as much as it had to be cancelled. In the area of the Maltese bi Bi-Centennial Monument at Pendle Hill, it has rained continuously from Friday night till the time we went to press. Through this medium the organisers would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused.

She made a remarkable recovery, after a routine tonsillectomy left her without her classically trained singing voice. Despite seeking specialist help and advice from speech therapists, the Northmead Performing Arts High graduate, had to teach herself to sing all over again. The husky result drew comparisons with British soul singer, Amy Winehouse who along with Lauryn Hill, Alicia Keys, Stevie Wonder and Adele is Lexi’s musical laneway. It earned Clark a place on Team Madden. It was easy for her to choose to be on the Madden Brothers’ team, as she has been in awe of their albums for years. “The have managed to stay relevant for so long, whether it’s producing or writing music or finding bands; if you can stick around in the music industry for that long (a few months ago they celebrated their 20th anniversary), you must be doing something right,” she told the Weekender. “Good Charlotte was the first album I ever bought, so I am stoked to be on their team. They are literally idols of mine. It’s a dream.” It wasn’t easy for Lexi to find her voice again. “It was hard after I had my surgery for tonsillitis because I didn’t talk for about three or four weeks and then when I did, I sounded like I do now which wasn’t right. She went on to say that it was a frustrating time for her. For about six months she was pretty depressed because she felt like there was nothing else she was passionate about. Look where she is now. Indeed a happy ending after years of hard times.

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12 The Voice of the Maltese

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Roundup of News About Malta

Govt. to appeal Court decision giving NP two more parliamentary seats

he Government is to appeal the Constitutional Court’s decision that ruled that the Nationalist Party should be granted two additional seats in Parliament. The court decided in favour of the NP that had been asking for the additional seats because of mistakes made during the voting procedure in the last general election three years ago. It stated that two more MPs should be elected irrespective of which district

they had contested. In a statement, while noting that the 2013 election was held under a Nationalist government, the Prime Minister said that while respecting the judge’s ruling, the Government does not agree with it because of constitutional implications and as has its right and duty to do, was therefore filing an appeal. The Leader of the Opposition and the Nationalist Party, Simon Busuttil, welcomed the Court’s decision.

The NP had filed the case requesting an additional two seats in the House of Representatives because of a vote-counting mistake. The court held that the result had given an incorrect interpretation of the will of the electorate and should have given 38 seats to the PL and 31 to the PN. The court ordered the Electoral Commissioner to correct the error and declare two more PN candidates to have been elected within a month.

Malta is an example to others in humanitarian crisis, PM says

ddressing the first World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul, Turkey, organised by the United Nations, Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said that by accepting migrants from Greece and Italy Malta has become an example to other countries in the way it is helping in the humanitarian crisis. The summit was organised with the aim of changing the system for the distribution of humanitarian aid and to encourage the world to better react in times of crisis. During the meeting in which political leaders from 120 countries discussed how humanitarian aid should be sent in a more efficient way in the affected areas, it was revealed that each day conflicts, crisis or natural disasters affected 100 million people leading them to leave everything behind to escape as refugees. Dr. Muscat said that with its Prime Minister Dr. Joseph Muscat addressing presence at the summit Malta was the World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul confirming that from words it was passing to facts. from Greece and Italy,” he said. He went on to say that in the past few While hoping for a more just and humane years, at the beginning of 2000 Malta was world, he pointed out that Malta has a natmainly alone as it started facing the migra- ural vocation to assist in humanitarian crition crisis. It does not have this crisis any- sis, so it supports every effort in order for more but the situation could change by aid to be distributed to those in need in a tomorrow as everyday hundreds of people more effective way. are crossing the Mediterranean. They are “My dream and my hope is that every sinnot headed to Malta but to other countries. gle displaced person, refugee, or anybody “While this is happening, in order to show who is going through hardship, would be that we don’t just speak on solidarity but given the capability to prove themselves to also implement it, we are accepting people be human,” he said.

Confirming Malta A3 stable

Malta expects to see economic growth of 4.1% B

acked by solid consumer spending and investment, Malta is expected to see economic growth of 4.1%, Moody's Investors Service has said in its latest credit rating report, entitled ‘Government of Malta - A3 Stable: Annual Credit Analysis’. The report confirms Malta’s A3 Government bond rating and re-affirms Malta’s outlook as stable, supported by the healthy economic outlook and the Govt’s access to a large and reliable domestic funding pool. Moody’s considers Malta’s institutional strength as very high due to its favourable scores in the Worldwide Governance Indicators with Malta’s ranking outperforming its rating peers and its robust policy framework. It describes the economic growth recorded in 2015 as “impressive”, with private consumption and investment being the main growth drivers. It also confirms the decline in the manufacturing sector to around 10% in 2015 from 24% in 2000, but highlights a diversified services-based economy. The credit rating agency attributes the increase in private consumption to various Government initiatives, including income tax cuts, reduced electricity tariffs and the affirmative performance in the labour market such as the low unemployment levels and associated wage increases. “While we expect economic growth to moderate this year, our forecast remains strong compared to its peers in Europe. Key drivers of Malta's economy are domestic consumer demand and investment, with tourism rising 6% in 2015,” Moody’s analyst Evan Wohlmann, said. Moody’s reports that Malta's energy sector reform has moved ahead, which should allow the government's material contingent liability risks to public utilities to decline in the coming years. With regard to investment, it notes that capital expenditure has been supported by largescale energy projects such as the building of a re-gasification plant, the conversion of an oil-powered plant to gas power, and the completion of the interconnector. It acknowledges the progress made in the labour market as the labour participation rate, particularly that of females and youths has increased. It said that this reflects the progress on a number of measures including free childcare centres, in-work benefits, tax rebates, the establishment of a maternity leave fund, and the promotion of flexible hours arrangements.

The Voice of the Maltese 13

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Roundup of News About Malta

Malta’s Ambassadors meet at Fort St Angelo

alta’s ambassadors from abroad were last week hosted by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, George W. Vella to a two-day conference at Fort St Angelo to discuss various topics, particularly Malta’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union next year. It was the last Ambassadors’ meeting prior to that Presidency. After welcoming and thanking the ambassadors for their work in their respective countries in maintaining bilateral relations and attracting investments, commerce and trade to Malta, the Minister said he wanted to share with them his ministry’s vision for the coming months. He explained the ministry’s active involvement and preparations for the coming Presidency and said he is confident that, working hand in hand with the team of dedicated people at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Ministry, together with the Missions, would be able to sail through this Presidency with the best possible outcomes and results. President of Malta, Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca (left) with Austrian Minister Sophie Karmasin at the end of the conference

Minister Dr Geoge Vella (inset) addressing the Ambassadors at the Admiral’s Hall at Fort St Angelo, in Birgu Minister Vella said that it is understandable that the Ministry’s policy priorities for the months to come would be directly, but not necessarily exclusively, linked to Malta’s roles as President of the Council of the EU during which, the ministry intends to organise fifteen informal meetings at various levels, from Ministerial to Working Parties. He encouraged the Ambassadors to keep on making suggestions and constructive criticism, which, he said, “would only help us do a better job and identify issues that we may have otherwise overlooked, zealous as we are to make a good job out of this challenging but auspicious event.” He also spoke about the current political situation in the Mediterranean, migration, the situation in Libya, relations between Europe and Africa, security challenges in the Middle East, and developments in the East.

Centre for Migration in the Mediterranean established in Malta he International Centre for Migration T Policy Development (ICMPD) has opened a Mediterranean Cooperation Centre in Malta. It was inaugurated by Malta’s Foreign Affairs Minister, George Vella, and ICMPD, Dir. General Dr Michael Spindelegger. Minister Vella said that the initiative highlighted Malta’s international credentials on migration, and would build upon the achievements made at the Valletta Summit on Migration in November 2015. He also highlighted the importance of this development in the light of a possible reactivation of the Central Mediterranean migration route. He emphasised the importance of the active involvement of ICMPD in helping to deal with one of the most pressing issues facing the European Union today, migration and forced displacement. Michael Spindelegger said that the new office would benefit from the experience and contacts Malta has built over the past years.

