Tas-Sliema Local Council | Summer Magazine 2013

facebook.com/sliemalocalcouncil

1

Il-Kunsill Lokali Tas-SliemaTmien Leġislatura

2013 - 2017

Volume 8 No 1June 2013


1

INDIRIZZTriq Depiro, Tas-Sliema SLM 2037

NUMRU TAT-TELEFON(+356) 21 33 76 33

NUMRU TAL-FAX(+356) 21 34 53 33

[email protected]

WEBSITEwww.sliemalocalcouncil.com

FACEBOOKTas-Sliema Local Council

BORD EDITORJALIPierre Paul Portelli (Editur)Daniel Micallef (Membru)

DISINN U STAMPARVeritas Press – Ûabbar

DISTRIBUZZJONIPremier Post

SINDKU Anthony Chircop

VIÇI-SINDKUKris Busietta

SEGRETARJU EÛEKUTTIVMatthew Dimech

KunsillieraLisa Cassar

Vivienne Galea PaceMarianne AquilinaPierre Paul PortelliMichael Briguglio

Paul RadmilliJohn Pillow

Antoinette Castaldi ParisNicolai Gauci

ÓINIJIET GÓALL-PUBBLIKU

16 ta’ Ìunju – 30 ta’ SettembruMit-Tnejn sal-Ìimg˙a: 08:00 – 13:00

Is-Sibt: 08:00 – 11:00

1 ta’ Ottubru – 15 ta’ ÌunjuMit-Tnejn sal-Ìimg˙a: 08:00 – 13:00, 14:15 – 17:00

Is-Sibt: 08:00 - 11:00

ÓLAS TA’ ÇITAZZJONIJIET,LIÇENZJI u PERMESSI OÓRA

16 ta’ Ìunju – 30 ta’ SettembruMit-Tnejn sal-Ìimg˙a: 08:00 – 13:00

Is-Sibt: 08:00 – 11:30

1 ta’ Ottubru – 15 ta’ ÌunjuMit-Tnejn sal-Ìimg˙a: 08:00 – 13:00

Is-Sibt: 08:00 – 11:30

– Message from the Editor –KUNSILL LOKALI TAS-SLIEMA

Pierre PortelliKunsillier

Dearest friends & residents,

Allow me to begin by thanking you for your immense support shown through your vote, during the

9th March elections. It is for me a great privilege to, once again serve within the Local Council, I am extremely grateful that I have been given this opportunity, this time, for a full term.

In just one year, as one united team we managed to achieve a lot for our locality. Now it is time to prove ourselves even more and not for one minute should we stop working to serve you.

From the first Council meeting, together with a very talented group of Slimizi, we began working on an event which is the first of its kind for Sliema and possibly Malta. The Sliema Street Art Festival, will take place from the 28th to the 30th of June. The whole promenade from Balluta bay to Qui-si-sana will be transformed into an art piece, from traditional graffiti to stencil art and installations, as well as food, drinks, music and entertainment. We are also working together so as to provide a park & ride system, to facilitate those people wanting to visit this festival. Most of the art installations will be set up during the mentioned weekend, however, the idea is to leave these exhibited throughout all the summer, for foreigners and locals alike to admire and appreciate. A number of world renowned street artists have already been confirmed & we are also encouraging local artists to participate during this event. We would like to begin organising this event on an annual basis in order to keep attracting a stream of tourists to our locality. More information regarding this festival can be found in the centre page of this magazine.

We are constantly working together so as to organise other events in our locality. As I have done during the past year, I can promise you my full commitment and dedication towards serving the residents of my locality in the best way I can.

Please feel free to contact me on 9946 4009 or [email protected].

Volume 8 No 1Tas-sliema

2

– Responsabiltajiet Ìodda –

Anthony Chircop

Chairman: - Kumitat Finanzi, - Kumitat Offerti Publici, - Traffic Management, - Kumitat Siti ta’ Kostruzzjoni

Membru Kumitat E.U.

Vivienne Galea Pace

- Relazzjonijiet mal-Iskejjel, - Trasport Pubbliku- Embelishment inner Sliema

Lisa Cassar

- Kumitat Finanzi,- Kumitat Offerti Publici, - Relazzjonijiet Intergovernattivi, - Kumitat EU

Nanette Castaldi Paris

- Relazzjonijiet mas-Settur tat-Turizmu

Michael Briguglio

- Persuni b’Dizabilta, - Bajjiet, - Edukazzjoni (Chairman), - Kumitat EU, - Kumitat Finanzi, - Kumitat Offerti Pubblici

Marianne Aquilina

- Anzjani (Chairman), - Relazzjonijiet mad-Day Centre

Nicolai Gauci

- Sports- Ûag˙Ωag˙

Dr Kris Busietta

- Kumitat Finanzi, - Kumitat Offerti Publici, - Materji Legali, - Siti Storici, Knis, - Kumitat Siti ta’ Kostruzzjoni

Paul Randmilli

- Kumitat E.U (Chairman),- Skart, - Skart Riciklat, - Sigurta fil-Lokalita, - Kumitat Offerti Pubblici

John Pillow

- Relazzjonijiet mas- Settur Kummercjali, - Promenade, - Gonna Publici, - Kumitat Siti ta’ Kostruzzjoni

Pierre Portelli

- Relazzjonijiet Pubblici,- Events, - Council Media, - IT


Dear Residents,

No doubt you are all very much aware that as a conse-

quence to the build up to last March General and Council Elections publication of the Council`s magazine covering the first trimester had to be interrupted, so this is the first issue for this year. Notwithstanding the unavailability of this very important medium,

communication with you the locality`s residents did not go missing, on the contrary I feel more in other forms did in fact take place, this by way of personal contact when we were seeking your support during house visits or whilst mingling at the various do`s that were organized by the different political groups. This time around proved somewhat of quite a different experience to what the majority of us went through exactly 12 months earlier. This time we could not help but play second fiddle to our more illustrious colleagues who very fittingly stole the greater part of the limelight.

In this first issue since the elections I feel it only opportune to thank you wholeheartedly for the renewed trust and confidence expressed towards my fellow councillors and myself. You chose to elect a Council in almost exactly the same formation of the outgoing one; the only change happening within the same party ranks, following the previous Councillor`s own choice not to seek re-election. This was of immense satisfaction, Our team now surely feels more committed than ever to work towards raising the overall standards of our locality to truly deliver a Sliema as a place to enjoy and feel comfortable residing in and one to visit.

Each Councillor as is the norm has been given different responsibilities to oversee; my colleagues shall be highlighting and amplifying further on their respective areas in the following pages. We have a team all very much in possession of excellent CV`s, academic or otherwise, so to maximise on this we decided in establishing a number of sub-committees which will see different members chairing same, whilst them in turn participating as members on

others, this interaction amongst members will no doubt contribute towards better overall efficiency, understanding and co-operation.

Last term`s plans were intent primarily on “steadying the boat” and putting in place the necessary procedures to allow us to be able to focus and sort out the then priority issues and place ourselves eventually on course to efficiently attend to the daily requirements of our locality. Regrettably two very important items on our agenda then were the awarding of contracts namely “Street Sweeping by Private Contractors “ and “Road Signs related to the Timed Parking Scheme” these were assigned in the later part of last year but were both appealed, consequentially delaying their much awaited introduction and implementation.

The four year term we are now into will allow us the possibility to plan over a much longer haul and will afford us the comfort to look ahead with confidence and to consider embarking on more complex and surely challenging and ambitious projects our locality is so much in need of and so much deserves. Many ideas have already been floated at Council and serious consideration is being given to commission the important technical and economic feasibility studies connected to same, conclusions of which will help us formulate better the programs for their realization and set time frames for the proper and timely execution of such works. I can assure all that the verve, dedication and eagerness of us all to perform, so evident and ever present during the past year will once again be the driving force to not only maintain but also extended this momentum a step up in the months and years to come.

Much has been circulating in the media in recent weeks in regards to the introduction of the “Residents Parking Scheme – RPZ” which I prefer to term instead as the “Timed Parking Zones Scheme”, from my messages in preceding issues of this magazine you might recall mention of progress on the implementation of same, which, with the exception of a few streets in Sliema had long been approved by the competent Transport Authorities, this was originally planned for implementation around Autumn `12, however due to contestation from a “Road - Signs Company,” the awarding of contract for the installation of same had to be delayed, and signs indicating the timed zones in the first area selected were effectively only up around mid February`13,

3

Anthony ChircopSindku

– Message from the Mayor –


One can imagine that Transport Malta`s ordering the suspension of this scheme came as a great, very unwelcome surprise! Well I ask, Why all the fuss, is Sliema so much different from other localities? If that`s the case then why not discuss ideas to fine-tune the scheme to be more adapt and appropriate to Sliema`s needs. I insist on making it very clear from the outset that the Council only went ahead with the introduction and implementation of this scheme after we had obtained all the necessary permits from Transport Malta. Furthermore the implementation was being carried out in accordance with the relevant legal notice (200/2009). We further confirm that prior to the implementation of the

Scheme, the Council was in constant communication with Officials from Transport Malta who were being informed as to the manner in which the implementation was being made, so much so that officials from Transport Malta also sent their advice which the Council followed to the letter. Whilst still challenging TM`s unilateral decision to suspend scheme, we remain open to recommendations and available for further discussions with the respective authorities which we augur will lead to an amicable and speedy solution in the interest of all parties concerned.

Anthony Chircop

4

– Press Release –24th May 2013

Press Release – Tas-Sliema Local Council Position on ‘Suspension’ of Time Controlled Parking Scheme - 24th May 2013 For the attention of the Local Media. Reference is made to the recent suspension by the Cabinet of the Time Controlled Parking Scheme in Tas-Sliema.

From the outset, the Council wants to make it clear that it only went ahead with the introduction and implementation of this scheme after it had obtained all the necessary permits from Transport Malta. Furthermore the implementation was being carried out in accordance with the relevant legal notice

(200/2009). The Council would also like to bring to the attention of the public that prior to the implementation of the scheme, the Council was in constant communication with officials from Transport Malta who were being informed on the manner in which the implementation was being made, so much so that officials from Transport Malta also contributed with their advice which the Council followed to the letter. The Sliema Local Council notes that the decision to suspend the introduction of the time controlled parking scheme has only affected the locality of Sliema whilst other localities which have such a scheme in force have not been affected. In this regard, the Council does not agree with the decision to suspend the implementation of the trial period of the scheme since everything was carried out according to Law and all the permits were in hand. Furthermore, the relative studies and reports were already commissioned by the previous Council. The Council also has its reservations as to the manner in which the relative implementation was suspended by Transport Malta. However, as a sign of goodwill, the Council is ready to postpone the enforcement of the scheme for a period of not more than three (3) weeks within which Transport Malta is invited to put forward its proposals for the betterment of the already launched time controlled parking scheme in Sliema. To this end, the Council confirms its availability to attend any discussions with Transport Malta which we augur will lead to an amicable solution in the interest of all parties concerned.

Matthew Dimech

www.sliemalocalcouncil.com


5

– Xog˙lijiet fi Triq it-Torri –

Diversi xog˙lijiet li saru fi Triq it-Torri li jinkludu li ©ej:

- Patching estensiv- Rikostruzzjoni tal-ispralli tal-ilma tax-xita kollha- Ûbajna l-marki tat-Toroq matul il-pereferija kollha- Sistema ©dida g˙al ilqug˙ tal-ilma tax-xita f’Fond G˙adir- G˙amilna drip irrigation pipe ©did matul l-promenade- Xog˙ol ta’ Ωebg˙a matul l-promenade fuq bankijiet, arbli u pots tal-konkos

5


Lisa CassarKunsilliera

6

G˙eΩieΩ residenti,

nixtieq nie˙u din l -opportunita’ sabiex b˙ala kunsilliera ©dida, nirringrazzjakom tal-fiduçja u l-appo©© li intom urejtu fija. Il-lokalita’ ta’ Tas-Sliema qieg˙da t˙abbat wiççha ma’ bosta sfidi. Fost dawn nistg˙u nsemmu iΩ -Ω ieda f i t -traffiku, il-bΩonn li ntejbu l-infrastruttura, l-indafa

fit-toroq, u l-˙tie©a li niksbu bilanç xieraq bejn l-interessi tar-residenti u s-settur kummerçjali. Wa˙da mill-isfidi li qeg˙da tiffaçja l-lokalita’ ta’ Tas-Sliema f’dan il-mument, hi t-twaqqif ta’skema ta’parke©© g˙ar-residenti li ©abet mag˙ha bosta opinjonijiet imΩewqa minn gruppi differenti.

Min-na˙a tieg˙i jiena nwieg˙ed li sejra nag˙mel mill-a˙jar tieg˙i sabiex nifhem u ng˙eleb l-isfidi li jinsabu madwarna. Is-soluzzjonijiet je˙tie© li jkunu sostenibbli. Jiena dejjem lesta li nilqa’ l-ilmenti u s-su©©erimenti tar-residenti g˙aliex nemmen li b’hekk inkun nista nifhem a˙jar l-eΩi©enzi kemm tar-residenti kif ukoll ta’ din il-lokalita’.

Huwa l-g˙an tieg˙i li n©ib il-kunsill aktar viçin ir-residenti SlimiΩi, u nag˙milhom konxji li l-kunsill lokali joffri servizzi sabiex jaqdi l-˙ti©ijiet tag˙hom. Ix-xewqa sinçiera tieg˙i hi li l-kunsill jie˙u d-deçiΩΩjonijiet tieg˙u id f’id mar-residenti, min˙abba li dan huwa parti minn proçess demokratiku. Huwa xieraq li l-problemi kritiçi ta din il-lokalita’, ji©u ndirizzati fid-dawl tal-prijorita’ u l-ur©enza tag˙hom. Je˙tie© li nΩommu dejjem quddiem g˙ajnejna l-interessi tar-residenti kollha ta’ Tas-Sliema.

Inwieg˙edkom li sejra nibqa viçin tag˙kom u sejra nkompli nirsisti fl-interess tar-residenti kollha ta’ din il-lokalita’.

Dejjem Tag˙kom

Lisa Cassar

– Messa©© mill-Kunsilliera –

Dear Sliema residents,

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you wholeheartedly for the ongoing trust and support you have granted me.

