Launch of Din l-Art Ħelwa Għawdex

at the Gozo Cittadella

Din l-Art Ħelwa Għawdex (DLĦGħ), a new Gozo dedicated branch of Din l-Art Ħelwa, was launched at the Rabat Cittadella in Gozo on 5 June 2021 with a mission to safeguard Gozo’s unique cultural and architectural heritage as well as its natural environment for future generations.

Its founding members are a group of Gozitans together with other residents who chose to set up home in Gozo, part of a growing significant grass roots movement of people perturbed by the avalanche of construction projects and extreme over-development destroying the centuries-old charm, authenticity and attraction of Gozo’s villages and countryside, to the detriment of this and future generations.

Din l-Art Ħelwa Għawdex will act as a pressure group to bring about strong positive change to planning laws and enforcement and act as a watchdog, lobbying authorities and the public for the protection of the landscape and rich architectural legacy of Gozo, stated founding member Godfrey Swain, a former international banker residing in Gozo who added a clear statement that the new board is not an anti-development group but stands for sustainable development and an economic vision that will create long term employment and business opportunities, enhancing Gozo’s heritage and the long term prosperity of the island and its people.

Din l-Art Ħelwa President Professor Alex Torpiano who presided over the launch event stated that the first immediate task is a strong plea to the authorities to take immediate stock of the situation and urgently put in place a series of measures to control the present pace of overdevelopment, allowing the island breathing space to re-assess the long term needs of the island of Gozo. In this respect Din l-Art Ħelwa’s Gozo branch shares the concerns recently raised by the Gozo regional council together with all Gozitan mayors, straddling all political groupings, as well as key bodies representing Gozo business, tourism and university students. He stated the three key recommendations as : • A twelve-monthmoratoriumperiod on all ODZ development applications for residential and industrial use, with some exceptions for genuine agricultural applications up to 12 sqm. • A twelve-month extensionof the current UCA boundaries by 250m to create a new buffer zone enjoying the same level of protection as UCA. • A twelve-monthsuspensionofAnnex2 regulations for the island of Gozo.

Din l-Art Ħelwa Għawdex is sending out a clear warning that without immediate positive action on the three key recommendations the island of Gozo will be lost forever stated founding member and renowned international photographer and publisher Daniel Cilia who called on government and the Planning Authority to review present planning guidelines over the next twelve months. Cilia concluded that the review should be conducted openly in a spirit of co-operation consulting with the public, mayors, NGOs and business bodies with a view to present new guidelines that will chart a new vision for a sustainable Eco-Gozo guaranteeing the integrity of the social, architectural and environmental fabric of the island.

Gozo Regional Council President Samuel Azzopardi was a key guest speaker at the launch event and emphasized the commitment and clear recommendations submitted by the Council with the support of all the Gozitan mayors. n