Government defeats third “no confidence” motion he Government defeated a motion of no confidence directed against T the Prime Minister filed by independent MP Marlene Farrugia. The motion had originally requested Parliament to set up a parliamentary Malta to host conference about abolition of corporal punishment

n 2018 Malta would be hosting the next Itionhigh-level global conference on the aboliof corporal punishment to be held under the auspices of the President of Malta, MarieLouise Coleiro Preca. Austrian Minister for Family and Youth, Sophie Karmasin made the announcement at the end of a two-day conference held in Vienna, entitled ‘Towards Childhoods Free from Corporal Punishment’. President Coleiro Preca, who attended on the invitation of the Austrian government, also addressed the conference and spoke about one’s collective duty in safeguarding a child’s right to a childhood free from corpo-

ral punishment, saying that today, “we can celebrate that 48 countries have enacted laws that prohibit corporal punishment”. In her reaction to Malta’s choice as the next venue for 2018 high-level global conference, President Coleiro-Preca said that, Malta being in such a geostrategic position in the Mediterranean, is the perfect country to host such an important conference, as it will seek to bring together representatives from all over to world, so that together, “We can make this the last generation which perpetuates the lie that violence inflicted on children is ever acceptable,” she said.

committee to discuss a no confidence motion against the Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff over his ownership of an offshore company as revealed in the Panama Papers. The no confidence motion was directed against Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, as he is the person who employed Schembri on a position of trust basis on the advice of the Speaker, Anglu Farrugia who ruled that Schembri was not answerable to parliament. After a six-hour long debate the Motion was defeated by 30 votes to 35 with Farrugia voting with the Opposition. This is the third “no confidence” motion supported by the Opposition that the Government has won in just over a month.

14 The Voice of the Maltese

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Dak Kastig!

majna u qrajna. Mhix storja jew tnejn ta’ plejers tal-futbol li l-kowç tag˙hom ˙a passi kontrihom - tnaqqis fis-salarju, sospensjoni – g˙ax fil-fehma tieg˙u dawn il-plejers ma jag˙mlux l-almu kollu tag˙hom waqt xi partita. IΩda qatt ma smajna li kowç ©ieg˙el lill-plejers tieg˙u jpattu g˙an-nuqqas tag˙hom billi jg˙idilhom imorru jag˙mlu xi ©irja ming˙ajr ˙wejje©. Imma hekk g˙amel propju l-kowç tat-tim tar-rugby Francis, Essen meta deherlu li tnejn mill-plejers tieg˙u tant lag˙bu ˙aΩin li qalilhom jag˙mlu ©irja bil-libsa li twieldu biha fit-triqat talbelt silenzjuΩa tal-Imdina. U billi dawn ftit li xejn jafu l-Imdina ma qag˙dux attenti minn liema triqat jg˙addu... u spiççaw biex g˙addew mit-Triq fejn joqg˙od l-eks-Ambaxxatur Malti g˙all-Unjoni Ewropea Richard Cachia Caruana li d-dar tieg˙u hija mg˙assa mill-Pulzija. Meta l-pulizija lema˙hom g˙addejjin ˙adilhom xi ritratti u g˙addihom lis-superjuri tieg˙u, li malajr individwaw lil dawn il-plejers u tellg˙uhom il-Qorti. Il-plejers, flimkien mar-ritratti tag˙hom spiççaw quddiem ilMa©istrat (mara), li minkejja l-ispjega li tawha dehrilha li kellha ΩΩidilhom kastig ie˙or ma’ li kellhom, billi mmultahom €250 kull wie˙ed u lliberathom bil-kundizzjoni li ma jag˙mlux reatt ie˙or fi Ωmien sitt xhur. Na˙seb li kieku minflok f’idejn ilpulizija dawk ir-ritratti spiççaw f’idejn xi ˙add li g˙addihom lil xi ©urnal FrançiΩ kien ida˙˙al ferm aktar mill-€250 li mmultathom ilMa©istrat!!!!

Il-Gvern jippubblika l-baΩi tal-ftehim Air Malta-Alitalia Meta po©©a fuq il-mejda talKamra tad-Deputati l-Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) li l-Gvern iffirma malAlitalia biex din tikseb 49% tal-ishma fl-AirMalta, il-Ministru tat-TuriΩmu Edward Zammit Lewis iddikjara li l-viΩjoni tal-gvern g˙al-linja nazzjonali hi li tikber u ΩΩid irrotot u l-ajruplani. Waqt li spjega l-vanta©©i li li tikseb l-Air Malta bi s˙ubija strate©ika, qal li n-negzjati g˙ad mhumiex konkluΩi u aççerta li l-Gvern mhux se jag˙mel ftehim li ma jkunx fla˙jar interess tal-Air Malta. Il-Gvern irid jassigura li l-Air Malta tibqa’ ttir lejn destinazzjonijiet differenti u mhux isservi ta’ feeder airline li jwassal il-passi©©ieri g˙al ajruport wie˙ed minn fejn jaqbdu titjiera g˙ad-destinazzjoni a˙˙arija tag˙hom. Il-Ministru Ωied jispjega li filwaqt li l-Gvern se jibqa’ lazzjonist ma©©oritarju b’51 filmija tal-ishma, is-s˙ubija g˙andha twassal biex l-Air Malta tkabbar is-sehem tag˙ha fis-suq, li tkun kummerçjalment vijabbli u ΩΩid ilpassi©©ieri li ©©or lejn Malta. Il-Gvern irid li l-ftehim iwassal biex l-Air Malta tag˙mel xiri bi prezzijiet or˙os min˙abba li tkun parti mill-

Kliem ir-Rag˙aj ultant Ωmien in˙obb niffoka fuq dak li K jg˙id l-Isqof ta’ G˙awdex, Mons Mario Grech. Propju fi ftu˙ l-ista©un tal-Festi

f’G˙awdex - nhar il-Festa ta’ San Pawl Nawfragu li ssir fil-Parroçç tal-Munxar, ilMons. Grech, g˙amel dan l-appell: "Nappella lill-komunitajiet parrokkjali biex fl-organizzazzjoni tal-Festa jag˙tu widen g˙al dak li jg˙id il-Kappillan. Nuqqas ta’ rispett lejn il-Kappillan huwa nuqqas ta’ rispett lejn l- Isqof. Jekk tin˙oloq din l-atmosfera, nikkunsidra nibqax nie˙u sehem f’dawn il-festi. L- antiki jg˙idu li l-festi huma tempesti; nevitaw li l-Festa issir tempesta li taf t˙alli ˙erba umana, spiritwali u soçjali. “Nirrakkomandalkom biex ma t˙allux gruppi Ωg˙ar “ja˙tfu” l- Festa patrunali u minn çelebrazzjoni ta’ fer˙ u g˙aqda jirrenduha okkaΩjoni ta’ tg˙ajir, tinbix, offiΩi u firda. I˙assibni ˙afna l-fatt li l-kappillani qed ikollhom ja˙lu ˙afna ener©ija fuq ˙wejjeg

sekondarji u xi drabi bla sens, meta j˙ossu li g˙andhom japplikaw il-ministeru L-Isqof Mario Grech pastorali tag˙hom f’˙idma aktar me˙tie©a u ur©enti. Jekk jirriΩulta li fil-festa esterna jkun hemm elementi b˙al dawn, il-Festa ssir çelebrazzjoni anti-evan©elika u jkollna nirrevedu ˙afna affarijiet. Dan jg˙odd g˙all-komunitajiet parrokkjali kollha tad-Djoçesi." Na˙seb li ftit hawn li ma jaqblux ma’ dak li qal l-Isqof Grech. Tassew ta stampa çara ta’ dak li kultant ji©ri f’xi parroççi bir-riΩultat li minn rit reli©juΩ nispiççaw b’festa pagana, jekk mhux b’xi abbuΩi wkoll. Biss na˙seb li l-Isqof tajjeb li ji©bed l-attenzjoni tal-kappillani wkoll, g˙ax xi kultant ikun hemm minnhom min jag˙laq g˙ajn wa˙da wkoll.

familja tal-Etihad Airways (li g˙andha 49% tal-ishma tal-Alitalia) biex jor˙su l-prezzijiet waqt li l-˙addiema jkollhom opportunitajiet ta’ tkabbir filkarriera. Qal li l-Gvern irid ukoll li lAirMalta sservi rotot o˙rajn waqt li toffri benefiççji o˙ra lill-konsumaturi Malti. In-negozjati g˙adhim fi stadju bikri.