The locality of Sliema is presently facing a host of challenges including increasing traffic, the need to improve infrastructures, street cleaning and the need to distinguish between residential and commercial interests. A current pressing issue is the implementation of the residential parking scheme which attracted various disputes and opinions. Typical challenges need to be addressed in a sustainable manner. It is the opportune moment that all pending issues of this locality, be tackled in terms of priorities and urgencies so as to fully safeguard the interests of all Sliema residents.

I strongly appreciate the indispensable feedback on the part of the Sliema residents. This is desirable in the interest of all. Acting within our capacity as local councillors, it is our aim to bring the council at the heart of the Sliema civic public and emphasise the fact that the local council seeks to meet their needs. It is my earnest desire that the local council undertakes decisions hand in hand with the residents, since this reflects an authentic democratic approach.

I promise to do my utmost to contribute wholeheartedly to the welfare of the Sliema community in a professional and honest way.

Yours Sincerely

Lisa Cassar


Paul RandmilliKunsillier

7

– Message from the Counsillors –

Focus Group on Crime in Sliema

On Saturday 2nd February the Sliema L o c a l C o u n c i l

organised a half-day meeting with various stakeholders to discuss crime prevention and crime detection in the Sliema locality. The Sliema Local Council invited members of the Sliema Police Station, the Criminal

Investigations Department, Local Wardens, the Elderly Care Department, the Sliema parishes, NGOs doing community work, private companies in the IT security sector, and students of criminology for this event.

The well attended meeting focused on the most common instances of crime resulting from the particular composition of the locality of Sliema which has a high prevalence of elderly, foreigners, entertainment establishments and shopping centres. All participants agreed that the most vulnerable members of the Sliema community are the elderly and any initiatives need to give specific attention to this particular group.

This meeting saw the setting up of a focus group com-posed of various stakeholders which will fall under the auspices of the Sliema Local Council. This Focus Group on Crime in Sliema was tasked with the drafting of a Mapping and Needs Assessment which will be followed up by an Action Plan containing initiatives to address the various issues of crime in Sliema. A structured sys-tem is to be introduced to channel people who wish to volunteer in any projects related to crime prevention or elderly needs. Another proposal was for awareness campaigns to be held with the help of EU funding.

All participants agreed that the half-day meeting helped establish synergies between all the varied parties who may contribute to aiding in efforts to address crime pre-vention in Sliema. The Local Council wishes to thank all participants of this event for their valid contribution.

Cranes are Not Forever.

On February 23rd the crane in St Paul’s Street was removed after having been blocking this street for over six years. In

view of the fact that I was part of the committee which held talks (and initiated fine procedures) with the contractor in question to remove this crane, on the day I went down on site to witness the removal of this crane. My satisfaction of a job well done was met with an unexpected encounter with a resident who for reasons beyond me felt the need to criticise this enforcement action by the Council and claim that it was a pre-election stunt on our part. For the record we negotiated the removal of the crane in Old College Str. in August, in Sir Arturo Mercieca in October, while the cranes in Creche Str., Don Rua and 168 Tower Road were dismantled in November. We carried on with our efforts to have a set timeframe for the use of tower cranes which is respected and which saw the removal of the St Paul Str and the Strand tower crane in front of St Anne Square in Febru-ary. This resident’s unfounded accusation that we removed the crane as a publicity stunt needs to be assessed in view of the chronology of intense work carried out in a very short period of time, to have better organised construction which will no longer see tower cranes blocking our streets for years on end. [email protected].


8


Warden Myths

As a Councillor you often here the phrase ‘you should send the green warden’, or ‘the Council pockets

money from the wardens’. The Council in fact neither employs any wardens, nor does it pocket the money from the fines, other than a small administrative fee for processing the fine. The system in place is such that a private company is recruited by the region which means that the Council does not have any wardens directly assigned to it, but has to make do with a very limited pool of wardens who are assigned to other big localities such as St Julian’s or Birkirkara.

The wardens system involves two groups of wardens – the uniformed ones which handle traffic infringements and Plain Clothes Local Wardens who enforce the Regulations related to the Dumping and Disposal of Waste in Streets and Public Places.

The current system does not satisfy the needs of the tas-Sliema locality. We have therefore taken it upon ourselves to pay for extra services of warden presence in Sliema during the summer period. Michael Briguglio and myself met the warden company and have requested extra monitoring and enforcement in relation to dog waste in beach areas, waste left behind by groups having a bbq on the beach, the parking of vehicles on beaches, and the placing of garbage bags outside the hours of collection with an emphasis on educating and not simply fining. These extra hours of wardens services will all come at a hefty cost to the Council.

Hopefully any changes to the warden system will have local councils better equipped to enforce littering and other offences as the present system administered by the region is not working. Obviously ideally there would not be the need to fine people for dirtying our public areas, but that too is the subject of myths. [email protected].

Paul Randmilli

Recycable Waste Matters

In the past months we successfully concluded a new contract with a new service provider, Greenpak, for the collection of recyclable waste. The new

contract lays down conditions on the service provider to ensure a timely emptying of the bring-in sites under the bridge in Manoel Dimech, next to Exiles, close to the Tigne tunnel and opposite St Anne Square. We have also stressed in the new contract that the new bins we plan to place and which will have separate compartments for separate streams of waste are emptied regularly, and that this waste is disposed of in recycling plants. We have also negotiated a door-to-door glass collection every first Friday of the month as well as the distribution of free green bags to be used for the disposal of recyclable waste. In order to have a uniform system and to cater for working residents and to ensure that the trucks collecting the waste do not exacerbate traffic congestion at peak hours, we have switched the recycling collection on Tuesday and Friday to an evening collection. We are very pleased with the service being provided so far. Should you know of any residents who are not recycling their waste we would appreciate if you could point out to them the benefits to the environment of separating waste at source. For the Sliema Council recyclable waste matters a lot and we will do our utmost to increase the waste separated at source in our locality. [email protected]


9

Il-Kunsill Lokali Tas-Sliema jinforma lill-pubbliku li l-˙©ie© g˙andu jintrema biss f’kaxxi tal-kartun

u mhux fil-boroΩ tar-riçikla©©.

The Tas-Sliema Local Council informs the public that glass is to be disposed of in carton boxes

and not in recycling bags.


10


11

John PillowKunsillier


Having taken over from a disrupted previous Council,

one year before they ended their term, the new elected Mayor and Councillors had a challenging year ahead of them. The new Council was however made up of an excellent hard working team, headed by a deter-mined and dedicated Major Anthony Chircop, who was instrumental in the accom-

plishment of the work carried out successfully by the Sliema Local Council in such a short span of time. The Sliema Local Council, I am proud to say, managed a notable achievement in accomplishing various projects with determination.

I would like to thank the Sliema residents for showing faith in me, by voting and re-electing me, to form part of the Sliema Local Council for the next four year term. My work and involvement, many times on site, oversee-ing the works as they were carried out this last year in office, has been noted and appreciated by the Sliema residents and this was evident by the increase in votes I obtained at the last local council elections.

Suffice to mention, some of the projects I was involved in. The upgrade and embellishment of the Ferries, the planting of 14,000 flowers, maintenance work at the promenades, the implementation of a Sliema residents parking scheme (which at the moment Transport Malta have suspended) and other projects and works still in their initial stages.

While the project of the Public Buses Interchange was being carried out by Transport Malta, I made it my mission to be present on site as much as possible to oversee the work and limit as much as possible the inconvenience to the Sliema Residents (We are still fol-lowing up this project as Transport Malta still have to replace the trees, benches, bins and most importantly the zebra crossing lights.

I have once again, been entrusted with the embellish-ment, upkeep and maintenance of Playing Fields, Gar-dens, Promenades, Construction Sites and The Sliema Business Sector Relations for the next four years and my hard work and dedication will not falter in my duties as Councillor. I will be approachable like I have always

been and will try to help in any way I possibly can, as I have done during these last eleven months.

Some of the projects, I will be involved in and that are in the pipeline are:

the issuing of a tender for the upgrade of the playing •fields to resume the washing of the Promenades in •Summerto plant more shrubs to replace the damaged and •dying onesto repair irrigation•to work on damaged culverts at the Strand •between Waterfront Hotel and Square Deal to stop floodingto remove unused cables and wiring that still hang •onto Electrical Poles and Building Facades creating an eyesoreto enter into an agreement with the Sliema Feast •Organisers to have a system of wiring for feast lights that may be removed when feast is over.to embellish Bring In Sites, I am proposing that these •containers be placed on a platform with educational waste collection/separation information boardsdiscuss my proposal to have hanging flower pots •fitted onto electrical street lamps along the ferriesintroduce a system of ashtrays outside retail shops •so as to eliminate the unsightly accumulation of cigarette ends on the pavements

This is now a 4 year term and I look forward to my work and participation within the Sliema Local Coun-cil, headed once again by Anthony Chircop who was re-elected Mayor by a staggering number of votes and together with the remarkable team of Councilors that make up The Sliema Local Council. I know that we will once again achieve and progress for the good of Sliema and its residents.

John Pillow


12

Marianne AquilinaKunsilliera

– Messa©© mill-Kunsilliera –

Inkomplu fejn ˙allejna...

Issa li g˙addiet l-elezzjoni er©ajna ksibna r-rittmu li kellna qabel. Tista’

tg˙id li fi Ωmien ftit sieg˙at komplejna fuq il-˙idma li konna bdejna. lΩda qabel xejn nixtieq nirringrazzja lil dawk kollha li tawni l-fiduçja tag˙hom u li bil-vot tag˙hom re©g˙u ele©uni g˙al ˙ames darba

kunsilliera. Nistqarr li huwa ta’ unur kbir g˙alija li kull darba ning˙ata dan l-appo©©.

Tibdiliet fit-tim tal-kunsill ftit li xejn kien hemm, u kif kont stqarrejt fil-˙ar©a tal-magazin ta’ qabel fl-ebda kunsill ma ˙dimna b’daqshekk armonija u b’g˙an wie˙ed g˙al ©id tas-Sliema u s-SlimiΩi. Ing˙aqdet mat-tim tag˙na Ωg˙aΩug˙a o˙ra kapaçi, Lisa Cassar, u ninsab ˙erqana li na˙dem id f’id mag˙ha.

Kull le©islatura jkollna l-allokazzjonijiet tar-responsabbilitajiet il-©odda. Din id-darba ng˙atajt dik tal-anzjani, fejn se nkompli nibni fuq ix-xog˙ol li konna g˙amilna. Di©a’ bdejna nippjanaw xi ̇ ar©iet li g˙andkom issibu ta’ interess. Dan ma jfissirx li dawn il-˙ar©iet huma ma˙suba g˙all-anzjani biss, b˙allikeku rridu nissegregawhom. Anzi l-g˙an huwa

propju l-oppost, li ng˙inuhom ikomplu jkunu attivi fis-soçjeta’.

Ma jonqosx li nkomplu ninvestu f’korsijiet li jixprunawhom jiΩviluppaw lilhom infushom. L-g˙an a˙˙ari huwa li nfakkru lill-anzjani tag˙na li baqg˙alhom x’jag˙tu lis-soçjeta’ u nwasslu l-messa©©i ta’ tag˙lim tul il-˙ajja, speçjalment f’soçjeta’ li kull ma jmur qieg˙da dejjem tikber fl-eta’. Se jibdew korsijiet ©odda, partikolarment dak li g˙andu x’jaqsam man-Nutrizzjoni u l-Kompjuter. Nitlobkom tipparteçipaw sabiex tag˙mlulna kura©© inkomplu ninvestu f’dawn il-korsijiet.

Tajjeb ukoll li nuru apprezzament tal-kontribut li g˙al tant snin taw lis- soçjeta’ u fl-istess ˙in insibu modi kif l-esperjenza u l-wirt kulturali tag˙hom ma jintilfux. Qed na˙dmu fuq l-ideja li jsiru talla fil-forma ta’ diskussjonijiet, fejn ikun possibbli taqsam xi esperjenzi jew inkella tie˙u sehem f’diskussjonijiet dwar su©©etti tal-g˙aΩla tieg˙ek. Hawnhekk nitlobkom tavviçinawni g˙al xi su©©erimenti li forsi g˙andkom.

Nixtieq nirringrazzja lil kollegi tieg˙i kunsilliera Vivianne Galea Pace u Edward Cuschieri li qed jg˙inuni f’dan il-qasam.

Inselli g˙alikom u nixtieqilkom sa˙˙a u hena,

Marianne Aquilina

BERÌAIl-Kunsill jixtieq jinforma li l-˙inijiet tal-ftu˙

tal-Ber©a li tinsab ©ewwa Triq Depiro, ma ©enb il-Kunsill Lokali tas-Sliema huma:

It-Tnejn, l-Erbg˙a, l-Óamis u l-Ìimg˙aMit-8.00a.m. sa 12.00p.m.


13

Michael BrigulioKunsillier


Disability, Beaches and

Maritime Affairs

It is wi th pleasure that this is my fourth legislature as Sliema

local councillor since 2003. It is also very satisfying to note that the previous council won a vote of confidence in March’s local elections. The positive and forward-looking attitude

by councillors and staff surely played an important role in this regard.

My responsibilities for the 2013-17 legislature are issues related to disability, education and maritime affairs. I also form part of the Council’s committees on finance, public offers and EU affairs.

In this article I wish to point out some of my priorities in the respective fields.

As regards disability, it is important to note that there are various forms of disability. Despite the increased awareness on the rights of persons with disability, ignorance still persists on this issue. For example, people with disability should not be seen as one homogenous group. There are various degrees and types of disability, from the physical to the intellectual and such identities intersect with other identities that each individual has such as gender, class, sexuality, age, and ethnicity. If one translates this to social policy, one would realise that, while all persons with disability should have their rights guaranteed, one cannot adopt one-size-fits-all policies. Persons with disability should have full access to the political, social, economic and cultural spheres of everyday life. Otherwise, it would be society which is disabling people.

One important priority regarding disability is to ensure that Sliema is a fully accessible locality. The current council is working on safer pedestrian pathways, more accessible pavements and public buildings and more accessible beaches. We also intend to ensure that all public spaces, including playing fields, are fully accessible.

