|
James Debono
Every year on All Soul’s Day, aEvery year on All Soul’s Day, a Maltese falcon was presented to the Viceroy of Sicily as a token of his sovereignty over Malta by the Knights of the Order of St John.
Two centuries after Napoleon evicted the Order from Malta, building contractor Rene Scicluna is determined to revive the noble tradition of falconry on an illegally developed site at ta’ Zgamardi in Siggiewi.
He has already imported bald, golden and steppe eagles to make his dream come true. In February, he filed an application for the development of a countryside park for the display of birds of prey.
But Scicluna has grown impatient waiting for the Malta Environmental and Planning Authority’s approval, claiming he’s already brought over a bald eagle, a golden eagle and a steppe eagle to Malta.
“They are presently living in bad conditions,” laments Scicluna.
He now plans to house his wild raptors in four-metre high cages, currently already visible on the illegally developed site.
But the site, on which Scicluna plans his park, is already covered by a MEPA enforcement order.
Yet in a show of defiance Scicluna has ignored MEPA’s orders and construction works visible from the main road were still taking place in the light of the day until Wednesday.
Following queries by MaltaToday on the legality of the works, on Wednesday MEPA inspected the site and stopped ongoing works. The owner was not surprised when contacted by MaltaToday.
“The inspectors told me that you have reported me,” Scicluna told MaltaToday.
According to a MEPA spokesperson, Scicluna was told that the site is being referred for direct action. MEPA is also considering round-the-clock police surveillance at Scicluna’s expense if illegal works persist.
Yet by Friday morning a crane was again visible on the site and the illegal works had recommenced.
“You are not allowed to do anything innovative in Malta,” Scicluna complained, justifying his illegal development with very noble intentions.
“My aim is educational. While visiting the park hunters will start learning to appreciate these birds alive instead of shooting at them.”
With the assistance of a professional falconer, Scicluna plans to train these birds to fly into the wild and return back to the falconer’s glove. But golden eagles are rarely used in falconry except in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Mongolia where they are used extensively, to hunt game as large as wolves.
Scicluna has very close connections to the hunting community as a partner of hunters’ federation secretary Lino Farrugia and other prominent members of the Federazzjoni Kaccaturi Nassaba Konservazzjonisti in the newly set up Leisure Field Sports Ltd.
In March Scicluna told MaltaToday the company had already reared 8,000 quails to be used for organised hunting activities in a picturesque area in Munxar which he owns.
Scicluna’s illegal development in Siggiewi lies on a rural conservation area lying outside development zones. “What do you expect me to do? Do you imagine rearing eagles in the midst of developed areas?” asks Scicluna.
Still Scicluna’s eagles could be in for some hard time as the area is still used for the setting off of fireworks during the Siggiewi feast.
This is not the first time Scicluna has run into trouble with MEPA. In 2004 he applied to sanction and extend an illegal garage and two rooms at a site next to the proposed park, claiming his aim was to house homeless in-laws and a “handicapped uncle.”
Nature Trust had objected to the application, which was outside the development zone, by pointing out that instead of resorting to MEPA, the developer should present social cases to the Housing Authority.
The application was refused twice by MEPA but an appeal is still pending before the planning appeals board.
Scicluna claimed that before he bought the site it was full of rubbish and the rubble walls were collapsing before he rebuilt them.
jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt
|