Se titnaqqas il-burokrazija

ermezz tal-iffirmar ta’ fteP him li sar fi tmiem ilÌimg˙a g˙as-Servizz Pubbliku bit-tema “Ninvestu fin-Nies”, id-dipartimenti tal-Gvern u entitajiet pubbliçi ntrabtu li jiffaçilitaw il-proçess biex wie˙ed ikun jista’ jifta˙ negozju f’Malta. Dan ifisser li f’çerti kaΩi, iddewmien ka©un tal-burokrazija Ωejda se ji©i mnaqqas minn ˙ames ©img˙at g˙al ©img˙a. IlPrim Ministru talab lis-Segretarju Permanenti Ewlieni u lill-Malta Enterprise biex jo˙or©u b’rapport ˙alli f’sentejn is-sitwazzjoni tmur g˙all-a˙jar. Is-Servizz Pubbliku se jkompli ji©©edded biex joffri servizz ta’ kwalità a˙jar kemm g˙all-uffiçjali pubbliçi nfushom kif ukoll g˙all-pubbliku.

Il-KE kuntenta tara t-t˙ejjijiet ta’ Malta g˙all-Presidenza

s-Segretarju Ìenerali tal-Kummissjoni Ital-Kabinett Ewropeja, Alexander Italianer, u l-kap tal-President tal-Kummissjoni Ewropeja, Martin Selmayr huma impressjonati bit-t˙ejjijiet tal-Gvern Malti g˙al meta fl-1 ta’ Jannar li ©ej jie˙u l-Presidenza tal-Kunsill tal-Unjoni. F’laqg˙a li Italianer u Selmayr kellhom mal-Prim Ministru Malti, Joseph Muscat qalu li hemm rieda politika qawwija ˙alli lPresidenza Maltija til˙aq l-g˙anijiet tag˙ha. Min-na˙a tieg˙u, Italianer qal li jinsab fiduçjuΩ li Malta se tmexxi l-Presidenza b’suççess, u wieg˙ed l-impenn u l-appo©© tal-Kummissjoni Ewropeja lil Malta li, lPresidenza tag˙ha, qal, se sservi biex ikun hemm nifs ©did lill-pro©ett Ewropew u liççittadini.

The Voice of the Maltese 15

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Tissokta Ω-Ωieda impressjonanti fit-TuriΩmu

arsa lejn l-andament tal-figuri fl-industrija tat-turiΩmu f’Malta matul lewwel erba’ xhur ta’ din is-sena turi li Ωaru Malti kwaΩi 450,000 turist, tkabbir ta’ 11.2% fuq l-istess xhur tas-sena l-o˙ra, u s-37% fuq tal-2012. Dan l-g˙add rekord ta’ turisti rre©istrat flewwel terz ta’ din is-sena jirriΩulta li kien l-akbar tkabbir fl-g˙add ta’ turisti rre©istrat bejn ix-xhur ta’ Jannar u April mill-2011 ‘l hawn, tassew impressjonanti. L-iljieli mqatta’ f’Malta ammontaw g˙al 3.1 miljun lejl, Ωieda ta’ 9.3% fuq l-2015 filwaqt li l-infieq turistiku la˙aq it-€332.5 miljun, ji©ifieri tkabbir ta’ 7% fuq is-sena l-o˙ra, li ssarraf f’€21.7 miljun aktar fi d˙ul dirett fl-ekonomija Maltija. Rajna tkabbir notevoli mis-swieq ta’ Franza, l-Iskandinavja u Spanja, apparti dawk tradizzjonali tal-Italja u r-Renju Unit.

Manahattan f’Malta

Iva Malta jista’ jkollha l-Manhattan tag˙ha jekk çerti pro©etti g˙all-bajja ta’ San Ìorg (f’San Ìiljan) isiru firrealta’ (Ara Ritratt)

Is-Sabi˙ u l-ikreh ....

Im˙abbar Partit Politiku ©did

arlene Farrugia (fuq), li bdiet il-le©isM latura ta’ b˙alissa b˙ala Membru Parlamentari fil-Gvern Laburista u li ftit

tax-xhur ilu ddeçidiet li t˙alli l-partit imma tibqa’ Parlamentari b˙ala Indipendenti, fi tmiem il-©img˙a li g˙addiet ˙abbret partit politiku ©did bl-isem ta’ Partit Demokratiku u li tieg˙u se tkun il-mexxej temporanju. Flimkien ma’ Marlene, li g˙al xi Ωmien kienet anke timmilita fil-Partit Nazzjonalista, hemm Anthony Butti©ie© b˙ala deputat mexxej, Marco Cremona b˙ala segretarju ©enerali, Duncan Bonnici li se jaqdi l-kariga ta’ kaxxier u Monique Agius, b˙ala uffiçjal g˙ar-relazzjonijiet pubbliçi. Fi stqarrija ng˙ad li l-partit il-©did se jkun hemm biex jag˙ti u mhux jie˙u lill-poplu, iservi u mhux jisserva u fuq kollox biex iΩomm l-interess nazzjonali fuq quddiem.

• Is-sena li g˙addiet kien hemm 58 mara Maltija li telg˙et l-Ingilterra biex twettaq abort. Dan huwa 1.1% mit-total tal-abort li sar fir-Renju Unit minn persuni li m’humiex çittadini ta’ dan il-pajjiΩ. • Komunikat li n˙are© mid-Direttorat g˙allPromozzjoni tas-Sa˙˙a ntqal li kwaΩi 12% tas-subien ta' 11-il sena u 11% tal-bniet ta' din l-istess età ammettew li xi darba jew o˙ra pejpu s-sigaretti. Fejn jid˙lu studenti ta' 13-il sena hemm rata ta' tipjip ta' 11% g˙as-subien u 13% g˙all-bniet. • Malta g˙al darba o˙ra hija fost dawk ilpajjizi tal-Ewropa li g˙andhom l-inqas nies bla xog˙ol. B'4.3% Malta tinsab bit-tielet l-inqas rata ta' qg˙ad fost il-pajjiΩi kollha tal-Unjoni Ewropea. JaqbΩu lil Malta b'livelli aktar baxxi ta' qg˙ad hemm biss ir-Repubblika Çeka u l-Ìermanja b'4.1% u 4.2% rispettivament. L-istess çifri juru wkoll kif pajjiΩna g˙andu l-aktar rata ta' qg˙ad baxxa fost il-pajjiΩi kollha fiΩ-Ωona tal-Mediterran. Il-pajjiΩi ©irien tag˙na kollha g˙andhom rata ˙afna og˙la ta' qg˙ad, bil-Greçja tkun fuq quddiem tal-lista b'rata li tla˙˙aq l-24.2%. Mhux wisq a˙jar mill-Greçja hija Spanja fejn ir-rata ta' qg˙ad hija wa˙da pjuttost g˙olja u tla˙˙aq l-20.1% u anke l-Italja fejn ir-rata ta' persuni li qed jirre©istraw g˙axxog˙ol tla˙˙aq il-11.7%. Skont il-Eurostat, f'April li g˙adda r-rata medja tal-qg˙ad fiΩ-Ωona Ewro kienet ta’ 10.2% filwaqt li fl-Unjoni Ewropea kienet

ta’ 8.7%. Dawn huma l-inqas rati rre©istrati minn Awwissu 2011 u April 2009 rispettivament. • Malta kklassifikat fit-23 post fid-dinja flindiçi tal-prosperità, biex b'hekk Ωammet ilpost tas-sena l-o˙ra. Dan ir-riΩultat ifisser ukoll li Malta kklassifikat fil-15-il post millpajjiΩi Ewropej f'dan l-indiçi. L-ewwel post fl-indiçi kklassifikat inNover©ja. Fit-tieni post iklassifikat lIsvizzera u fit-tielet id-Danimarka. Malta iklassifikat bejn Franza u Spanja. • Statistika ppubblikata mill-Eurostat tikkonferma wkoll li, fit-tieni nofs tal-2015, ilprezz tal-elettriku li kienu qed i˙allsu l-konsumaturi Ewropej kien ta’ 2.4% og˙la mill-livell ta’ sena qabel, bil-prezz tal-elettriku jiΩdied minn €20.6 g˙al €21.1 kull 100 kilowatt. Imqabbel ma’ dan, b˙ala medja, il-familji Maltin u G˙awdxin i˙allsu €12.7 g˙al kull 100 kilowatt ta’ ener©ija li jikkunsmaw, ji©ifieri 66% anqas mir-rata li j˙allsu iç-çittadin l-o˙ra Ewropej. L-istatistika tal-Eurostat, turi li l-familji tag˙na qed i˙allsu r-raba` l-or˙os prezz talelettriku fl-Ewropa, bid-differenza li bejn Malta u l-medja Ewropeja tiΩdied b’madwar 30ç kull 100 kilowatt is-sena li g˙addiet Forsi jkun hemm minn jg˙id dan kif ma mexiex mat-titlu – Is-Sabi˙ u mbag˙ad likrah? Sempliçi, g˙ax b’hekk in˙oss li jkun a˙jar biex hekk nispiçça fuq tog˙ma tajba.