As regards education, the Sliema Local Council will shortly launch the Lifelong Learning scheme for 2013-4. As was the case with previous years, the scheme was very successful last year. Next year we aim to further diversify courses on offer, where we also aim to include courses related to wellbeing, social and cultural issues and healthy living, in addition to language courses.

Following various upgrades at the Sliema Library, which is situated in the Primary School building, this year we aim to keep giving this service the importance it deserves. The library is constantly purchasing new books and also offers services such as storytelling for children, internet access and WI-FI.As regards Maritime Affairs, one main priority is to ensure that beaches are well-organized, accessible and clean. It is for this reason that apart from the public cleaning services, Sliema Local Council works with NGOs and civic-minded persons for beach and underwater clean-ups. As regards the latter, much more awareness has to be created. This is important not only for the maritime ecology, but also for our diving industry, which is an important touristic niche. Sliema Local Council is also ensuring that beaches are not glorified carparks.

Another initiative in which I am involved with other fellow councillors is the drive to make Sliema the most bicycle-friendly locality. Last year we increased bicycle racks, but now is the time to introduce policies to make sure that this green form of transport is enhanced. Bikers’ and pedestrians’ safety is a key priority in this respect. For this reason, Sliema Local Council is regularly meeting persons involved in the field, including members of the Bicycle Advocacy Group.

I wish to emphasize that in various matters, Sliema Local Council depends on approval and/or assistance from Governmental Ministries/Departments/Authorities. In relation to local council reform, this is is a matter that in itself deserves due attention and discussion.

I invite all those who wish to give a helping hand or to send me suggestions regarding the areas I referred to above by emailing me at [email protected].

Michael Brigulio


14


15

Vivienne Galea PaceKunsilliera


De a r R e s i d e n t s , It is with pleasure

that I am once again thanking you for put-ting your faith in me dur-ing the last Sliema Lo-cal Council election last March, thereby giving me the opportunity to repre-sent you as a Councillor on the Sliema Local Council. The Councillors of the pre-

vious Council were all re-elected, except for one new Councillor, who was elected in the place left vacant by a Councillor who had decided not to contest the election. Therefore, it seemed to be business as usual, and we could carry on with the plans and decisions that we had been working on for the past year, which was our lifespan as the new Council. It was greatly satisfying and appreciated that our residents showed that they had appreciated our work during this short time because, as I said before, we were all returned to be of service to you in this new Council, which this time has a lifespan of four years. Thereby, we have ample time to study, plan and deliver what we feel is necessary for Sliema and for the improve-ment of the way of life of our Sliema residents. This time round some of our responsibilities have been changed, others have been newly introduced, whereas others have been left within the common responsibility of the Local Council. At the moment we have Computer and Beading Courses being taught in our Offices. These are always well attended and the Council has already approved a second course of Beading, which was asked for by those who are already taking this Course. The new Course will start in October. It is planned to have other Courses/lectures. There is going to be a Nutrition Course, which should surely be of interest to us all. Contacts are soon to be made with the Po-lice Force so that talks can be held to help us learn about safety rules and other interesting suggestions on how to look after our well-being. Then there are going to be professional advice talks regarding Breast Cancer. These are the Courses that have already been approved by the Council. We will have more to follow, and should any of you have any sug-gestions about different topics please let me know.

The Council has a number of names and addresses of those who used to receive flyers informing the readers of what activities were being organised. One could receive these against a small fee; how-ever it has now been decided to waive this fee. So I recommend that those who are interested in re-ceiving this information, to pass by the Council, or else, phone 21337633 to leave your name, address and telephone number in order to receive these flyers. Come on! It is a great social opportunity. During the previous Council many interesting Outings were organised. These were both Cultural as well as a means to meet new people and make new friends. For the first outing the sub-commit-tee has organised an outing to Gozo. It should be very pleasant and details can be obtained from the Council offices. Everyone is welcome. Regarding the problem about the Street Sweeping which has been so lacking these last few months, I feel that I must thank you for being so patient. The actual facts are that our Council issued a call for Tenders in order to select a Contractor who would be able to cope will all the problems regarding keep-ing our streets clean as they should be. A Contractor was chosen, however, unfortunately one of the other unsuccessful contractors lodged an appeal and we had to wait for the Appeals Board to hear and decide our case. Our Council lost the case so a new Tender had to be issued. We are on the verge of choosing the Contractor who, in our opinion, will give us the best service possible. This might take a couple of weeks more, however then, if no more hiccups occur, we will be on our way to have Sliema cleaner than it has ever been. In the meantime, please bear with us. Just before the March elections our Council finally announced that the long awaited Sliema Time con-trolled Parking, originally introduced as the Sliema Residents Parking, and was going to be implemented. We had in hand the legal notice entitled Controlled Parking Schemes Regulations 2009, so after a great deal of thought, not to mention expense, the Coun-cil started fixing notices around Sliema indicating which areas were to be Time Controlled, leaving the rest open to anyone to park and as long as they wanted. Obviously, as to be expected, we were inundated with complaints especially from people who came from outside Sliema, which showed how right we were to implement this scheme for the ben-efit of our residents. The complaints were mainly


16

due to the fact that some thought that ALL Sliema was a two hour parking zone, except for Sliema residents of course. When it was further explained most people understood and accepted this scheme as fair.................50% two hour controlled parking, 50% open to all with no time limit. What was rather frustrating was that this scheme was introduced for the benefit of our Sliema residents and yet we had complaints coming even from some of these same residents. However we did have a feedback that the majority of Sliema residents welcomed this scheme which gave them a sporting chance of finding a parking space as close to their home as possible. As a young lady told us ‘After a day’s work all I want to do is go home’ or an elderly couple said that after doing some errands or shopping it was impos-sible for them to cart heavy bags for a long distance after driving around their area and maybe finding a parking space. Unfortunately, this scheme was short lived. The MUT ordered a teachers strike, after the teachers complained about having to leave their

pupils every two hours........wrong submission. They could park in the other areas.

Difficult but possible. Besides, there are several other employers and employees in Sliema. So in which pocket do our Sliema residents stand? As I write, the Government has ordered the suspension of this scheme. Thereby the interests of the teachers came to be considered above those of our residents!!! I really have to close my input to our Magazine as the Editor will slash my article to pieces. I hope that we will have many opportunities to meet, especially now that summer is nearly here with our Festas and activities organised by us for you.As a reminder my number is 99824277, so should you need my assistance please call me. I am in the Council to be of service to you. Best Regards

Vivienne Galea Pace


17

Visit our New Websitewww.sliemalocalcouncil.com


18

George Cilia

– Il-Óajja Maltija tal-Img˙oddi Nru. 10 –

Nhar Lapsi

Il-Festa ta’ nhar Lapsi tfakkarna f’ meta Kristu tela’ s-sema, kienet ti©i

ççellebrata nhar ta’ Óamis, eΩattament 40 jum wara t-tlug˙ fis-sema ta’ Ìesu’ Kristu. Minn xi Ωmien ‘l hawn il-Festa bdiet ti©i kkomemorata fil-Óadd ta’ wara l-Óamis. F’pajjiΩna, barra mill-festa reli©juΩa, hemm marbutin diversi

drawwiet rikreattivi g˙al dan il-jum. Prinçipalment id-drawwa tal-armar tal-bandli tie˙u l-ewwel. Fid-djar, fil-kampanja, barra fit-toroq jintramaw bandli ta’ kull g˙amla. Fid-djar privati kienu jorganizzaw dan id-divertiment fuq il-bejt jew idendlu l-bandla mat-traversa tal-bieb ta’ barra.

Kien ikun hemm bΩonn ta’ tavla u Ωew© ˙bula biex tintrabat miΩ-Ωew© na˙at, b’hekk jistg˙u jitbandlu tnejn jew tlieta fuq din id-daqsxejn ta’ tavla. Ìieli t-tavla kienet titne˙˙a sabiex jitqieg˙ed kuxinett mall-˙abel biex jitbandal xi ̇ add wa˙du, it-tbandil jibda minn filghodu sa filg˙axija. Ma kienx jim-porta fejn hija l-bandla, l-importanti li kul˙add jitbandal.

Fil-kampanja dan il-mekkaniΩmu kien jie˙u xejra o˙ra, aktarx li l-bandla tintrabat bejn Ωew© si©riet ta’ xi ©nien jew g˙alqa bil-familjari jbandlu lil xulxin. F’xi snin kienu jin©abru g˙annejja gwappi akkumpanjati b’ kitarrista jew ie˙or b’orgni tal-˙alq, er˙ilhom sejrin qablu wa˙da wara l-o˙ra sa ma jidlam.

Il-familji li j˙obbu l-ba˙ar sew jekk g˙andhom post tal-ville©jatura jew m’g˙andhomx, kienu ja˙sbu sa mad-daqq tat-tokki tal-Pater Noster, jitilqu bil-mixi jew fuq xi karettun, bil-©ewlaq mimli ikel sa xtajta preferita fejn hemm, igawdu ©urnata ta’ mistrie˙, jitpaxxew bil-ba˙ar ka˙lani jlelex bir-ra©©i tax-xe-mx mibdul f’ tapit tal-fidda. O˙rajn ivaraw il-luger, il-luzzu, id-dg˙ajsa jew fregatina biex jg˙addu jum fuq il-ba˙ar. L-g˙awwiema jistennew nhar Lapsi biex jissodisfaw id-delizzju tal-ewwel g˙awma tal-ista©un.

Il-bandla fit-tqabil

Ommi g˙amlitli bandla,g˙amlithieli fuq il-bejt,

waqajt waqa’ u ˙assejt rasi,qeg˙da ddurli dawramejt

Óanini ejja nitbandlu,fittex ejja u titlajjax,

meta nkun nitbandal mieg˙ek,fuq il-bandla ma nibΩax

In-nannu rmalna bandla,ramahielna ©ol-©ardina,

il-jum kollu baqa’ mag˙na,u jbandalna u jg˙ollina.

In-nanna t˙ajret titbandal,qieg˙dha tg˙anni mat-tbandila,

tg˙anni l-g˙ana tal-im˙abba,illi n-nannu kien jg˙annilha.B˙all-˙ajja, hekk hi l-bandla,

fiha nΩul u fiha tlug˙,daqqa tg˙um u daqqa tog˙dos,

daqqa fer˙ u daqqa dmug˙.

Il-klijent tac-Chalet jiddevertu bid-daqq u z-Ωfin tal-muzika fis-snin 50.


19

Dan it-taqbil jurina eΩattament x’kien isir u ji©ri f’nhar Lapsi. Mhux l-ewwel darba li qabel ma jid-lam xi wie˙ed mill-imbandlin jaqa’ fl-art, jaqsam rasu, jin©abru l-©irien, min jafu u min ma jafux. Il-©uvnot imwaqqa’ fl-art bid-demm ˙iere©; kul˙add baqa’ j˙ares. Marinton qabzet tghajjat: “Dak il-©uvnott, l-g˙arus ta’ RoΩi.... ilhom jitbandlu sa minn filg˙odu, ©ibulu tabib biex idewwie˙”

Serafina tkelmet bis-sens “hemm bΩonn tal-karozzin bil-barrella biex ifittex i©orr il-midrub lejn l-sptar g˙ax je˙tie©lu xi sitt punti”.Óafna drabi hekk kien jintemm jum Lapsi, min fer˙an u min imbikkem.

Ic-Chalet jifta˙ f’nhar Lapsi

Fis-snin g˙oxrin, id-divertiment tradizzjonali ta’ nhar Lapsi beda jonqos fil-popolarita’. Nistg˙u ng˙idu li f’Tas-Sliema din ir-rikreazzjoni li ©ejja mill-qedem inbidlet g˙al kollox. F’dan l-sta©un tar-Rebbieg˙a jibda l-frott, il-©elati, ir-ru©©ata, il-granita u l-festi titulari bil-log˙ob tan-nar. Il-kompetizzjonijiet ta’ l-arblu ta’ Mejju u l-©ostra fuq il-ba˙ar ikunu fi Ωmienhom.

Fuq kollox fl-1926 ©ie nnawgurat ic-Chalet f’G˙ar id-Dud f’nofs il-promenad ta’ beltna. Minn mindu feta˙ dan il-post sar popolari mas-SlimiΩi, o˙rajn li jifrekwentaw tas-Sliema u baranin li ja˙btu jinzer-taw pajjizna f’dawk il-©ranet. Il-ftu˙ kien ifissat f’ nhar Lapsi ta’ kull sena.

Billi dan il-post hu spor©ut il-barra mill-promenad, wie˙ed jist˙ajlu qieg˙ed fuq vapur f’nofs ta’ ba˙ar.

Hawn jista’ jag˙Ωel li jiekol jew jixrob, igawdi l-muΩika u Ω-Ωfin, sa˙ansitra anke attivitajiet sportivi jintlem˙u mill-klijenti ta’ ©ewwa ic-Chalet. BiΩΩejjed insemmu kif l-g˙awwiem Turu Rizzo, fis-snin 30, ©ibed luzzu b’25 persuna fuqu, b’˙abel marbut minn snienu minn ˙djen il-Fortizza sac-Chalet.

Darb’o˙ra l-pubbliku numeruΩ invaΩa ic-Chalet f’ nhar Lapsi meta xi sajjieda Maltin qabdu kelb il-ba˙ar, b’ftehim mas-sidien, dendlu din il-˙uta kbira rasha ‘l isfel esposta g˙al kull min ried jaraha.

Fil-kitba ta’ Dr. Herbert Ganado, ‘Rajt Malta Tin-bidel’, ipin©ielna tliet paragrafi eΩatti çari fuq ic-Chalet ghax kien i˙obb jifrekwenta b˙al ˙afna nies o˙ra. Ir-raba’ volum kapitlu 3 jag˙laq hekk:“ ic-Chalet kellu l-orkestra u Ω-Ωfin, g˙all-ewwel kont trid tistenna biex issib mejda. Imbag˙ad beda jaqa’ il-livell tieg˙u sakemm kellu jg˙alaq g˙ax beda jaqa’ u g˙adu jaqa’ biçça biçça sal-llum”.