16 The Voice of the Maltese

Tuesday June 7, 2016

A quick glimpse at Australia

Senator Peris to quit politics O utgoing Labor senator Nova Peris announced she would not recontest her Northern Territory Senate seat. She has given an emotional defence of her decision to quit politics, declaring: "Until you are an Indigenous person, do not criticise me for the decisions I've made". Nova Peris

The Coalition has criticised the Olympic gold medallist for leaving politics after only a few years and accused her of aban-

ew South Wales has the highest rate of adults living with signs of chronic kidney disease, a new report has found. Kidney He- alth Australia's annual State of the Nation report said the

doning her constituents. Speaking alongside Opposition Leader Bill Shorten on National Sorry Day in Darwin, she said no one should “judge” her for making that decision. “Three years ago I walked into Parliament as the first Aboriginal woman,” Senator Peris said. Senator Peris pointed out that she was leaving on her own terms after Coalition claims she had been pushed. She hit back at criticism of the timing of her announcement during an election campaign and said she “didn't call the election”. “I'm a politician, but also a human,” she said. Senator Peris reflected on the Stolen Generations when speaking about her reasons for leaving. “This decision I have made has been on family and I have to look after my children,” she said. “Aboriginal people haven't had to share true moments with their children and I hold that dear to my heart.” She also defended herself against suggestions Territorians deserved a better explanation of her reasons for quitting. "I'm a 45-year-old woman and I'm sure you don't go around every single day time of your life justifying the things you have to do,” she said. Senator Peris said there was still a long

Malarndirri McCarthy

way to go until Aboriginal people were treated as equals in Australia. “It's not easy to wake up every morning and bounce out of bed and pretend life is fantastic, because it isn't,” she said. “Aboriginal people have no inherited wealth, they have inherited pain, but we have a vision.” Former Northern Territory MLA Malarndirri McCarthy an Aboriginal woman from Borroloola has been named by the Labor Party to replace retiring senator Nova Peris as their number one Senate candidate in July's federal election. Ms McCarthy, who received strong support from the ALP's left faction, is a former NT Government minister and has worked as a journalist at the ABC, SBS and NITV.

Signs of chronic kidney disease Illawarra and Shoalhaven region in Sydney's south ranked number one on the list of worst-affected areas. The report said 45,000 people (19.5%) of the adult population in that area were living with signs of the disease. Sydney's Inner West was second on the list, with about

16.7% showing signs of the chronic disease. Kidney Health Australia CEO Anne Wilson said Australia had 1.7 million Australian adults living with signs of kidney failure. “We have 60 Australians dying every day from kidney-related disease - that's one person every 25 minutes,” she said. Ms Wilson said the report's results could help build a greater insight into the areas that needed the most education, awareness and health services. Treatment of kidney disease is costs the nation more than $4 billion every year, according to the report. The State of the Nation report also found the gap in Indigenous kidney health remained critical, with 59,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders living with signs of chronic kidney disease — making Indigenous Australians more than twice as likely to have signs of kidney failure than non-Indigenous people. “We need a national taskforce to tackle the devastating rate of kidney disease in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities," Ms Wilson said.

The Voice of the Maltese 17

Tuesday June 7, 2016

A quick glimpse at Australia

$350m less for Early childhood education

n Auditor-General's report says that in the four years up to 20142015, the government spent $350m. less than was budgeted for early childhood education, including holding back $227m in funds received from the federal government. NSW childcare and preschool fees are the highest in the country, where the government invests less in early childhood education than any other state: $202 per child, compared to $357 in Victoria, $598 in Tasmania and $644 in South Australia, according to the Productivity Commission. Labor's early childhood education spokeswoman Kate Washington, said the Auditor-General's report was “damning”. “Seeing that 77 per cent of kids only in NSW are accessing 15 hours or more of preschool each week, which is well below every other state and territory in Australia, and far below the benchmark. We know it comes down to the basic thing that preschool and long-day-care fees are the highest of any other state or territory, and that's due to the lack of government investment in early childhood education.” Minister for Early Childhood Education Leslie Williams said early childhood sector spending had increased over the past three years by 14.5 per

cent, and blamed federal government funding uncertainty for the unspent allocation. “Differences between the budget and forecast are due to the timing and variations of Commonwealth National Partnership funding paid to the state," she said in a statement. “The Auditor-General's report confirms that reforms delivered by the NSW Govern-ment have resulted in improvements – however we recognise there is still more to do.” States are responsible for preschools funding and the federal government for funding long day care and other childcare through family and centre subsidies. In 2015, 62 per cent of early childhood education enrolments in NSW were in long day care. The report slammed the federal government for acting as an “impediment” to improving the system, given its funding “has been short-term, often received late, and difficult to predict in advance”.

Torrential rain and high winds have caused havoc along Australia's east coast

Storms leave three dead and many homes in danger

hile we were wrapping up this issue of the magazine we learnt that as rain and wind continue to batter southern New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania, three people were confirmed dead after massive storms flooded rivers, uprooted trees and tore into beaches along Australia's east coast. Furthermore, erosion at Sydney's Collaroy Beach has forced the evacuation of multi-million dollar homes, which are now in danger of collapsing. Reports indicate that at the weekend the storms cut power to 86,000 homes in New South Wales.

On Monday morning, the body of a 37-year-old man was found in the Cotter River near Canberra. with Police saying that he was caught in floodwaters at a river crossing. Police divers have also retrieved the bodies of two men whose cars were washed off roads in separate incidents. A third man, aged 65, was caught inside his vehicle at Bowral, while another was killed after his utility vehicle was washed off the road on Sydney's south-west fringe. On Monday flood warnings were issued across several states, with northern Tasmania facing its worst flooding in decades.

Detention on Manus Island ruled illegal

PNG. “Both the Australian and Papua New Guinea governments shall forthwith take all steps necessary to cease and prevent the continued unconstitutional and illegal detention of the asylum seekers or transferees at the relocation centre on Manus Island and the continued breach of the asylum seekers or transferees constitutional and human rights,” the judges ordered. In one of two lead judgments, Justice TerMICHELLE ROWLAND MP ence Higgins said the detention also breached FEDERAL MEMBER asylum seekers' fundamental human rights FOR GREENWAY guaranteed by various conventions on human rights at international law and under the PNG Proudly serving the areas of: constitution. Acacia Gardens, Blacktown*, Girraween, “Treating those required to remain in the reGlenwood, Kellyville Ridge, Kings Langley, location centre as prisoners irrespective of Kings Park, Lalor Park, Parklea, Pendle their circumstances or status … is to offend Hill, Prospect*, Quakers Hill*, Riverstone, against their rights and freedoms," Judge Rouse Hill*, Schofields, Seven Hills, Higgins said. Stanhope Gardens, The Ponds, Hundreds of people have gathered in MelToongabbie*, Vineyard bourne's CBD to protest against the offshore *Parts of detention of asylum seekers. Federal Greens leader Richard di Natale told the crowd in 230 Prospect Hwy, Seven Hills 2147 Victoria that Australia needed to do more to Ph: 9671 4780 help the asylum seekers detained offshore. Email: Michelle.Rowland.MP@aph.gov.au “We are better than this. We are not just turning our backs on innocent people — many of www.facebook.com/mrowlandmp them tortured, some of them raped, [or who Twitter: @mrowlandmp have],” he said.

he five-man bench of the court ruled the detention breached the right to personal liberty in the Papua New Guinea constitution. There are 850 men in the detention centre on Manus Island, about half of whom have been found to be refugees. The Supreme Court has ordered the PNG and Australian Governments to immediately take steps to end the detention of asylum seekers in