Tassew hekk spiççaw id-drawwiet ferrie˙a Lapsin tag˙na l-Maltin tal-img˙oddi. Rakkonti ̇ elwin li jnis-lulek nostal©ija g˙al dawk iΩ-Ωminijiet. Illum il-˙ajja saret mod ie˙or f’Tas-Sliema g˙andna ©onna pubbliçi bil-bandli u log˙ob ie˙or armati s-sena kollha.

Il-promenad huwa l-itwal u sar l-isba˙ wie˙ed f’ Malta, jibda mix-Xatt sa San Ìiljan imΩejjen b’si©ar, fjuri, bankijiet, ˙wienet, restoranti u lukandi b’ikel eççellenti. Progress s˙i˙ Ωvilluppa lil-pajjiΩna u g˙adu sejjer, jidher li mhux se jieqaf.(taht ritratt nu. 1 niktbu hekk Il-bandla f’nhar Lapsi fil-kampanja.Pittura ta’ Rafel Bonnici Cali’.

Librerija Pubblika Tas-Sliema

Óinijiet tal-ftu˙ tal-Librerija Margaret Mortimer li tinsab ©ewwa Triq Blanche Huber, Tas-Sliema huma kif ©ej:

Xitwa (L-1 ta’ Ottubru sal-15 ta’ Ìunju)

It-Tlieta bejn 8am u 12pmIl-Óamis bejn 2pm u 6pmIs-Sibt bejn 8am u 12pm

Hemm ukoll servizz ta’ internet/WIFI. Ir-residenti kollha huma m˙e©©a biex juΩaw dan is-servizz

Sajf (Is-16 ta’ Ìunju sat-30 ta’ Settembru)

It-Tlieta bejn 8am u 12pmIl-Óamis bejn 8am u 12pm

Is-Sibt bejn 8am u 12pm


2020

Il-Kunsill Lokali Tas-Sliema qieg˙ed jipproponi li jsiru dawn il-korsijiet f’Tas-Sliema f’Ottubru 2013. Dawk kollha interessati jistaw japplikaw fil-prospectus li jo˙ro© id-Dipartiment tal-Edukazzjoni f’Awwissu 2013.

Maltese as a foreign language1. English as a foreign language2. Spanish Level 13. French Level 24. Spanish Conversation5. Italian Conversation6. Health, Well being and Successful Ageing7. Understanding Child Development8. Maltese Cultural and Natural Heritage9. Accounting10. Card Making11. Keep Fit12. Zumba13. Yoga14. Pscychology15. Wine-tasting16.


21

– Works Completed –

21


22

– Works Completed –

22


23

TankGermany

Hesk OneSweden

NelMalta

EmoonGermany

David WalkerEngland

Steve LocatelliBelgium

Mr DheoPortugal

Artist: Shaka

ShakaFrance

Kayo NatezGermany

BrohemiaSweden

TwitchMalta

So�esAustralia

SmatesBelgium

Sea PuppyDenmark

RiotsGermany

Sliema Street Art Festival will transform the promenade into a melting pot of art, dance and music with artists, locals and visitors enjoying the weekend side by side. Attracting a wide range of world class street artists and many local and foreign upcoming artists will transform the beautiful promenade of Sliema into an art piece. Throughout the Sliema Art Festival every object is an opportunity to create a piece of art, from benches to bins, skips, telephone boxes, trees and anything that may tickle an artists fantasy.

Anyone can participate in the Street Art Festival, regardless of age, citizenship or education, the only prerequisite is quality and vigour. Artworks can include traditional gra�ti artwork, sculpture, stencil gra�ti, sticker art, wheat-pasting and street poster art, art intervention, guerrilla art, and street installations… This event will be a show of creativity and free expression.

All artists will be accompanied by Musical jamming sessions, Cultural food stands, Live performers such as street and break dancing and will also proudly host a Charity wall where all passers-by can join in and spray together with professional street artists by buying a spray can. All proceeds will go towards a selected charity. A kid’s area will allow artists to teach some techniques and some others to create collective works.

Applications are open through our website so get down to the promenade, let your creative energy loose and prepare to colour the Sliema Promenade. You can always drop us a mail for any further information on [email protected] AND MANY MORE TO COME!

CURRENT WALL ART LINE-UP


24

KIDSAREA

16:00 - 23:00TORRI SWINGS

FRESCO’S

INDEPENDENCE GARDENS

WALL ARTAREA 1

10:00 - 23:00TORRI BEACH

WALL ARTAREA 2

10:00 - 23:00FONT GHADIR

LOSTCULTURES

10:00 - 23:00GHAR ID-DUD

ARTEXHIBITION

16:00 - 23:00INDEPENDENCE GARDENS

TORRI

GABANNA

CHALET

PRELUNA

FORTIZZA

Main Festival Features• A beautiful 3km Promenade in one of the hottest summer destinations in Europe• A range of world class street artists from around Europe• Permission to decorate any object on the promenade• Artwork to remain on display for the remaining of the summer• Over 200 m2 of walls to be used for wall art• Creative installations to decorate with artworks• Over 100 Easels for artists to exhibit canvas paintings• Live Painting and collaboration area• Live music , Food, Dance & Entertainment• Kid’s Area - Children can restore and decorate their own public playground.• Charity Wall - A 30m2 temp wall for festival visitors to have a go at wall art.


25

KIDSAREA

16:00 - 23:00TORRI SWINGS

FRESCO’S

INDEPENDENCE GARDENS

WALL ARTAREA 1

10:00 - 23:00TORRI BEACH

WALL ARTAREA 2

10:00 - 23:00FONT GHADIR

LOSTCULTURES

10:00 - 23:00GHAR ID-DUD

ARTEXHIBITION

16:00 - 23:00INDEPENDENCE GARDENS

TORRI

GABANNA

CHALET

PRELUNA

FORTIZZA

Main Festival Features• A beautiful 3km Promenade in one of the hottest summer destinations in Europe• A range of world class street artists from around Europe• Permission to decorate any object on the promenade• Artwork to remain on display for the remaining of the summer• Over 200 m2 of walls to be used for wall art• Creative installations to decorate with artworks• Over 100 Easels for artists to exhibit canvas paintings• Live Painting and collaboration area• Live music , Food, Dance & Entertainment• Kid’s Area - Children can restore and decorate their own public playground.• Charity Wall - A 30m2 temp wall for festival visitors to have a go at wall art.


26

TankGermany

Hesk OneSweden

NelMalta

EmoonGermany

David WalkerEngland

Steve LocatelliBelgium

Mr DheoPortugal

Artist: Shaka

ShakaFrance

Kayo NatezGermany

BrohemiaSweden

TwitchMalta

So�esAustralia

SmatesBelgium

Sea PuppyDenmark

RiotsGermany

Sliema Street Art Festival will transform the promenade into a melting pot of art, dance and music with artists, locals and visitors enjoying the weekend side by side. Attracting a wide range of world class street artists and many local and foreign upcoming artists will transform the beautiful promenade of Sliema into an art piece. Throughout the Sliema Art Festival every object is an opportunity to create a piece of art, from benches to bins, skips, telephone boxes, trees and anything that may tickle an artists fantasy.

Anyone can participate in the Street Art Festival, regardless of age, citizenship or education, the only prerequisite is quality and vigour. Artworks can include traditional gra�ti artwork, sculpture, stencil gra�ti, sticker art, wheat-pasting and street poster art, art intervention, guerrilla art, and street installations… This event will be a show of creativity and free expression.

All artists will be accompanied by Musical jamming sessions, Cultural food stands, Live performers such as street and break dancing and will also proudly host a Charity wall where all passers-by can join in and spray together with professional street artists by buying a spray can. All proceeds will go towards a selected charity. A kid’s area will allow artists to teach some techniques and some others to create collective works.

Applications are open through our website so get down to the promenade, let your creative energy loose and prepare to colour the Sliema Promenade. You can always drop us a mail for any further information on [email protected] AND MANY MORE TO COME!

CURRENT WALL ART LINE-UP


27

Recipe Page

This page can be yours!!!Advertise your Restaurant and recipes on this page.

For more information kindly contact Sliema Local Council on [email protected] or 21 337 633

Baked Parmesan TomatoesA sprinkle of Parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil transform tomatoes into the perfect side dish. Or try sandwiching them between slices of your favorite whole-wheat country bread.

“simple and quick side dish “

Makes: 4 servings

Active Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

4 tomatoes, halved horizontally•

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese•

1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano•

1/4 teaspoon salt•

Freshly ground pepper, to taste•

4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil•

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 450° F.1.

Place tomatoes cut-side up on a baking sheet. 2. Top with Parmesan, oregano, salt and pep-per. Drizzle with oil and bake until the toma-toes are tender, about 15 minutes.

Nutrition:

Per serving: 91 calories; 6 g fat (2 g sat , 4 g mono); 4 mg cholesterol; 6 g carbohydrates; 3 g protein; 2 g fiber; 375 mg sodium; 363 mg potassium.

Carbohydrate Servings: 1/2

Exchanges: 1 vegetable, 1 fat

Nutrition Note: What you get: Vitamins A & C, potassium, calcium.


28

– It-Tis˙i˙ tal-Fortikazzjonijiet fl-in˙awi ta’ Tignè mill-IngliΩi (1856-1859). Pro©ett li ma se˙˙x –

Winston L. ÛammitB.A (Hons), P.G.C.E. M.A.

Me t a l - I n g l i Ω i ˙adu f’idejhom it-tmexxija tal-

gΩejjer Maltin f’ Settembru 1800, fil-Ponta ta’ Tigne’ kien hemm il-Fortizza Tigne’, li kienet l-a˙˙ar Fortizza li nbniet matul il-˙akma tal-Kavalieri ta’ San Ìwann (1530-1798). Jo˙ro© çar minn diversi dokumenti bejn is-snin 1856-1858, li l-IngliΩi kell-hom il-˙sieb li jΩidu il-

Fortifikazzjonijiet fl-in˙awi ta’ Tigne’.

Fil-fatt meta fl-1856 il-Kaptan Hallett talab li jing˙ata biçça art f’ Tas-Sliema, fl-in˙awi ta’ Tigne’, ir-risposta tal-Gvern kienet hekk: “As it is intended to strengthen the point of land on which Fort Tigne’ stands”. Dan juri biç-çar li l-Gvern IngliΩ kellu xi pro©ett f’ mo˙˙u f’dawn l-in˙awi(1).

Fl-istess sena, meta Salvu Falzon talab li jing˙ata biçça art f’Tas-Sliema, b’riferenza g˙al din it-talba inkiteb hekk: “The land on the Sliema Point should be neither sold nor let until the new defences are definitely settled” (2).

Fl-1858, b’rabta mat-talba ta’ Vincenzo Benedetti g˙al bini fi Triq it-Torri inkiteb hekk: “It is desirable to stop all building on this spot, on account of the new works to be made at Point Dragut” (3).

Fl-istess sena b’rabta ma’ talbiet g˙al bini, fl-in˙awi ta’ Tigne’, il-Kmandant tat-Truppi IngliΩi f’ Malta

darbtejn esprima ru˙u b’dan il-mod: “I think no pri-vate building should be permitted near Fort Tigne’, at present, in the face of the contemplated strengthening and adding to that position” (4).

Minn dan kollu jo˙ro© biç-çar li l-Gvern IngliΩ kellu xi ˙sieb li jΩid il-Fortifikazzjonijiet fl-in˙awi ta’ Tigne’

Rapport ta’ l-1859

L-ideja li jitwettaq xi pro©ett difensiv, to˙ro© aktar çara minn rapport li deher fil-gazzetta The Malta Times tas-6 t’ Ottubru 1859.“The Government at home have come to the determina-tion of erecting a citadel on the spot of land on which Fort Tigne’ is built. A considerable amount of private property consisting of large and well built houses, some of whom have only very lately been constructed will have to be purchased at enormous expense. The ground required for this purpose extends far as we are informed to Signor Falzon new block of buildings inclusive, which alone will cost the government a pretty large sum” (5)

Dan kien l-a˙˙ar tag˙rif li sibt fuq dan il-pro©ett, li spiçça ma twettaqx.

A(rkivju) N(azzjonali) M(alta) P(ublic) W(orks) (1) No.15 p.120

IBID. p.324(2)

IBID. No.16 p.147(3)

IBID. pp. 155,254(4)

The Malta Times, 6.X.1859(5)

Storytelling for childrenThe Public Library in Blanche Street,

Tas-Sliema, would like to inform that the storytelling sessions for kids will be recommencing in October 2013.

Parents who would like to send their children to the sessions are invited to write for further details to

Councillor responsible for education, Michael Briguglio at [email protected]

or contact Tas-Sliema Local Council on [email protected] or 2133 7633


29

Fr Claude Portelli

– Tislima lil Fr Eric Overend –L-a˙bar tal-mewt ˙esrem ta’ Fr Eric Overend li ©riet b˙al sajjetta nhar il-Óadd 28 t’April ̇ asdet lil kul˙add iΩda b’mod partikolari lil dawk kollha li b’xi mod kienu jafuh. Il-mewt ta’ xi ˙add li g˙adu Ωg˙ir fl-eta, 47 sena, u li kien b’sa˙˙tu hija kemmxejn diffiçli li wie˙ed jemminha. Fil-jiem ta’ wara l-mewt tieg˙u ntqal u nkiteb ˙afna dwar Fr Eric.

L-aktar ˙a©a li Ωgur spikkat hija li Fr Eric kien bniedem ̇ abriki u li qatt ma qag˙ad lura mill-˙idma fl-g˙alqa tal-Mulej. G˙alih il-˙in ma kienx jeΩisti sa çertu punt g˙aliex kien dejjem jara kif se juΩa bl-aktar mod ©ust il-©urnata tieg˙u biex jg˙amel il-©id u jwassal l-im˙abba t’Alla. Forsi ̇ afna lanqas jafu li Fr Eric kien Slimiz, g˙ex u trabba tas-Sliema sakemm da˙al is-Seminarju fejn beda l-formazzjoni tieg˙u g˙as-saçerdozju. Wara li ©ie ordnat saçerdot kwaΩi g˙oxrin sena ilu huwa ntbg˙at jibda l-˙idma pastorali b˙ala viçi fil-parroçça ta’ Santa Katerina

Ω-Ûurrieq, imbg˙ad kien kappillan Marsaxlokk u dawn l-a˙˙ar g˙axar snin kien Arçipriet iΩ-Ûejtun. G˙aldaqstant mhux ta’ b’xejn li forsi dawk li jg˙ixu tas-Sliema llum ma jafuhx, pero’ Ωgur li saru jafuh minn dak li nkiteb fuqu.

Dak kollu li ntqal huwa minnu. Kien saçerdot ˙abrieki, ja˙dem bla g˙eda u japprezza l-˙idma ta’ kul˙add. Fr Eric kien jara kif jg˙amel biex jinvolvi lil lajçi fil-˙idma tal-parroççi fejn kien g˙ax kien jemmen ̇ afna fil-kontribut li jistg˙u jg˙atu fil-˙ajja tal-Knisja. L-impatt li ̇ alla fuq il-˙ajja tan-nies kien kbir u l-funeral tieghu kien xiehda ta’ dan. Li huwa Ωgur hu li ma kellux ˙idma façli li jibni komunita’ f’ra˙al li sfortunatament huwa xi ftit maqsum min˙abba l-kaΩini tal-baned. Pero minkejja dan Fr Eric qatt ma qata’ qalbu u baqa ja˙dem u jirsisti li l-komunita tinbena biss bl-im˙abba u l-g˙aqda.

OkkaΩjonijiet b˙al dawn forsi j©g˙aluna nirriflettu ftit fuq kemm is-saçerdot g˙ad g˙andu relevanza fis-soçjeta’ tag˙na llum anke jekk forsi nie˙du din il-preΩenza b˙ala xi assikurazzjoni dejjiema. Forsi hemm bΩonn li jin˙ass il-bΩonn li nitolbu g˙al aktar vokazzjonijiet u li ma nibΩg˙ux nitkellmu dwar din ir-rejalta’ lil ©enerazzjoni Ωg˙aΩug˙a.

29


30

FESTA 2013MADONNA TAL-KARMNU BALLUTA

MIS-SIBT 20 TA’ LULJU SAL-HADD 28 TA’ LULJU

NARAWKOM!!!


31

The feast of St Gregory the Great is to be celebrated between Sunday 25th August

to Sunday 1st September 2013. Our locality will be

once again embellished with street decorations, projecting magnificent works of art. An opportunity to blend religion and tradition, bringing families together and setting up a showcase for the tourist, opting to visit.

During the year, the St Gregory’s Band Club committee organises a number of events such as the weekly bingo, New Year’s Eve gala dinner, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day lunches, amongst others. During the summer months, thanks to the Sliema Local Council, a number a traditional Maltese nights are organised in the Independence Gardens... a platform to support local talent and

– St Gregory The Great - Sliema –

promote a whole range of traditional food. These fund raising events, enable the committee to finance the actual feast, the Easter procession of the Risen Christ and above all, the project of the new the band club.

It is public knowledge, that property in Sliema is very expensive, but with the effort of the hard working members, the committee now owns a valuable property, situated very close to the parish church. The step forward is to demolish this property and rebuilt it in a way to better support the purpose of a band club.

Do not miss out on our invitation and join us during the religious and entertaining activities towards the end of summer. A time of reflection on the sacred life of our Parton Saint and yet another great event in our beloved locality of Sliema.


32

John Sare

– Ikompli mill-˙ar©a preçedenti... –

Diacono g˙andu wkoll xog˙olijiet p u b b l i ç i b ˙ a l

Alfons Maria Galea fid-dar tas-Salesjani f’tas-Sliema; l-forma hi plaster – ©ibs u l-monument hu bronΩ; bust ta’ Sir Temi Zammit fil-MuΩew ta’ l-Arkeolo©ija fil-Belt, ma˙dum fil-bronΩ; bust tal-Prim Ministru George Borg Olivier. Kien Dr Borg Olivier stess li kkummissjona dan il-bust fl-1964. Riedu biex ifakkar

l-g˙oti ta’ l-Indipendenza lil Malta u b’tifkira wkoll taΩ-Ωjara tar-Re©ina EliΩabetta. Hemm xog˙olijiet o˙ra ta’ Diacono b˙al fil-Furjana hemm lapida ta’ tifkira ta’ l-a˙˙ar Gwerra Dinjija; ˙adem ukoll fuq baΩi privata wiçç ta’ Ammiral li kien iservi Malta meta l-Flotta IngliΩa tal-Mediterran kellha baΩi hawn.

Victor hu ma˙luq g˙all-uçu ̇tat-tfal. Lilhom jag˙ti ̇ ajja u moviment li kif jaf kul˙add huma l-karatteristika tat-tfal. It-tafal, bl-uçu˙ tat-tfal, isir tad-demm u l-la˙am. F’dik ir-ras skolpita to˙ro© l-im˙abba u tenerezza.

Victor kien namrat tal-Modonna. Il-knisja f’Malta qatt ma’ tat xog˙ol lil Diacono biex jo˙loq Madonna g˙al xi knisja. Il-Madonni ta’ Diacono fihom moviment u rabta qawwija bejn l-Omm u l-Iben. G˙al Diacono teΩisti rabta qawwija bejn il-Madonna u l-Bambin li hi rabta ta’ im˙abba u ta’ fer˙. Hu n-namrat tal-Madonna, l-iΩjed mal-Madonna tar-RuΩarju, l-aktar il-Misteru tal-Fer˙ meta l-An©lu Gabriel ˙abbar lil Madonna li kellha ssir Omm Alla.. Dan ix-xog˙ol narawh aktar il-quddiem. Kien ikun xieraq ˙afna li kieku l-Posta ta’ Malta tag˙tu çans jo˙loq sett bololl fuq dan il-misteru tar-RuΩarju.

Victor Diacono hu l-artist li hu espressiv fis-silenzju. L-arti tieg˙u ˙ar©et mill-©ewwieni, minn qalbu, tant li hekk kif jibda imiss it-tafal, eçitament ji©ri mal-vini ta’ ©ismu kollu. G˙ajnejh jixg˙elu. Mitluf f’sakra ta’ ˙sibijiet hekk kif jara fil-menti tieg˙u s-su©©ett li ser ikun ja˙dem. Hu jarah lest. Tant hu hekk li la darba beda, ma jieqafx. Tist˙ajlu tfajla ta˙dem fuq trajbu taç-çumbini. Daqshekk subajh ji©ru min-na˙a g˙all-o˙ra tat-tafal. Xog˙olu jirrifletti m˙abba.

Óafna mix-xog˙olijiet tieg˙u huma b’tema reli©juΩa. Il-Bibbja kienet l-ispirazzjoni tieg˙u. E V Borg jg˙id hekk:

Kien ra©el sewwa u mag˙qud ˙afna mal-familja. L-g˙axqa tieg˙u kienet meta kien jimmudella xi ras ta’ tarbija jew ta’ xi tfal imfarfra. Kien ja˙dem il-figura b’delikatezza kbira, bil-perfezzjoni tal-g˙a©eb, tant li x-xog˙ol tieg˙u jista jitqies b˙ala poeΩija lirika.

Kien bniedem kwiet, qalbu tad-deheb u ©entili, imΩejjen bil-g˙erf tal-˙ajja. Kien intelli©enti, u kreattiv. Kien romantiku. Kellu karattru taz-zokkor Diacono dejjem qag˙ad lura biex ma ji©bidx l-attenzjoni fuqu. Imma xorta wa˙da kien attiv ̇ afna. Kien bniedem li josserva. Kien jg˙addi ˙afna ˙in ipin©i disinji u karikaturi ta’ nies fil-˙ajja ta’ kuljumm

Diacono dejjem ammetta li t-talent li kellu, kien ©ej dirett ming˙and il-Mulej. Ta’ dan kien dejjem rikonoxxenti. Tant hu hekk, li f’kull biçça skultura li ˙adem, po©©a domna çkejkna tal-Midalja MirakuluΩa. Hu stess jg˙id li ried li x-xog˙ol tieg˙u jkun imbierek

Hekk inkiteb fuqu fin-Nazzjon tat-12 ta Frar 1996, meta E V Borg kien qed jikteb fuq Dinjita’ u Valuri ta’ Victor Diacono. Joseph Camilleri wkoll kiteb fuq Victor fis-sensiela Min Hu Victor Diacono? Fin-Nazzjon tat-28 ta’ Frar ta’ l-istess sena.

“ Teenage love “ hi terracotta. Fis-sempliçita’ tag˙ha taqra tenerezza, im˙abba u innoçenza. Din ©iet mixtrija minn Dr Albert Ganado u tifforma parti mill-Ganado Art Collection.

Óa sehem f’˙afna wirjiet Kollettivi. IΩda l-unika wirja li tella’ wa˙du, kienet lejn l-a˙˙ar snin ta’ ˙ajtu. Infatti kellu 82 sena meta tella’ wirja g˙alih wa˙du u din fuq l-insistenza u bis-sa˙˙a ta’

Dr Joseph Paul Cassar, kritiku ta’ l’Arti. Ta’ 80 sena Victor Diacono kien g˙adu mimli ̇ e©©a u entuΩjaΩmu fin-namra tieg˙u ta’ skultur. Karriera twila li tag˙tu ˙afna sodisfazzjon, iΩda li ˙allietlu xi diffikultajiet u diΩappunti bl-imrar li dawn i©ibu mag˙hom.

Diacono kien jie˙u gost jirrakonta xi aneddotu dwar ˙ajtu f’Malta, f’Ruma u f’Londra, tlett postijiet fejn studja. Jekk jinduna li int nteressat tisimg˙u, kien jinse© rakkont wie˙ed wara l-ie˙or b’çertu sens ta’ ur©enza u ansjeta li ma jmurx jinsa jew i˙alli barra xi punt importanti. Dejjem b’dik il-©entilezza li rawwem fih iΩ-Ωmien. Kellu sens ta’ romantiçismu. Kien ̇ afna çajtier speçjalment fuq iΩ-Ωmien tieg˙u ta’ student f’Ruma.


33

Kien bniedem kwiet, qalbu tad-deheb u ©entili, mΩejjen bl-g˙erf u ©entilezza, ta’ kreattivita romantika, b’karattru taz-zokkar. Kien introvers ming˙ajr stramberiji, kien bniedem li jie˙u kollox bil-lajma, mimli paçenzja u prudenza, li wisq na˙seb li ma tantx g˙enuh f’˙ajtu. Fatt ie˙or li Ωgur ma g˙enx lil Diacono kien li hu kien reli©juΩ ˙afna. Diacono kien mg˙oni b’talent rikk skulturali. Tg˙allem gradwalment jaççetta l-imrar ta’ meta t˙alla barra, u forsi anki li jintesa. Imma kien jikkuntenta bil-gost u s-sodisfazzjoni ta’ dawk li kienu jammiraw ix-xog˙ol tieg˙u. Ûmien Diacono kien Ωmien meta beda die˙el l-astratt, il-moderniΩmu fejn ir-reli©josita ma kelliex post aktar.

Fil-kas ta’ Diacono kienu l-istranjeri u l-barranin li ̇ adu grazzja max-xog˙ol tieg˙u meta hu kien receptionist fil-Lukanda Phoenicia. Dawn g˙enuh ˙afna biex jiltaqa’ u jit˙allat mal-barranin.

Fl-1943 pin©a lill-Ommu Erminia. Dan hu pastel, iffirmat u datat 29 ta’ Novembru 1943. Fuq quddiem ta’ dan kwadru hemm dedika lill-ommu “ To My Mother “. Imbag˙ad fuq wara hemm ̇ afna self portrait sketches

tieg˙u innifsu. Skond Gabriel Pellegrini dan ix-xog˙ol jinsab f’kollezzjoni privata.

Il-protagonist ta’ Diacono kien il-bniedem komuni, il-bniedem fqir, il-bniedem umli, individwi ming˙ajr pretensjonijiet, bniedem naturali, sempliçi u onest. Fihom, Diacono kien jara d-dinjita umana. Kienet tolqtu ̇ afna s-sofferenza fiΩika g˙ax kienet to˙ro© iΩjed tan©ibbli fl-iskultura; kienet iΩjed grafika, illustrattiva u pittoreska meta mqabbla mal-lotta morali u spiritwali li hi anqas espliçita. Diacono kien jaf japprezza d-dinjita ta’ dawk li jsofru fiΩikament; kien japprezza tajjeb ix-xju˙ija li tg˙affe©, tkisser u tkemmex proçess fiΩiku ta’ maturazzjoni lejn is-senelita u ineviltabbli u finalment lejn il-mewt. B˙al Rembrandt, Diacono dejjem esprima ru˙u mill-esperjenzi li ikun g˙adda minnhom fil-˙ajja. Dan ma jfissirx li Diacono ma japprezzax is-sofferenzi mentali, iΩda meta ja˙dem xi basso-riliev karikaturali, aktar fil-bera˙. G˙alhekk hu tant jitg˙axxaq b’xi zokk ta’ si©ra mkemmex u raff g˙all-a˙˙ar, jew xi si©ra milwija bir-ri˙ u sfigurata mill-elementi naturali.

(Ikompli fil harga li jmis)


On the 4th of May, many may have noticed the unfamiliar sight of Red Cross balloons flying from the bridge at Tigne’ Point inviting

all to a myriad of activities, music, and a general feel good factor at Pjazza Tigne’ as the Malta Red Cross celebrated Red Cross Day. This day is internationally celebrated every year on the 8th of May, however, to make the activities available to all the family, Malta Red Cross celebrated by hosting a major event during the weekend . “There is much more to the Red Cross then most people are aware of”, said Paulette Fenech, Director General at Red Cross Malta. For generations, the Red Cross symbol has been a beacon of trust, of help and of hope across the globe. The Malta Red Cross has been providing service and support to the local community since 1991. “The aim of last Saturday’s event was to generate awareness amongst the Maltese public about the Red Cross and from the great feedback we’re receiving, we seem to be moving on the right path!”.

Red Cross Day celebrations kicked off at 11am and came to a close at 7pm, with Malta Red Cross volunteers hanging off the bridge to safely descend on the rocks below and saving casualties in the sea with a Jet Ski and RIB to demonstrate their expert skills in rope and sea rescue, First Aid demonstrations given by adults and children alike, not forgetting live music and activities for children, including a zip line, balloon modeling and face painting. “This was definitely one of the biggest events we have ever organised for the local public” said Ms. Fenech. “We are thrilled with the turnout. The atmosphere was great!”