18 The Voice of the Maltese

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Malta’s Grand Harbour Marina - one of the Med’s most popular

ue to the fact that it offers some of the biggest berthing spaces Grand Harbour Marina, that is set against the timeless backdrop of historical fortifications of Fort St Angelo and Valletta making it one of the most spectacular and popular marinas in the Mediterranean particularly when it comes to superyachts, last year it hosted 159 super yachts, five more than in 2014. Grand Harbour Marina chairman Lawrence Zammit said that its popularity is further strengthened by the fact the marina services are always top notch and are located close to all the important amenities sought after by berth holders. He said that the location in Vittoriosa is now a very sought after location both as a residential area and for

cultural entertainment. These views were recently also echoed by Jay Deakin, First Officer of M/Y Fusion, a superyacht that started calling to Malta recently. In an interview featured on The Superyacht Group magazine, about captains' favourite marinas and ports of call, Jay Deakin listed the Grand Harbour Marina in Vittoriosa as his most favourite. "I had already visited the marina on a different yacht a few years back and my first impressions of GHM and Valletta were extremely positive. “I was impressed by the imposing ancient fort and the city of Valletta itself welcome everyone to an island with a rich history and a welcoming, friendly culture. Once we had arrived, the helpfulness of all the marina staff, as well as locals, was the enduring first impression," explains Jay Deakin in his interview. He went on to say, “Our decision to come to bring FUSION to Grand Harbour Marina however, was also based on price and the quality of the workmanship that we had experienced on our previous visits. Obviously the protection afforded from prevailing weather conditions by the impressive natural harbour was also a factor in our decision.” Deakin said that from a competitive point of view, Grand Harbour Marina ranked very well too. In fact, solicited quotes from numerous other marinas around the western Mediterranean that were within a reasonable distance from Naples, GHM's competitive rates contributed to their decision. He pointed out that the facilities and the staff without a doubt contributed a lot to their positive experience, and services and amenities were found to be very efficient. He also praised the knowledgeable docking masters. “We feel totally part of the family at GHM who make each yacht feel important and like there's not enough they can do for you. I find this a rare quality in my experience. “It really has started to feel like home and we cannot ask more of a marina or the staff because everyone is always so very helpful. Access to local facilities is easy and Malta's size makes it super easy to get around. We'll keep coming back!" Deakin concluded.

The Voice of the Maltese 19

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Serenades Amidst the Sirens Lina Brockdorff’s WW2 autobiography, now in English

erenades Amidst the Sirens, Lina Brockdorff’s autobiographical account of Malta’s World War II, has just been published by Horizons Communications. Unlike other books about Malta’s wartime ordeal, this book is from the perspective of a young girl growing up as a bewildering world around her seems to fall to pieces. As her father’s soothing serenades are drowned out by screeching air raid sirens, only unwavering faith and courage pull her family and country through. Originally published in Maltese as Sireni u Serenati, the work won ‘’Best Novel – Non Fiction’’ prize from the National Book Council of Malta in 2004. It has attracted the attention of a wide audience and has also been serialised and broadcast on several radio stations. Lina Brockdorff (pictured left) is an accomplished Maltese author, with several published novels and collections of short stories, many of which were also broadcast in Malta and Australia. She is also a The

Voice of the Maltese contributor. Her light, and keenly observed writing and her heartwarming sense of humanity have delighted and captivated many readers. ‘’Incredible as it was, our family’s story was the story of thousands of others during that eventful and vivid time’’ stated Lina Brockdorff, ‘’I simply had to put in on rec-ord and share it.’ Part of the Outlook Coop Group, Horizons Communications are one of Malta’s most respected publishing houses. Representing leading established authors, its publications have been awarded numerous Ktieb tal-Malti literary prizes in a number of different categories. In his comments about the publication, David Bezzina, General Manager of Horizons said: “We have already published a number of novels

by Lina Brockdorff in Maltese, and these have all proven to be very successful. Her wartime autobiography remains, of course, one of her most iconic and timeless works. Now that it is also available in the English language, it can continue to be enjoyed by so many more readers, and not just in Malta.’’ The book is available from http://www.bdlbooks.com/

Great Barrier Reef: Bleaching 'kills 35% of area's coral' ustralian scientists say that at least 35% of corals in rier Reef, between Townsville and Papua New Guinea the northern and central parts of Australia's Great A He added that this is the third year in the last 18 that Barrier Reef have been destroyed by bleaching, with ex- the Great Barrier Reef has experienced mass bleaching

perts saying it is the most extreme case of mass bleaching they have ever measured at the World Heritage Site. Bleaching occurs when warmer water causes coral to weaken and lose the colourful algae that provide oxygen and nutrients. It has been linked to climate change. Professor Terry Hughes, the head of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at JCU, said in a statement that they found on average, that 35% of the corals are now dead or dying on 84 reefs that they surveyed along the northern and central sections of the Great Bar-

due to global warming, and the current event is much more extreme than they’ve measured before. "We're rapidly running out of time to reduce greenhouse gas emissions," he said. The scientists warned that the recovery of coral cover is expected to take a decade or longer, but it would take much longer to regain the largest and oldest corals that have died. Their study was released after months of intensive aerial and underwater surveys.

20 The Voice of the Maltese

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Tag˙rif dwar il-kitba Maltija

ktar regoli u tag˙rif uffiçjali dwar kif wie˙ed g˙andu jikteb il-Malti ma˙ru© mill-Kummissjoni fi ˙dan l-Akkademja tal-Malti. Illum nissoktaw b’regola o˙ra.

IT-TNAX-IL REGOLA

sonanti tat-tieni persuna tal-imperattiv b˙all-ittri a, e, o fil-verbi arfa’, L-Aççent tal-kelma g˙andu jkun er˙i, orqod jidher ukoll bis-sura ta’ dejjem fuq vokali u qatt fuq konso- ittra vokali i fi kliem b˙alma huma: isa, inΩel, imxi, i©bed kif ukoll isaw, nanti. L-aççent fil-kelmiet twîl, sikwît, tiswîr, inΩlu, imxu u mhux jsa, jnΩel, jmxi, tisjîr, tag˙wî©, tge©wî©, tipjîp, jaqa’ u j©bed jew jsaw, jnΩlu, jmxu (ara tarrejja li j˙ossu li, jew g˙andhom jin˙ass fuq il-vokali tal-a˙˙ar Tlettax-il Regola). talent g˙all-kitba, l-aktar bl-Ilsien (2) Il-le˙en i fil-bidu tal-kelma jidtaqsima u g˙alhekk l-ittra vokali i Malti, imma mhux biss, u jkunu jridu li tal-aççent ma tistax titfisser bilkon- her ukoll vokali fi kliem b˙alma kitbiet tag˙hom ji©u ppublikati f’The huma: isba˙, ikrah, iΩjed, i©mla, isqra, sonanti j. Voice of the Maltese, huma m˙e©©a ÓaΩin min jikteb bl-ittra j: twjl, sik- li ma jinkitbux jsba˙, jkrah, jΩjed, jibag˙tuhomlna f’dan l-indirizz talwjt, tiswjr, tisijr, tag˙wj©, tge©wj©, tip- j©mla, jsqra fejn l-ittra i qieg˙da flok email: maltesevoice@gmail.com a (alif) (ara t-Tlettax-il Regola). ijp flok twîl, sikwît, tiswîr, tisjîr, eçç. (3) Il-le˙en i T.ç. Meta ni©u biex nag˙Ωlu liema miΩ-Ωew© ittri tal-le˙en ui u iu fil-bidu talg˙andha tinkiteb konsonanti, nie˙- kelma jidher du dik il-wa˙da li fuqha ma jaqax ukoll miktub vokali meta l-aççent. G˙alhekk il-kelma biut insewwuha jid˙ol b˙ala bjut u mhux biwt, hekk ukoll bisuit, riffied, bejn ilsikuit, tuil insewwuhom biswit, sikwit, k o n s o n a n t i twil u mhux bisujt, sikujt, tujl; ˙iut, talkelma ta’ llum se nittrattaw xi ˙a©’o˙ra fl-ilsien Malti qabilha u l˙jut; Ωiut, Ωjut. miktub, dawk mag˙rufa b˙ala l-kas akkuΩaHekk ukoll il-kelma liuia niktbuha k o n s o n a n t i tiv u l-kas dattiv. liwja u mhux ljuja. Xi w˙ud ta’ warajha. jg˙iduha u jiktbuha ˙aΩin: lilwa G˙alhekk nik1. In-Nom jew il-Pronom li fuqu jaqa’ lming˙ajr ma jqisu li ©ejja mill- tbu: sebat ir©g˙emil tal-verb ikun ta’ Kas AkkuΩativ kelma lewa u li hi l-femminil ta’ liwi iel, ftit irmied, jew Dirett. ra©el imqit kien, li jag˙mel liwja. EΩ.: In-nassab qabad g˙asfur. Haduh lJi©ri li l-ewwel ittra tal-kelma daq- imsiefer, mar lisptar. qa ssarraf vokali u daqqa konso- iskola, çarrat ilnanti. Din it-tibdila ssir bejn il-kon- biesu, dawn l-im2. Il-Pronomi AkkuΩativi li jinhemΩu mal-verb huma: sonanti j u l-vokali tal-istess le˙en i; wejjed, l-imwieni, ek, k, u, h, ha, na, kom, hom bejn il-konsonanti w u l-vokali tal- Ωen. EΩ.: rani, rak, rah, raha, rana, rakom rahom. (4) Il-le˙en i istess le˙en u: (1) Jekk fuq l-ewwel le˙en tal- ma jidher b’x3. Il-Pronomi AkkuΩativi jistg˙u jing˙aqdu mad-Dattivi. kelma jin˙ass l-aççent, bejn i vokali ejn meta qudMeta ji©ri dan il-Pronomi AkkuΩativi h jew u, isiru hu u j konsonanti, g˙al dak il-le˙en diem g˙andu u ha ssir hie. ag˙Ωel l-ittra i. EΩ. i©bed, inΩel, ibqa’, vokali o˙ra u EΩ.: Ta ktieb lili jew tah lili jew inkella tahuli; xtara l-kelma ta’ waiΩjed, iktar, isba˙. libsa lili jew xtraha lili jew inkella xtrahıeli. (2) Jekk fuq l-ewwel le˙en tal- ra tkun tibda kelma ma jin˙assx aççent, g˙al dak b’Ωew© konso4. In-Nom jew il-Pronom li ja˙bat wara l-partiçella lil l-ewwel le˙en bejn i vokali u j kon- nanti jew blikun ta’ Kas Dattiv jew Indirett. sonanti ag˙Ωel j. EΩ. jaqbad, ja˙dem, istess konsonanti mtenjo˙ro©, jinΩel, j©ib, jrid, jfur, jfieraq. EΩ.: Kellimt lil Salvu. Rajt lil dak Biss, jekk dan l-ewwel le˙en jin˙ass nija. G˙alhekk qieg˙ed bejn Ωew© konsonanti, niktbu: ©ejna 5. Meta l-partiçella lil ting˙aqad mal-verb titqassar f’l iktbu i. EΩ. mar i©ib, kien irid, ried ndoqqu, issa bil-Pronomi MehmuΩin mag˙ha. G˙alhekk issir: li, ifieraq, imma mbag˙ad ikteb: meta nqum, ˙afna lek, lok, lu, lha, lkom, lhom. j©ib, malli j©orr, malli j©ibu, marru lfiq, mortu ssiEΩ.: Kitibli, kitiblek, kitbitlu, kitbilha, eçç. jsibu u mhux meta i©ib, malli i©orr, bu, rajtha ΩΩur, meta ©©ib, u malli i©ibu, marru isibu. 6. Lha, lna, lkom, lhom jie˙du Vokali tal-Le˙en qaT.ç. (1) Il-le˙en i flok l-ewwel kon- morna n©orru. bilhom meta jinhemΩu ma’ verb li jispiçça b’konsonanti. EΩ.: sab + lha, = sabilha; tafa’ + lha = tafg˙alha. Ag˙mel uΩu mid-dizzjunarju Malti