Malta Red Cross also used the occasion as a soft launch for their Mobile Clinic. Fondly christened ‘Cetta’. The decommissioned bus, kindly donated

– The Malta Red Cross celebrates Red Cross Day –by Transport Malta, is beingconverted into a fully-fledged Mobile Clinic complete with a communication control centre. Once completed, Cetta will be put to work during mass events on the island and on the ready should there be a national disaster.

“Although Cetta is not, as yet, ready for unveiling in her full glory, we wanted to put her on display to give the public an idea of what the project consists of. She will be a first for Malta, and one of the first fully equipped mobile clinics in Europe.” said Ms Fenech. The initial stages of the project have been made possible thanks to the support of his Excellency, the President George Abela , through the Malta Community Chest Fund

Since the society is not a government-funded agency, it relies on support from the local community in terms of donations and volunteers to actualise the project. “Our volunteers come from all walks of life with youths, adults and pensioners working as a team, each excelling in their respective specialities. We are constantly striving to enlist volunteers and we hope that this weekend’s event may have served as an inspiration to whomever is interested in joining our team.” said Ms Fenech. Those interested in doing so can contact the Malta Red Cross on99388112 or [email protected].

The Malta Red Cross extends its sincere thanks to the Sliema Mayor, Ministers Helena Dalli and Joe Mizzi and the consultants from the A&E Deptartment of Mater Dei Hospital for showing their support as well as Pjazza Tigne`, Actavis, ESS, Electrofix, Firetech and Malta Segways who helped sponsor the event to make Red Cross Day such a success.

www.redcross.org.mthttps://www.facebook.com/pages/Malta-Red-Cross-

Operations/225484080868661

34


2292 1345

8007 2224

2219 2302

2294 2431

35


TAGĦRIF

TitħajjarTagħti

d-Demm?

Xi proċedura rrid ngħaddi minnha meta niġi nagħti d-demm?Importanti li kull min jiġi biex jagħti d-demm, jiġi b’għan wieħed biss f’moħħu: dak li jgħin lill-pazjent. Huwa importanti li kull darba li persuna tiġi biex tagħti d-demm dejjem turi l-karta tal-identità. Wara li ssir ir-reġistrazzjoni, jitkejjel il-piż (piż minimu huwa ta’ 50 kilo), titkejjel it-temperatura u jiġi kkalkulat il-livell ta’ ħadid fid-demm (minn qatra demm meħuda minn wieħed mis-swaba tal-id). Imbagħad int tgħaddi għal eżami mediku fejn jiġi deċiż jekk int tistax tagħti demm jew le.

Min jista’ jagħti d-demm?Jista’ jagħti d-demm kull min hu bejn is-17 u taħt il-65 sena. Min għandu 17–il sena jrid iġib formola ta’ kunsens iffirmata mingħand wieħed mill-ġenituri. Min għandu 63 u 64 sena jista’ jagħti biss jekk ikun diġà beda jagħti sa qabel kellu 62 sena. F’dawn is-sentejn donatur jista’ jagħti kull 3 xhur, iżda jekk bejn donazzjoni u oħra jaqbeż 6 xhur ma jibqax iktar eliġibbli li jagħti d-demm.

Kull meta nista’ nagħti d-demm?Jekk inti raġel tista’ tagħti kull 3 xhur u jekk inti mara tista’ tagħti kull 4 xhur; iżda mara wara l-menopawża tista’ tagħti kull 3 xhur.

Għaliex nista’ ma nitħalliex nagħti demm?Inti tista’ ma titħalliex tagħti d-donazzjoni, jekk ikun hemm riskju għalik (eż. il-livell ta’ ħadid ma jkunx għoli biżżejjed), jew għax ikun ta’ riskju għall-pazjent li jkun ħa jibbenefika mid-demm (eż. għax kellek xi infezzjoni f’dawn l-aħħar jiem, jew għax tkun qed tieħu xi mediċini partikulari).

Allura kull min jieħu xi pilloli ma jistax jagħti demm?Mhux bilfors. Per eżempju, jekk mara tkun fuq il-pill jew HRT tkun tista’ tagħti demm. Hekk ukoll min għandu t-thyroid jew il-frixa jaħdmu bilmod u jieħu l-pilloli biex jirregolahom; f’dawn il-każi l-persuna tista’ titħalla tagħti demm. Nies fuq l-insulina ma jistgħux jagħtu. Jeżistu wkoll każi fejn persuni jkunu qed jieħdu xi tip ta’ pilloli biex ibaxxu l-kolesterol. Ġeneralment dawn il-persuni jitħallew jagħmlu donazzjoni.

10

11

Dawn huma biss linji ġenerali ħafna, u kull każ fejn persuna tkun tixtieq tagħti d-demm irid jiġi mitkellem ma’ xi ħadd

mit-tobba tagħna.

Għal iktar informazzjoni:żur is-sit www.blood.gov.mt, ikteb e-mail fuq [email protected]

jew ċempel fuq: 21234767 (Ċentru ta’ Gwardamanġa) 22106369 (Ċentru ta’ Għawdex) jew 79307307 (waqt il-ħinijiet tal-ftuħ).

Ħinijiet tal-ftuħ taċ-Ċentru ta’ Gwardamanġa huma

mit-08:00 sas-18:00 kuljum, inklużi l-Ħdud u l-Festi.

9

12

13

© 2010 - Dipartiment tal-Informazzjoni

TAGĦRIF

TitħajjarTagħti

d-Demm?

Xi proċedura rrid ngħaddi minnha meta niġi nagħti d-demm?Importanti li kull min jiġi biex jagħti d-demm, jiġi b’għan wieħed biss f’moħħu: dak li jgħin lill-pazjent. Huwa importanti li kull darba li persuna tiġi biex tagħti d-demm dejjem turi l-karta tal-identità. Wara li ssir ir-reġistrazzjoni, jitkejjel il-piż (piż minimu huwa ta’ 50 kilo), titkejjel it-temperatura u jiġi kkalkulat il-livell ta’ ħadid fid-demm (minn qatra demm meħuda minn wieħed mis-swaba tal-id). Imbagħad int tgħaddi għal eżami mediku fejn jiġi deċiż jekk int tistax tagħti demm jew le.

Min jista’ jagħti d-demm?Jista’ jagħti d-demm kull min hu bejn is-17 u taħt il-65 sena. Min għandu 17–il sena jrid iġib formola ta’ kunsens iffirmata mingħand wieħed mill-ġenituri. Min għandu 63 u 64 sena jista’ jagħti biss jekk ikun diġà beda jagħti sa qabel kellu 62 sena. F’dawn is-sentejn donatur jista’ jagħti kull 3 xhur, iżda jekk bejn donazzjoni u oħra jaqbeż 6 xhur ma jibqax iktar eliġibbli li jagħti d-demm.

Kull meta nista’ nagħti d-demm?Jekk inti raġel tista’ tagħti kull 3 xhur u jekk inti mara tista’ tagħti kull 4 xhur; iżda mara wara l-menopawża tista’ tagħti kull 3 xhur.

Għaliex nista’ ma nitħalliex nagħti demm?Inti tista’ ma titħalliex tagħti d-donazzjoni, jekk ikun hemm riskju għalik (eż. il-livell ta’ ħadid ma jkunx għoli biżżejjed), jew għax ikun ta’ riskju għall-pazjent li jkun ħa jibbenefika mid-demm (eż. għax kellek xi infezzjoni f’dawn l-aħħar jiem, jew għax tkun qed tieħu xi mediċini partikulari).

Allura kull min jieħu xi pilloli ma jistax jagħti demm?Mhux bilfors. Per eżempju, jekk mara tkun fuq il-pill jew HRT tkun tista’ tagħti demm. Hekk ukoll min għandu t-thyroid jew il-frixa jaħdmu bilmod u jieħu l-pilloli biex jirregolahom; f’dawn il-każi l-persuna tista’ titħalla tagħti demm. Nies fuq l-insulina ma jistgħux jagħtu. Jeżistu wkoll każi fejn persuni jkunu qed jieħdu xi tip ta’ pilloli biex ibaxxu l-kolesterol. Ġeneralment dawn il-persuni jitħallew jagħmlu donazzjoni.

10

11

Dawn huma biss linji ġenerali ħafna, u kull każ fejn persuna tkun tixtieq tagħti d-demm irid jiġi mitkellem ma’ xi ħadd

mit-tobba tagħna.

Għal iktar informazzjoni:żur is-sit www.blood.gov.mt, ikteb e-mail fuq [email protected]

jew ċempel fuq: 21234767 (Ċentru ta’ Gwardamanġa) 22106369 (Ċentru ta’ Għawdex) jew 79307307 (waqt il-ħinijiet tal-ftuħ).

Ħinijiet tal-ftuħ taċ-Ċentru ta’ Gwardamanġa huma

mit-08:00 sas-18:00 kuljum, inklużi l-Ħdud u l-Festi.

9

12

13

© 2010 - Dipartiment tal-Informazzjoni

36


37

E-NewsletterThe Tas-Sliema Local Council would like to inform the residents of Tas-Sliema that in order to reduce the number of printed material and also to reduce the mail one may receive in their post, we are hereby encouraging you to fill in this form so as to begin receiving the newsletter in an Electronic format (as from the next is-sue). You are encouraged to subscribe to the new E-newsletter by filling this form and by sending it to the Tas-Sliema Local Council, at your earliest convenience. This database will also be used by the Tas-Sliema Local Council to circulate important notices and information via email and sms.

Name: Surname:

Address:

Postcode: Email:

Id Card: Mobile:

Should you wish to receive the E-Newsletter and other notifications via sms please mark the spaces below with an (X)

E-Newsletter: Cultural Activities:

Information and Notices: Signature: Data Protection: By signing the above you are allowing the Tas-Sliema Local Council to use and store this information in its databse and therefore use this for the purposes stated above.

#


38

Edward Said

– Architects who built Sliema –3 Perit Francesco

Zammit (1844-1917)

In the last issue, this series f ea tu r ed Pe r i t J o s eph Cachia Caruana. Since that publication I have come across further interesting material, identifying more of his work in Sliema, about which it is my intention to publish a detailed paper in the near future. This season’s article studies the buildings of an architect coming from

an earlier generation and who gave Sliema some of its most iconic domestic architecture.

One of my most coveted pieces of architectural Melitensia is a portfolio of Francesco Zammit, Architetto ed Ingeniere Civile. The

concise, smartly bound volume holds a photographic collection of a few of the buildings which he designed, not long after their construction. It is clear that he had a wealthy clientele that was investing in the much sought-after new town of Sliema.

Zammit came from a line of periti; his father Giuseppe (1812-1859) having had a brief but productive career, being given various commissions in Sliema during the first half of the 19th century in the Piazzetta (G˙ar id-Dud) and Óabel it-Twil areas. Born in Floriana in 1844 and one of six brothers, Francesco immediately showed interest in architecture, despite his father’s premature death when the younger Zammit was just 15. In 1868 he received his warrant as Perito Agrimensore and went on to have a prolific and successful practice, attracting a set of affluent clients who entrusted him with large residential commissions. He was particularly distinguished for his meticulous talent in drafting and a strictly methodical approach to work, keeping all his sketches, drawings and other records in bound volumes which still survive.

Much of the information on Francesco Zammit’s career is available today thanks to a recent publication by his descendent Perit André Zammit. Our Architects is a must-have for anybody interested in Maltese architecture. The author, himself a Sliema resident, pays tribute to a myriad of architects but emphasises the distinction of Francesco Zammit

whose projects in the locality are of substantial quantity and unique quality: “He saw Sliema develop from a few scattered shacks and farmhouses “on the road to St Julian’s” via streets “tal-Bandieri”, “tal-Kirxa” and “tas-Si©©ijiet”, to the prime residential area of Malta and helped bring it about.”

The principal sites for Zammit’s Sliema projects are focussed along High Street and Victoria Avenue (now Borg Olivier Street). This came as a result of three good clients whose commissions kept the architect occupied for some time, by the end of which creating a number of the finest residential buildings in Sliema.

Strada Reale, one of the town’s oldest roads, stretching along part of present-day High Street, was a favourite address for stately residences. Hunter’s Palace, on the corner with Strada San Vincenzo was owned by lawyer Agostino Borg Cardona and his brother-in-law the philanthropist Alfonso Maria Galea. In 1893 they engaged Francesco Zammit to recondition the residence including a redesign of its landscaped gardens. Two years later the architect was assigned to build a villa for is-Sur Fons on a nearby site, and in 1896 another for Avvocato Borg Cardona. Villa Betharram (now Fatima House) and Villa Ratnapoora (now Villino Zammit) are designed in the Palladian style, characterised by graceful porticoes carried on slender columns, surrounded by typically Maltese formal gardens. Incidentally, both of these wealthy clients were also relatives of the architect.

Major Alessandro Mattei was a landowner and property developer, possessing much of the land between High Street and Fond G˙adir, through which he opened Victoria Avenue. Zammit was asked to set out 22 plots for residential development, going on to design some houses there. It is here


39

that he experimented in the then-fashionable neo-Gothic when creating two pairs of dwellings on the junction with Capua Street. English Romanticism is present here, a spirit exuded by their delicate design with mullioned windows, subtle mouldings and gentle crenellations. The character is however generally classical and Zammit’s attempt at Neo-Gothic is restrained when compared to the bolder works of his near-contemporaries Giuseppe Bonavia (1821-1885) and more so Emanuele L. Galizia (1830-1906). Nonetheless these houses are unique pieces of Maltese architectural Victoriana.

Mattei’s family owned Capua Palace for which Zammit appears to have carried out some architectural services. Across the road from the palace on the corner with Victoria Junction, he designed a pair of classical double-fronted houses ornamented with unusual rusticated mouldings above the upper openings. An outstanding feature here is the beautifully proportioned mullioned window on the side elevation.

Sur Fons commissioned his architect to design several houses in the Óabel it-Twil and Tal-Bandieri districts. Of architectural significance is the block bounding Victoria Terrace with Don Bosco, Howard and Don Rua Streets, all built to a simple yet graceful classical grammar. He introduced front gardens to the houses on Victoria Terrace and to another terrace on Don Rua Street, a trait which was a favourite of his. Another trademark was the ‘wisa’ skwerra’ quoins on the corners of these, and many others of his Sliema residences.

In Rudolph Street, one Dott. Giorgio Cousin, another close client of Zammit’s, acquired a site adjacent to Galizia’s acclaimed Moorish trio, requesting a design for a house there in 1885. The architect somewhat emulated the central house of Galizia’s group complete with louvered balcony and arabesque ornamentation but was quite (intentionally?)

hesitant in introducing the filigree detailing of its counterpart. Clearly, despite the popularity of exotic and romantic styles, Zammit preferred to give his facades a predominantly Maltese classical expression.

Another interesting building featured in the portfolio is a “casa in Sliema al Dor. A. Borg Cardona” which most likely stood in the Victoria Avenue neighbourhood. It assumed the same hints of Gothicism as the others in the street but in style it is certainly one of Zammit’s most eclectic ventures, particularly the machicolation-cum-balcony; quintessentially Victorian indeed. Regrettably this unique residence no longer exists. As does Villa Trigona, for which the Baroness Giulia had engaged the services of Zammit to restructure and embellish in 1893-96. This gem together with Hunter’s Palace was pulled down during the 1970s & 80s.

Inevitably going through the portfolio, one cannot help but think which of the featured Sliema buildings, that Francesco Zammit was clearly so proud of, still stand. Surprisingly, of the nine, only two are gone and happily, some research will reveal that the surviving seven are all listed. It is hoped that many more, not shown in the collection shall soon follow suit.

Special thanks are due to Perit André Zammit for his information and insights.

Selected bibliography

Zammit, A., • Our Architects, P.E.G., Malta 2009.

Mahoney, L., • Malta 5000 years of history, Valletta Publishing 1996.

Thake, C. & Q. Hughes, • Malta: War & Peace, A architectural chronicle 1800-2000, Malta 2005.

39


40

Naraw id-da˙la ta’ ©ewwa tal-bajja tal-Exiles ta˙t il-playing field ta’ ©nien Indipendenza. Fejn naraw numru ta’ delettanti taΩ-Ωwiemel iniΩluhom fil-ba˙ar biex jifriskaw.

(Çirka 1950/55)

F’ dan ir-ritratt, naraw il-Port ta’ Tas-Sliema kif ukoll l-Army Barracks lejn il-Ponta ta’ Tigne’. Naraw ukoll medda ta’ bini u fuq ix-xellug il-koppla tal-Knisja ta’ Stella Maris. Filwaqt li l-bastiment tal-Gwerra tan-Navy IngliΩa f’ nofs il-Ponta ta’ Manoel Isand u Tigne’.

(Çirka 1950/55)

l-istess post, imma derha o˙ra tax-Xatt ta’ Tas-Sliema. Naraw meta ©ew imwaqqa’ t-tlett blokki ta’ fuq il-ba˙ar sabiex titwessa t-triq mad-dawra tal-ba˙ar lejn il-Ponta ta’ Tigne’.

(Çirka 1970)

Naraw tliet blokki ta’ bini max-Xatt Tas-Sliema li kienu mibnija Ωmien ilu fuq il-ba˙ar bejn illum Triq Bisazza u l-Knisja ta’ Ìesu’ Nazzarenu. kif ukoll naraw Destroyer tan-Navy IngliΩa u veduta mill-isba˙ tal-Belt Valletta.

(Çirka 1950/55)

– Kitbiet Ûg˙ar –

Wilfred Pirotta


41

their new forthcoming albums as well as upcoming singles with his wife NV. This year, he will also be recording more of his own material, with an album in the pipeline.

To watch Sean playing “Hurricane Blue”, check out his new video by Keith Falzon on:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZioFw5KFes

For more information and updates regarding Sean Vukovic you can check out his facebook page:h t t p s : / / w w w . f a c e b o o k . c o m / p a g e s / S e a n -Vukovic/536907839682370

– Award Winning Sliema Resident –

Guitarist/Composer Sean Vukovic, a Sliema resident, has been awarded an Honorable Mention in the Instrumental category of the

2012 International Songwriting Competition (ISC) with his song “Hurricane Blue”. Competition results have just been announced on 30th April 2013. This is a considerable achievement when taking into account that ISC, described as “the songwriting competition to take note of” by the New York Times, is one of the biggest of its kind with over 20,000 entries. “Hurricane Blue” was one of the last 16 songs in the instrumental section of the ISC finals, with which Vukovic was awarded an Honorable Mention by the panel of judges that include leading industry officials and iconic artists such as Tom Waits, Jeff Beck, Derek Trucks, McCoy Tyner.

This is the second Honorable Mention garnered by Vukovic following the one awarded to him in 2010 with his song “Song for Rudy”. Both songs were recorded, produced and mastered by him.

Sean Vukovic is a contemporary guitar teacher at Johann Strauss School of Music and plays with Forsaken, Norm Rejection and NV locally. At present he is busy recording new material with the bands for


Paġna Litterarja– Jum ir-Reb˙ –

U l-kotra qamet f’daqqa-u g˙ajtet: “ jien Maltija!Miskin min ikasbarni, -miskin min jid˙ak bija!”

U l-kotra g˙anniet f’daqqa-u semmg˙et ma’ l-irjie˙,l-Innu ta’ Malta tag˙na, - u l-le˙en kien rebbie˙

Fuq ng˙as l-img˙oddi ©wejjaf, -in-ng˙as ta’ l-Apatija,x’˙in ru˙na kienet rieqda-©o sodda barranija;

U l-Ombra ta’ Vassalli-qamet minn qieg˙ il-qabar,u g˙ajtet: “issa fl-a˙˙ar-jien se nsib is-sabar.”

Fl-okkaΩΩjoni tal-˙amsin sena mill-mewt tal-poeta, it-tabib RuΩar Briffa, g˙aΩilt wa˙da mill-poeΩiji tieg˙u, ‘Jum ir-reb˙’, poeΩija qasira

u sempliçi ‘mma b’sentimenti pattrijotiçi. Dawn il-versi jalludu g˙all-protesta li kienet saret fl-Empire Stadium mis-sapporters Maltin fit-2 ta’ Marzu 1945 qabel ma bdiet il-log˙ba ta’ ˙biberija bejn Malta u t-tim Jugoslav, Hajduk ta’ Split li f’ dik il-˙abta kien mag˙ruf mad-Dinja kollha. Qabel bdiet il-log˙ba, niΩlu fil-grawnd il-King’s own band u daqqew kemm l-Innu Nazzjonali Jugoslav u kemm il-God Save the King ming˙ajr ma daqqew l-Innu Malti.

ta’ RuΩar Briffa

Il-folla maqrusa fil-la˙am il-haj, qamu bil-wieqfa u bdiet tkanta spontanjament il-versi ta’ Dun Karm fuq muΩika ta’ Dr. Robert Sammut. Dan il-waqt emozjonanti ferm li kien baqa’ fuq fomm kul˙add g˙al ©img˙at s˙a˙, tpen©a permezz tal-kelma minn RuΩar Briffa fil-poeΩija t’hawn fuq. F’ din il-poeΩija jidher is-sens qawwi ta’ patrijottiΩmu tal-Maltin li qamu mill-apatija li kienu fiha ta˙t ˙akmiet baranin. Il-partita ntemmet b’reb˙a g˙all-Hajduks ta’ 3 b’ wie˙ed.

Il-Poeta RuΩar Briffa

RuΩar, it-tieni fost seba’ a˙wa twieled fid-dar (illum mwaqqa’ u meqruda) numru 8, Strada Irlandeze, Valletta fis-16 ta’ Jannar 1906 u tg˙ammed fil-21 tax-xahar fil-Knisja Parrokjali ta’ San Pawl. Ta’ ˙ames snin beda jmur l-iskola elementari tal-Gvern umbaghad il-Liceo. L-ewwel xejra g˙all-˙idma letterarja Briffa wrieha meta kien g˙adu fit-tielet klassi. Darba waqt il-lezzjoni tal-istorja ta’ Malta, Briffa g˙adda nota baxx baxx lil sie˙bu J.P. Vassallo: ejja niltaqg˙u wara l-iskola biex inwaqfu soçjeta’ fostna li tinkora©ixxi l-istudju tal-istorja t’artna. Minn dik in-nota tnislet is-Soçjeta’ Malta Storika fost l-studenti.

B’ittra tat-8 t’ Ottubru 1931, Briffa ng˙ata scholarship g˙al dik is-sena u hu g˙aΩel li jistudja g˙al tabib tal-Veneralo©ija u d-Determolo©ija. Sena wara ˙a l-lawrija. Baqa’ jilqa’ n-nies sa l-a˙˙ar filwaqt li fl-a˙˙ar lezzjoni lill-studenti tal-mediçina fl-Sptar San Luqa ta’ tlett ijiem biss qabel nhar il-Ìimg˙a, 22 ta’ Frar 1963 meta miet.

RuΩar Briffa baqa’ mag˙ruf b˙ala l-poeta taç-çokon u s-sempliçita’. G˙alkemm kiteb ftit, Briffa kien apprezzat fit-tul minn diversi kritiçi letterarji li bosta kitbu fuqu.

(mi©bura minn George Cilia)

42


– Tas-Sliema Ra˙al Tifkiriet –Raymond Grech

Tas-Sliema.

Kont g˙adek ra˙al sielemfil-˙emda lejl u nhar.

Kont timra˙ lejn il-kopplatitg˙axxaq bil-kampnar.

Kont g˙adek ra˙al sielemBl-imsiera˙ ming˙ajr kar

Id-djar biΩ-Ωew© sulariil-villel wiesa w kbar.

Kont g˙adek ra˙al sielemkuççier fuq karozzin.G˙etiebi bil-bΩulija

fuq trajbu iç-çombin.

Kont g˙adek ra˙al sielemb’uliedek mi©burin.

Kont tisma’ ‘l bejjie˙ jg˙ajjat“tajbin il-qg˙aq ˙elwin”.

Kont g˙adek ra˙al sielemtaΩ-Ωabbarija t-tut.

Tadam minn ta’ Belludja˙ajjin ta’ Bertu l-˙ut.

Kont g˙adek ra˙al sielemtas-skieken u l-landier.

Il-Kikkru jsewwi Ω-zrabenKaristu bil-lampier.

Kont g˙adek ra˙al sielemtax-xwejja˙ iΩΩomm fi˙.

Tar-rizzi jaqa’ l-ba˙artal-˙ut jaqbes g˙ali˙.

Kont g˙adek ra˙al sielemTereΩ tg˙ajat bil-bajd.

Ta’ Peppi w Pina l-qasabix-xolfa lesta g˙as-sajd.

Kont g˙adek ra˙al sielemKalan© bill-karawett.Sajjieda mal-barklori

©ol-port ta’ Marsamxett.

Kont g˙adek ra˙al sielemix-xatt ‘Pawlu tal-Blakk’.Qassata Kruç ja˙milek©ej Ninu trolju t-trakk.

Kont g˙adek ra˙al sielemGrezz tkejjel il-kappar.

Speditu bil-©elatitar-ramm ˙adid fuq ˙mar.

Kont g˙adek ra˙al sielemmas-Sufu s-sil© tpartit.Bigilla ‘tajba l-lejla’,

tal-Pipu nbid kemm trid.

Kont g˙adek ra˙al sielemKatrin b’qoffa ©bejniet.

ÌuΩeppi jikri r-rotiint ra˙al tifkiriet.

Illum sirt Belt ma˙nuqaIl-bini jg˙ola ‘l fuq.

G˙eb l-eku tal-bejjieg˙ainbiddel kollu s-suq.

In˙bew it-tempji sagriintilfu id-drawwiet.

Flok g˙ana jdamdam sterjola talb u lanqas kwiet.

It-tama tibqa’ fijali jieqaf dan ix-xkiel,

˙a ter©a timra˙ sielmadid-darba Belt il-©miel.

43


44

Most dogs like to bark, it’s a natural doggie behaviour, and most

of the time they are trying to tell us something! Sometimes, however, a dog may bark a lot,

disturbing neighbours and keeping you up all night. If you don’t want to get into trouble for your dog barking you can do something about it.

The first thing you need to do is understand that a dog barking next door would bother you too, so people who complain are not just being mean and it is only sensible that you should try and solve the problem. Try to figure out the reason behind your dog’s barking. Dogs can bark sometimes to let us know they want something, especially if they want food or to go out for a walk because you have forgot-ten to or don’t do it often enough. If that’s the case, then giving them what they need on time, and regu-larly, will very likely stop them from barking again. If you wait till they start barking to do it, they will learn to bark to get your attention every time and it will be hard for you to watch TV in peace.

But dogs don’t always bark to ask for something. It sometimes is because they want to warn you there is someone in front of the door or because they hear a noise that is upsetting them. Don’t assume that you would hear it because dogs can hear far better than us and they also hear frequencies that we can’t such as noises emitted by electric appliances. Close the windows and get double glazed glass. If it is people near your door causing the barking, especially in an apartment, it helps to put a sign near the door asking people to be quiet.

However, many times, nuisance barking is due to anxiety and not having anything else to do. Dogs bark! It’s in their nature because they use it to com-municate. So nature made sure they feel good when they bark so they would repeat it. If a dog is socially isolated, left alone in a garage or a yard, or even a roof or balcony, he can’t see much of the world outside. Without toys or anything to do he will not be happy and if barking is the only way for him to feel better then he won’t just do it once, he will also repeat it compulsively. So the answer is obvious. Let your dog inside, give him plenty of cuddles, give

– Barking Mad! –

him toys and things to chew and keep him happy by ensuring he has a fulfilling life with walks and opportunity to play and interact with you. He will not dirty the house if he is kept clean and taken out to toilet when he needs to. He will very soon not need to bark any more than a dog normally does.

This is just a taste of what you can find on www.dogtrainingmadeeasy.org. Visit to find out how you can solve more of such problems, especially if your dog barks because you keep him outside so he won’t destroy the house. There are videos and training tips and you can also apply for a free clicker and info booklet to help you train your dog the right way.