Tinteressak il-kitba?

Biex tikteb Malti tajjeb Il-kas akkuΩativ u l-kas dattiv

*Jekk trid tiççekja l-kitba, it-tifsir tal-kliem Malti u t-traduzzjoni g˙all-IngliΩ issa tista’ tid˙ol fuq iddizzjunarju tal-Maltin online. Is-sit huwa: www.maltesedictionary.org.mt

7. Il-Verbi li jispiççaw bl-(’) jbiddluh f’g˙ meta jinhemΩu maghhom il-Pronomi AkkuΩativi jew Dattivi. EΩ.: sama’ = semag˙ni (Akk.); rafa’ - refag˙li (Datt.)

The Voice of the Maltese 21

Tuesday June 7, 2016

C ommunity Co mmunity N ews ews La Valette Social Centre Inc.

Saint Nicholas Festa Committee Presents the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul

Feast of St Peter and St Paul (L-Imnarja) 175 Walters Road, Blacktown. Tel. 9622 5847

Email: lavalett@bigpond.net.au. Website: http://www.lavaletteclub.net The feast is to be celebrated at the Centre on Sunday June 26 starting with Mass at 11am in the main hall. Entertainment to be provided by Sam Mifsud, traditional Maltese folklore music (g˙ana), and the participation of OLQP Band. There will be Jumping Castle for the kids. Bar and kitchen will be open for one’s convenience There will also be an arts and crafts exhibition, farm animals and fresh produce. Those wishing to exhibit, hold stalls or seek other information should contact the Centre on 9622 5847 or Joe Abela on 0425206472.

Festa L’Imnarja and Lejla fil-Buskett at The Good Shepherd Parish Hall 130-136 Hyatts Rd Plumpton NSW on Sunday July 3 Starting at 12.00 Noon: with Classic Cars & Bikes Display; 1.30pm-6.00pm: Arts & Crafts, Entertainment & Agriculture Displays Also Music and Singing featuring Ron Borg, Joe Xuereb & Tony Fenech. and the Maltese Cultural Association of NSW More information from President: Joe Fenech – 0412 009 957 or PRO: Emmanuel Vella-045 677 064

The Maltese Community Council of NSW is conducting a computer class at Maltese Resource Centre 59b Franklin Street, Mays Hill 2145 NSW every Friday between 10.00 am-12.00 For more information contact Em. Camilleri: 0409 744 376

THE MALTESE GUILD OF SA INC.

The Malta Community Chest Fund

MALTESE CHARITY DINNER DANCE Saturday July 23, 2016 6.30 p.m. - 11.30 p.m.

Grand star receptions 499 Grieve Parade, Altona North. vic 3025

Tickets: Adults $65 Children $40 includes 4-coure meal, soft drinks, beer & wine

maltese music - maltese brass band - raffle tickets silent auctions & major grand auction enquiries & tickets: contact daniel 0404 096 560; lourdes 0402 813 179; joe 0420 547 696. email: lordan.co@hotmail.com (donations also welcome) Proudly sponsored by:

QUEEN’S BIRTHDAY LUNCHEON Tuesday June 14 lunch served at 12.15pm at the Maltese Cultural Centre 6, Jeanes Street Beverley Lunch Menu will be on the radio and on the Notice Board later

To book your lunch: Have your name listed on the Bookings Book when committee members come around on Tuesday’s, or contact the President: Joe Briffa on 8254 6988 or 0421 791 327; the Vice President: Mary Craus on 8281 2329 or 0420 699 617, Rita Bornhoeft: 8248 1008 or 0401 860 632 or see anyone from the committee. The Centre and the Guild Bar will be open from 9.00am on wards. ALL ARE WELCOME

ST HELENA MALTESE/AUSTRALIAN S.C. Events 2016

JUN. 18 – SAT.: Get together at Holy Eucharist. AUG. 26, 28 (FRI & SUN): Feast masses at Croatian Church, Ardeer. AUG. 27 – SAT.: Dinner Dance at Melrose, Tullamarine SEPT. 17 – SAT.: Get together St Albans. OCT. 23 - SUN.: General meeting at Parkville. OCT. 29 - SAT.: Get together St Albans at Avondale Heights. NOV. 12, 13 (SAT & SUN): Concerts with Renato & Mary Rose Mallia (Also featuring the Cittadini from Sydney) DEC. 17 – SAT.: Xmas function at Melrose, Tullamarine.

METD OUTINGS - 2016 14th August – St Maria Festa (Central Coast) $35/pp including morning tea 11th September – Il-Festa tal-Vitorja (City) $25/pp 5th October - 23rd Anniversary Luncheon Please support the Maltese Elderly Thanksgiving Day Committee by attending our fund-raising activities outlined above. For more info, call one of the members: Lina: 9629 4046; Doris: 0419 420 915; Maggie: 9621 3125; Maria:0431 800 720 email: metd@live.com.au PO Box 93, Kellyville 2155

22 The Voice of the Maltese

Tuesday June 7, 2016

C Co om mm mu un ni it ty y N Ne ew ws s Readers can also request a printed copy of The Voice of The Maltese magazine by post

n response to a number of inquiries, The Voice of the Maltese wishes to advice that we can now supply hard copies in colour of our magazine to our readers at a price. So anybody interested in acquiring copies of the magazine can communicate with us personally or by email to: maltesevoice@gmail.com. The magazine can also be delivered by post at a price to any state. As the cost of postage varies from state to state, one is kindly requested to get in touch with us to work out the details.