45

– Çentinarji u Anniversarji ta’ Interess g˙as-SlimiΩi –

Guido Lanfranco

Din hija lista ming˙ajr elaborazzjoni g˙ax kieku kelli nΩid

annotamenti u referenzi g˙al kull su©©ett kont nispiçça jkolli nag˙Ωel wie˙ed biss. L-iskop ta din il-lista huwa li (g˙as-snin imsemmija) nfakkar il-persuni jew avvenimenti assoçjati ma’ Tas-Sliema. G˙andi na˙seb li g˙add mis-su©©etti jkunu ta’ nteress partikolari g˙ad-diversi setturi SlimiΩi. Lista

b˙al din tidher qasira u ma nippretendix li tkopri kollox, imma tie˙u ˙afna xog˙ol biex tin©abar.

1863 - 150 sena iluIl-Kapitlu tal-Kattedral beda jbig˙ bçejjeç ta’ art f’Tas-Sliema g˙all-bini. Albert Marth, astronomu ÌermaniΩ, wasal Malta biex jassisti lil William Lassel, astronomu mag˙ruf, fl-osservatorju tieg˙u f’Tignè.

1913 - 100 sena ilu Louis Buttigieg, kittieb g˙al palk, twieled f’Tas-Sliema; miet 1974. Ìie ffurmat f’Tas-Sliema, is-Saint Agatha football club. Carmelo Theuma ˙adem pedestall g˙all-istatwa titulari g˙all-parroçça Madonna Tas-Sagro Cuor. Carmelo Mallia g˙amel l-istatwa ta’ San Baskal Baylon g˙al Ta’ ÌieΩu tal-Belt, li mbag˙ad in©iebet f’Tas-Sliema fil-knisja tal-Madonna tas-Sacro Cuor. Paul Bugeja, awtur, involut fl-edukazzjoni g˙all-adulti, twieled f’Tas-Sliema; miet 1993. Ìie deçiΩ li l-knisja tan-Nazzarenu tad-Dumknikani, tinbena mill-©did aktar kbira. Michael Zammit, surmast tal-banda u kompoΩitur ta’ marçi, twieled f’Tas-Sliema. Il-knisja tal-Madonna tal-Karmnu (jew Tal-Óniena, jew Tal-Ìebla) tal-GΩira, saret viçi parroçça tal-knisja parrokkjali ta’ Stella Maris f’Tas-Sliema. Frank Ganado, attur, twieled f’Tas-Sliema; miet fl-1997. Giovanni Onorato Refalo, in˙allef, twieled G˙awdex, imma kien g˙ex f’Tas-Sliema (ara 1988). Victor Castillo, li kellu ˙afna karigi importanti fiç-çivil, twieled f’Tas-Sliema; miet 2006.

1938 - 75 sena ilu G˙all-knisja tal-Madonna tas-Sacro Cuor ©ew ma˙duma l-Ecce Homo (artist mhux mag˙ruf), qoxra tal-fidda g˙all-missalli (minn Joseph Madiona),

u l-gallarija tal-injam g˙all-orgni (minn Lorenzo Ricco). Toussaint Caruana ©ie kummissjonat biex ipin©i l-Kurçifiss g˙all-knisja ta’ San Girgor, fejn ukoll Eliodoro Coccoli beda jpin©i xog˙ol ie˙or. Carmelo Rizzo, arkitett u ©eolo©ista miet f’Tas-Sliema. Stella Maris College tal-Freres li kienet fet˙et fi Triq Rudolfo f’Tas-Sliema fl-1904, ©iet trasferita u inawgurata f’bini ©did fil-GΩira. Bdew isiru pjani biex ti©i mkabbra l-knisja tad-Dumnikani (ta’ Ìesù Nazzarenu). Tbierek u nfeta˙ l-oratorju tal-kunvent tal-patrijiet tal-parroçça Madonna tas-Sacro Cuor. Enrico Bianchi ta’ Varese (Italia), ˙adem il-Via Sagra tal-bronΩ g˙all-knisja parrokkjali ta’ Stella Maris. Herbert Messina-Ferrante, kirurgu dentali u amministratur fl-isport, twieled f’Tas-Sliema. Dominic Curajar, kuratur, awtur u kritiku tal-arti, twieled f’Tas-Sliema. Joe Grech, kantant, twieled f’Tas-sliema. Bdiet topera f’Tas-Sliema, it-Telephone exchange. Joseph Borg, ortikolturist twieled f’Tas-Sliema. Juliette Bisazza, kantanta operistika u vjolinista, twieldet f’Tas-Sliema. Paul Psaila-Savona, tabib u awtur, twieled f’Tas-Sliema.

1953 - 60 sena ilu Samwel Bugeja ˙adem l-iskultura tas-sedje tal-kor g˙all-knisja parrokkjali ta’ Stella Maris. L-ewwel konferenzi tal-Moviment ta’ Kana bdew f’Tas-Sliema.

1963 50 sena ilu Oscar Testa pin©a ’l Sant’Anna u San Carlo Sezze g˙all-knisja tal-Madonna tas-Sacro Cuor. Il-Palazz Capua f’Tas-Sliema (issa sptar), kien bidel ismu g˙al Saint Joan Antide Home for Orphans li tmexxa mis-Sorijiet tal-Karità (sal-1979). Çensu Bugeja, politikant soçjalista miet f’Tas-Sliema. Tbierek il-kunvent mibni ©did tad-Dumnikani tal-knisja ta’ Ìesù Nazzarenu.

1988 - 25 sena ilu Pawlu Galea OFM la˙aq kappillan tal-knisja tal-Madonna tas-Sacro Cuor. G˙all-istess knisja, Sar kanopew ©did g˙al-fuq l-istatwa titulari u Tarcisio Cassar g˙amel sett ta’ lampieri tal-fidda. Fix-Xatt ta’ Tas-Sliema ©ew inawgurati Ωew© funtani ©odda. Andrew Vella, Dumnikan, professur tal-istorja u awtur, miet f’Tas-Sliema fl-età ta’ 70 sena. ÌuΩè Cardona, awtur, poeta, g˙alliem tal-Malti, miet f’Tas-Sliema ta’ 65 sena. Giovanni Refalo, im˙allef, miet f’Tas-Sliema. (ara 1913). F’seba’ r˙ula u bliet f’Malta, inkluΩa Tas-Sliema, infet˙u Anti Smoking Clinics mat-twaqqif tal-Anti Smoking Society.


46

Towns and cities in Europe are undergoing a transformation. As car ownership increased over past decades, traffic congestion also increased until city and town streets became too jammed and parking spaces too rare for car transport to remain practical. This forced people to seek transport alternatives; they started to leave their car at home and used public transport or, where distance permitted, walked or used a bicycle.

The response of European (and other) city and town councils to this trend was to further encourage walking and bicycle use by imposing urban 30 km/h limits and calming traffic by creation of so-called ‘home zones’ and ‘shared spaces’ - so making streets pedestrian- and child- friendly. Cycle lanes or tracks on main routes were also created to encourage bicycle use. This modernization alone improved the flow of essential traffic and decreased pollution. Reducing the dominance of cars and ‘giving streets back to people’ in this way has been so successful that many city and town centres are now practically car-free with most people using bicycles for travelling into town. The EU now aims to double cycling by 2020.

Bicycle-friendly cities such as Amsterdam and Copenhagen started to encourage bicycle use a long time ago but this trend is rapidly spreading to other cities, even as far away as Bogota and Mexico City.

As a consequence of having been a colony of Britain, until recently, a most bicycle unfriendly country, Malta remains car-orientated and bicycle unfriendly until today and we now have the highest private car-dependency rate in Europe. This is both unhealthy

– Time for Change –and unsustainable in the long or medium term. While a high car ownership rate might be regarded positively as an index of wealth, the downside is that roads are becoming too impossibly jammed. It now makes sense to argue that it is in the interest of those motorists, especially those who absolutely depend on their car for business or work, to show more patience towards bicycles on our roads for the simple reason that traffic flow will improve even if a few people take up the bicycle. It has been shown that, for every 5% increase in people travelling by bicycle, traffic flow can be expected to improve by 20%.

Sliema is possibly Malta’s most traffic-congested and polluted town. The traffic situation is fast approaching an unsustainable level. It will soon reach tipping point where it becomes impossible to move efficiently in a car. As things now stand, it often takes longer to travel by car than to walk inside Sliema. Unfortunately, people are anyway not encouraged to walk because Sliema’s inner roads are mostly shabby and people-unfriendly - and very few would dare to use a bicycle because motorists do not respect cyclists on the road. At the same time little can be done to improve traffic flow because it is impossible to add road space in Sliema - it has only been possible to increase parking space at the cost of making our pavements narrower.

The Sliema council, and other councils, would do well to start emulating city and town councils in advanced countries which are aiming to gradually reverse deterioration in traffic conditions by applying modern concepts and making streets people-friendlier and safer for walking and riding bicycles. If the Sliema council were to succeed in this vision,

46


47

Sliema residents would also benefit from spin-offs experienced by other EU communities where reduced traffic and better air quality led to improved quality of life of residents; this even translated into increased property values, business growth and increased tourism. It must also be remembered that, as a result of runaway over-development, Sliema has hundreds of unsold apartments. Reversing the dominance of motor traffic in Sliema and making our streets friendlier to children may help to attract young couples to live in Sliema – something which Sliema needs as the population ages.

It must be made clear that urban modernization does not reduce car ownership or decrease urban parking space. The aim is to create as favorable an environment as possible, in order to encourage as many people as possible to walk or use a bicycle whenever practicable – and leave their car behind. This fact is perfectly exemplified by Holland where

car ownership is the highest in Europe but where the majority of people travel by bicycle.

There are many ways to modernize streets to encourage healthy mobility, most of them are simple measures. Fundamentally the object is to make streets pedestrian- and child-friendly. In Malta the greatest added challenge would be to find ways to make bicycle use on our roads as safe as possible and persuading car drivers to adapt to bicycles on our roads. We will know we have succeeded when it becomes safe enough for children to cycle healthily to school as is normal in many EU countries – this dream seems a long way off.

A positive development took place in April when three Sliema Councillors, namely Michael Briguglio, Lisa Cassar and Paul Radmilli held a meeting with various cycling organizations to establish a dialogue on the Council supporting initiatives which will increase bicycle use among commuters in Sliema.

Councillor Pierre Portelli receiving the 2013 TCTC Award on behalf

of the Tas-Sliema Local Council, award presented by

Hon. Edward Zammit Lewis, Parliamentary Secretary

for Competitiveness and Economic Growth.

Opening of St Patrick’s Book Fair on the 18th of April 2013


48

Marie Therese Vassallo Voice Studio was set up in 1987. The members are singers of different ages and they sing all types of music. They are trained

in Voice Technique, Theory of Music and Repertoire, both as Soloists and as Choristers and are also prepared for Re-citals and for exams. They obtain Diplomas of different universities and Boards. Ms. Vassallo provides her singers with regular opportunities to sing. This helps them to gain experience in performing and to build up their confidence. Many of them have an established musical career.

Marei Therese Vassallo is the Director of the Malta Cul-tural Institute, for which she regularly organises monthly concerts.

The Marie Therese Vassallo Voice Studio is very well known as a choir and performs regularly all over Malta and Gozo. They participate regularly in concerts of the Malta Cul-tural Institute, in churches, feasts, theatres, embassies and TV stations. Their recordings include works by Carmelo Caruana, Michael Borg, John J. Pace, Raymond Zammit and Frank Vassallo.

For many years the Voice Studio was the resident choir of the Parish Church of St Gregory the Great in Sliema. Since 2006, Marie Therese Vassallo Voice Studio has been the resident choir in Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish Church, Balluta, where Ms. Vassallo is “Maestro di Cappella”, tak-ing care of all the musical activities in the church.

Between 21 and 28 May 2010, a group of soloists and choristers from the Marie Therese Vassallo Voice Studio travelled to France to fulfil an intensive singing engage-ment. They were invited by the French side of the Twinning Committee between Sables D’Olonne and Sliema. Sables D’Olonne is also twinned with Schwabach (Germany) and Worthing (UK). The Maltese Choir went to Sables to sing during the weekend of Pentecost, when there were special festivities to commemorate the 35th anniversary of the

– Marie Therese Vassallo Voice Studio –town’s twinning with the town of Schwabach. The Maltese singers sang in various concerts. They took part in a defilée through the streets of the town along with groups from Schwabach, Worthing and Sables D’Olonne. They sang in the “Place de la Mairie”, the square in front of the Town Hall for the opening of the festivities, where they presented a programme of international music. They also sang an Interntional programme in the “Salle Audubon”. They sang a programme of Sacred Music in the “Centre Spirituel Relais Pascal”, a centre run by a group of priests, nuns and families who follow the Carmelite charisma. The choir also participated in the Liturgy in the church of “Notre Dame du Bon Port”, during solemn Mass on Pentecost Sunday, where they sang a Mass by Maestro Frank Vassallo and several hymns in Maltese. During their stay in France, the singers from the Marie Therese Vassallo Voice Studio sang a varied programme of music, both sacred and profane, concentrating on music by Maltese composers. They were regaled with standing ovations on all occasions and were enthusiastically invited to return.

While in Sables D’Olonne, the Maltese singers visited various places in the region and were hosted by different local organisations. A highlight of their programme was a reception given in their honour by the mayor of Sables in the Town Hall.

The Marie Therese Vassallo Voice Studio followed their visit to Sables D’Olonne with 2 other highly successful singing trips. In July 2011, they visited Cardiff (Wales), where they were hosted by Castell Coch Choral Society, from Tongwynlais (Cardiff). This was an exchange between the 2 choirs; the Maltese choir hosted the Welsh in Malta in October 2011. In April 2012, the Voice Studio took part in another exchange when they hosted Havant Light Opera Company, from Havant (Sussex, UK); the Maltese choir returned the visit when they travelled to Havant in September 2012.

Dame Marie Therese Vassallo DipLCM, LLCM, DLJ, MMLJ, PSLJ - 27th May 2013.


49


50

Documents

Tas-Sliema Local Council | Summer Magazine 2013