Tajjeb li tkun taf

-g˙aqdiet tal-Maltin, u/jew min ixtieq L jirreklamaw f’The Voice of the Maltese huma m˙e©©a jg˙arrfu lit-tmexxija ta’ The Voice minn kmeni. Jekk iridu jibag˙tu xi materjal g˙all-pubblikazzjoni, jag˙mlu dan mil-inqas ©img˙a qabel il-pubblikazzjoni.

IL-GRUPP SANTA MARIJA TA SYDNEY B˙as-soltu qed jorganizzaw l-Ballu ta’ Santa Marija Nhar is-Sibt, 6 ta’ Awissu fis-7.00 p.m. fil-Balmoral Centre, Balmoral Street, Blacktown Ikun hemm ikla ta’ erba’ platti u xorb b˙al birra, inbid, soft drinks, cassata ice-cream, te u kafe. Jie˙du sehem il-Falcons Band u l-mistednin speçjali Kathlyn Vella u Carmen Cauchi Donazzjoni ta: $60.00; Tfal ta˙t it-12 il-sena: $30.00 Ikun hemm ukoll marci mill-Banda Maltija O.L.Q.P. G˙al aktar tag˙rif u xiri ta biljetti çemplu lil Agnes fuq: 9626 6756, Mobile: 0432 714 735 Theresa: 9604 3679, Mob: 0432 646 960

MALTESE LANGUAGE SCHOOL OF NSW

A Division of the Maltese Community Council of NSW Inc.

Learn Maltese!

Classes are available for students from 6 years to adults at all levels of ability in the Maltese language. We have trained and experienced teachers qualiﬁed in language teaching and with Maltese study credentials. Learn the Maltese language, the culture, lifestyle, cuisine, traditions and about the amazing history of the island. Classes at: HORSLEY PARK - SEVEN HILLS - LUDDENHAM For more information and enquiries Phone 0433 091 788 Or email: malteselanguageschoolnsw@hotmail.com

Supported by the Minister of Education and Training and the NSW Community Languages Schools Programme. Member of the NSW Federation of Community Language Schools of NSW; Member of the Federation of Maltese Language Schools of Australia; Supported by 16 Maltese associations aﬃliated with the MCC of NSW. The Maltese Language School of NSW is a Not-For-Proﬁt organisation.

IL-MALTESE BOWLERS SOCIAL GROUP TA’ NSW • Jistiednu nisa u r©iel Maltin li j˙obbu l-lawn bowls biex jing˙aqdu mag˙hom, jie˙du sehem fil-log˙ob u jag˙mlu ˙bieb ©odda. • Jilqg˙u wkoll lil dawk li jixtiequ jitg˙allmu jilag˙bu dan l-isport. Dawn jing˙ataw lezzjonijiet b’xejn. • Jilag˙bu log˙ba lawn bowls darba fixxahar fir-Rosehill Bowling Club u klabbs o˙ra. • G˙al aktar tag˙rif çemplu lis-segretarju, Tony Pace-Feraud (0400 376 607) jew email lil: maltesebowlersnsw@hotmail.com Il-log˙ba li jmiss nhar il-Óadd 19 ta’ Ìunju fis-1.00 p.m. fir-Rosehill Bowling Club.

Sunday on the Hawkesbury River Cruise

On June 26. Adults $70; Children (4-14yrs) $40 9:00 am: Pick-up – Outside Blacktown Workers Club then travel to Greystanes for the second pick up at 9.15am, before heading to Brooklyn. 11 am: Join us for a 3-hour cruise of the spectacular Hawkesbury River! Enjoy morning tea on arrival and a delicious local fish'n'chip lunch on board as you sit back and see the grand old Hawkesbury at its lazy best. 3:00 pm: Stop for Afternoon tea if time permits then board the coach to head back home. Contact: Lina: 9629 4046; Doris: 0419 420 915; Maggie: 9621 3125; Maria: 0431 800 720. Email - metd@live.com.au. PO Box 93, Kellyville 2155

The Voice: the most popular by far

he Voice of the Maltese online T magazine is by far the most widely read publication among the Maltese Diaspora, with subscribers from Australia, Canada, the UK England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ieland), Ireland Rep., Belgium, France, Italy, India, the Caribbean island of St Kitts & Nevis. But not only. It is also gaining popularity in Malta and it keeps growing with every issue.

The Voice of the Maltese 23

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Community News Tune In to Radio and Television

Maltese Radio Programmes MELBOURNE, on 3ZZZ 92.3FM or on www.3zzz.com.au. Mondays 5pm, Fridays 5pm, Saturdays 10am.; Last Wednesday each month at 1pm. MELBOURNE on 98.9 North West FM, each Friday 6.00 - 7.00p.m. Presenter Emmanuel Brincat. MELBOURNE: STEREO 974 (93180930): 97.4FM Wed (Maltese Magazine) & Thursday (Mer˙ba): 6.00pm to 8.00 pm Co-ordinator – Ray Anastasi In SYDNEY, listen to the MCC radio programmes on 2GLF FM 89.3. Saturdays 6 to 8 a.m. Martese Caruana presents Nostalgia Music; Sundays from 10.00 11.00 am: Il˙na Maltin. Both available on demand. Follow same procedure as for MCC programmes, except select programe in reference. In BRISBANE listen to the Maltese Program on 4EB on Tuesdays 6.00 -8.15am; Sundays 4.15pm to 5.15pm UNCLE SAM DJ (Maltese Radio) tune in to link: www.unclesamdj.com Listen to John Borg & Glenn Cassar every Saturday at 1.00 p.m. on RADIO 2RRR 88.5FM or on the Internet - www2rrr.org.au ON DeMAND

The SBS MALTESE NEWS

Isma’ l-programm tar-radju bil-Malti mill-Kunsill Malti ta’ NSW minn fuq l-istazzjon 2GLF 89.3FM. Jista’ wkoll jinstema’ On Demand minn fuq l-Internet www.893fm.com.au (On Demand >Ethnic >Maltese Council 11am) Il-programm ta’ sieg˙a nhar ta’ Óadd fil11.00 a.m. ikun fih l-a˙˙ar a˙barijiet minn Malta, muΩika, tag˙rif, kultura, avviΩi u su©©etti ta’ interess g˙all-Maltin On SBS Radio Day Time Analogue and Digital Friday: 12:00-13:00 97.7fm SBS Radio 2 Saturday: 14:00-15:00: 97.7fm SBS Radio 2 To tune into digital radio you need a receiver or device with a DAB+ chip. Tuning in is by station name not frequency. Digital radio can also be heard via digital TV. SBS Radio 2 is on Channel 38. The radio programmes can be accessed online (live or catch up) at sbs.com.au/maltese and via mobile phone, using the SBS Radio app. For television news from Malta - SBS 2 TV on Thursdays and Sundays at 8am. VIVA MALTA VIVA MALTA on COAST FM 96.3 Community Radio in Gosford Central NSW. Aired on Thursdays every fortnight from 6 pm -7 pm. Presenter: Nathalie Gatt. Web streaming on: www.coastfm.org.au.

L-A˙barijiet on SBS TV twice a week nationwide Sunday at 8.00 am on SBS2 (Chan. 32); Thursdays at 8.00 am on SBS2

Day Care Maltese Groups meetings in NSW

Fairfield Active Maltese Seniors Meets on the first Tuesday of the Month. Group meets in Parish Hall, cnr of Stella Street & The Boulevard, Fairfield Heights.

Maltese Seniors Central Coast

Have to contact our Welfare Officer for an appointment. For all information and referral matters call Censina Cefai: 02 439 000 12 or 0414 267 652

Daceyville Maltese Seniors

Meets on the last Wednesday of the month in the Meeting Room One, No. 3 General Bridges Crescent, Daceyville. Note: The Groups also arrange regular Bus Trips Join us and make new friends.

Merrylands Social Maltese Seniors Meets every second Friday of the month; Miller Room, Memorial Avenue Merrylands from 10.30am to 12.30 am

Llandilo Maltese Seniors Meets on the first Wednesday of each month at the Llandilo Community Hall, Seventh Avenue, from 11am to 1 pm.

Maltese of Bankstown

Group meet 3rd Wednesday of the month at New BCRG offices 15 Kitchner Parade, Bankstown NSW (opposite RSL Club). Every other 3rd Thursday they have an outing. For enquiries call Sam 9534 2357

L-a˙barijiet tal-PBS (Malta)

kemm bil-Malti u wkoll bl-IngliΩ

G˙alkemm il-PBS ta’ Malta tforni lillSBS fl-Awstralja bis-servizz tag˙ha, ilqarrejja huma m˙e©©a wkoll biex x’˙in iridu jid˙lu fil-website:www.tvm.com.mt u jsegwu l-a˙barijiet ta’ Malta, kemm bil-Malti u Il-website tkun a©©ornata l-˙in kollu bl-istejjer u l-©rajjiet li jkunu qed ise˙˙u f’dak il-˙in.

Share it with the readers of The Voice If you have a story to tell that you believe could make interesting reading and you would like to share it with The Voice of the Maltese readership, get in touch with us by email at: maltesevoice@gmail.com

Kull qalb trid o˙ra iex tipproduçi magazine b˙al dan, li B wara kollox hu frott tal-passjoni li g˙andna biex inwasslu t-tag˙rif lill-

Maltin barra minn art twelidhom, ma jin˙tie©x biss xog˙ol u ˙in, imma wkoll spejjeΩ. Biex jittaffew u˙ud mill-ispejjeΩ nippruvaw insibu sponsors ˙alli jg˙inuna. G˙ad m’g˙andniex biΩΩejjed minnhom, imma bdejna, u ta’ min jag˙tihom ˙ajr. Kull qalb trid o˙ra, g˙alhekk in˙e©©u lill-qarrejja biex i©ibu dan quddiem g˙ajnejhom u kemm jista’ jkun juΩaw is-servizzi u/jew jixtru l-prodotti ta’ dawk li qed jirrek-lamaw/jisponsorjaw fil-magazine.

Greystanes Maltese Seniors Meets on the second Monday of each month at the George Preca Centre of OLQP Church, 198 Old Prospect Road, Greystanes from 10 am to 12 noon

The Sutherland & St George Maltese Group Meets every First Wednesday of the Month from 10:00am-1:00pm. Meetings/Get Togethers are interesting, informative & entertaining, so come Join us and make new Friends For more information contact our Coordinator: Charles Mifsud J.P.Phone (02) 9501 5525 – mobile 0421 662 298.

*(All Groups are Sponsored by The Maltese Community Council of NSW) with the assistance of Multicultural NSW. Please contact the MCC Welfare Officer: Marisa Previtera JP on 0414 863 123. The MCC offices are at 59b Franklin Street (corner with Young St) Parramatta West NSW (next to West Parramatta Primary School).

24 The Voice of the Maltese

Tuesday June 7, 2016

Sports

Wet conditions cause postponements Wins for the Victorian clubs

uring its PS4 NPL NSW Men’s Heritage Round clash, in Round 12 of the championship, Parramatta Eagles added another moment to their proud history with a 3-1 win over Blacktown Spartans at Melita Stadium. It also made them hope for a follow-up success in the next round at APIA, but Round 13 proved to be very wet and the conditions led to the postponement of half of the programme, including Parramatta’s away game at APIA, that was washed out. In the previous round Parramatta managd three important points with their captain, Joshua Symons paving the way for their 3-1 victory with a goal after just two minutes. It set the pattern for the rest of the game though by the end of the first

half they failed to turn their superiority into more goals by the end of the first half. On the change-of-ends Luke Grima increased Parramatta’s lead with a second tally on 65 minutes and Goshua Sama rounded up their scoring. Blacktown SparRESULTS - DAY 13 tans, who have APIA v Parramatta pos only tasted vic- Manly U v Sydney O tory twice this Blacktown S v Bonnyrigg 1-1 0-2 season and sit at Blacktown C v Sutherland 3-1 Rockdale v Hakoah C pos the bottom of the Wollongong v Sydney U pos table after thirteen DAY 12 rounds, hit the Parramatta v Blacktown S 3-1 back of the net Sydney U v Blacktown C 1-0 1-3 Sutherland v Manly U through Anthony Bonnyrigg v Rockdale 4-2 Proia for a conso- Hakoah v Wollongong 1-1 Sydney Oly, v APIA 3-1 lation goal.

n the PS4 NPL championship in Victoria, IMelbourne Green Gully suffered a home defeat against Knights and and then recovered in

Round 15 with a 3-2 away win over Pascoe Vale to hold on to fifth position in the League ladder. *The other Maltese team in Victoria (PS4 NPL2 West), Sunshine George Cross managed a 1-1 draw at Moreland City, and followed that up with their second win of the campaign, 2-1 at home against Eastern Lions SC but stay anchored to the bottom of the ladder after 14 outings.

Two defeats for Malta

alta’s national football team played two M friendlies. In a disappointing performance it suffered a humilating 6-0 defeat away at the Czech Republic and then fared better, by losing narrowly by 2-1 against Austria in Klagenfurt.

Boxing legend Muhammad Ali to be honoured with public funeral

public funeral for former boxing star Muhammad Ali is to be held in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, on June 10 to allow people to pay their respects. It will be preceded by a procession through the streets where the three-time world heavyweight champion grew up. Former US President Bill Clinton will be among the eulogists. Muhammad Ali, widely regarded as one of the greatest sporting figures in history, had been suffering from Parkinson's disease for over three decades before he died on June 3 at age 74 at a hospital in Phoenix, Arizona. Since his death tributes have been pouring in for ‘The Greatest ever boxer’ who won the world heavyweight title three times in his boxing career – in 1964, 1974 and 1978. Ali, born Cassius Marcellus Clay in Louisville, Kentucky, on January 17, 1942, was widely regarded as one of the greatest sporting figures in history. The boxing legend who converted to Islam and refused to serve in the Vietnam War, was involved in some of the most memorable matches in boxing history and famously refused to be conscripted to the US military in the midst of the Vietnam War in 1967. Muhammad Ali, whom some described as clearly the people's champion, loved the sound of his own voice, and so did everyone else. His words are predictably impossible to top, as America and the boxing world mourns the loss of a colossus not only in the boxing ring but the arenas of politics, religion and popular culture. Ali began boxing at the age of 12, after his new bicycle was stolen and he vowed to a police officer that he would “whup” the person who took it. For a while, the “Louisville Lip”, blessed with outsized charisma and wit, was possibly the most famous person on the planet.

“I am the greatest,” he declared, and he repeatedly proved it. “I am America. I am the part you won’t recognise. But get used to me – black, confident, cocky; my name, not yours; my religion, not yours; my goals, my own. Get used to me.” He felt lucky to have seen the first African American elected to the White House. US President Barack Obama led tributes to the incandescent athlete, activist, humanitarian, poet and showman. Obama said he kept a pair of Ali’s gloves on display in his private study, under a celebrated photo of him, aged 23, “roaring like a lion” over a fallen Sonny Liston. His name was “as familiar to the downtrodden in the slums of south-east Asia and the villages of Africa as it was to cheering crowds in Madison Square Garden”, the President said. Ali had long battled Parkinson’s disease, which impaired his speech and made the irrepressible athlete – known for saying he could “float like a butterfly and sting like a bee” – something of a prisoner in his own body. He was given a diagnosis of Parkinson’s in 1984 at the age of 42, three years after retiring from the ring. He became world heavyweight champion for the first time at age 23 by beating the seemingly invincible Liston in an upset in 1964. Shortly after that, Clay converted to Islam, changed his “slave” name to Ali, and gave a message of racial pride for African Americans and resistance to white domination. Ali suffered the first professional defeat of his career against Joe Frazier in the “Fight of

Muhammad Ali beating Sonny Liston to become world heavyweight champion in 1964 at age 23

the Century” at Madison Square Garden in New York in 1971. The pair fought each other twice more, including the legendary “Thrilla in Manila” bout in the Philippines in 1975, with Ali winning both fights. In between the two thrilling fights, at the age of 32 Ali fought and beat world heavyweight champion George Foreman – who was seven years younger than him in “The Rumble in the Jungle” in Zaire, (DR Congo) In all Ali won 56 of the 61 bouts he fought in his professional career, including 37 knockout wins. In all our years in journalism, we don’t ever remember TV stations the world over giving so much airtime and paying so much homage to a sportsman on his death. Muhammad Ali was bigger than the sport itself. His wit, his poetry, his skills and his wizardry in the ring singled him out. What he gave to the sport nobody else has.