Full-time farmers who own land at Zonqor Point – the ODZ site earmarked for the development of the ‘American University of Malta’ fear that the project could cost them their job, their inheritance and the thousands spent on farming machinery and tools.

The Malta Independent visited the site again yesterday and spoke to three full-time farmers, two of whom spoke only on condition of anonymity for fear of repercussions.

Ganni* leases a number of fields close to the Marsascala swimming pool complex, more than half of which are situated in the pocket earmarked for the construction of the university campus. “My fear is that more than half of the fields I have will be taken away. This is my only means of making a living, of feeding my family. I will end up without a job and, at my age it will not be easy for me to find work. Farming is my life. I am used to this way of life and it will not be easy to change over to something else.”

‘We spent thousands on farming tools’

The farmer said another primary concern of his is the thousands he spent of farming machinery and tools. “I have invested heavily, without any government help. What can I do with my tools if my land is taken away? Where will I use them?”

Could he find other fields to work in if the ones he has now are taken by the government, we asked. “How is that possible? Will the government take my land and give me someone else’s? There is no unused agricultural land in Malta, every little piece of it is cultivated. The only disused land is garigue, but what would I do with that? Anyone who owns a field grows something in it, let alone us full-time farmers, who do this for a living.”

Ganni said he will try to fix a meeting with agriculture Parliamentary Secretary Roderick Galdes. “I want to speak to him to see what will happen to us. I want to ask about our future and the destruction that is going to be visited on this land.”

 

This is agricultural land pure and simple

There are some who are arguing that this is not agricultural land, we pointed out. “If this is not agricultural land then what is this wheat in the fields. Where do they imagine we grow the potatoes that we export to Holland? It is not true that this land is dilapidated and unused. Those who argue to the contrary should come here and see with their own eyes.”

The Zonqor Point saga, he said, is only serving to discourage agriculture students. “The government says it wants young people to become farmers but is then taking up the remaining agricultural land. This is a hard job and few would want to do it. Taking up the few remaining fields for mega projects is not the way to go.”

 

‘Do not take away our daily bread’

Guzi* is a 51-year-old farmer whose lands have been passed down from one generation to the next. All he knows is farming and selling his own vegetables. “My lands seem to be included in this ‘natural park’ project. I have no idea what that will entail because no one has spoken to us. All I know is that if they take away my land they will have taken my job, and my life.” The farmer rebutted claims that the land in question is non-agricultural. “What do they think we do here? We grow all sorts of crops and fodder. This is how we make our living. This right here is our daily bread.”

If the government were to expropriate his land, Guzi would probably be compensated but that is not the outcome he would like to see. “I prefer keeping my land than being given money for it. I would only get paid once but I would lose this land forever. The worst thing for us is that we do not know what will happen to us.” Guzi has three children, one boy and two girls. They are not really interested in carrying on the family tradition but the thought that he could lose what has been in his family’s possession for generations pains him. “I am not young but I am not that old. I would still need to work. Where would a farmer like me, with limited education find work? Who would want to employ me?”

 

‘Farming is all I know, all I want to do’

Another farmer, Toni Pulis, did not object to showing his face on camera. “I am fighting for what is mine after all.” Mr Pulis is not hopeful about what the future might bring. “I am 36-years-old. I have always been a farmer. I fear that if I lose my land and my job I would not find it easy to find alternate employment. Will I end up registering at the ETC? If they destroy this land they will also be destroying my livelihood.’

Mr Pulis said he was very fond of the land and his work. “My mother used to bring me down here in my pram. This is all I want to do. Now the government has suddenly come up with this idea that could jeopardise all of us. I thought this was some kind of a joke when a fellow farmer told me about the university plans. Then again this is not the first time the government has come up with proposals that would ruin this whole area.”

‘We are terrified of what might happen’

Mr Pulis said there are several other farmers who, like him, are terrified of what might happen. “No one has told us anything. We have only read the reports in the paper and seen the news on TV. It is truly a shame that the government has chosen this spot to build its university on. They will destroy this whole area.” Asked if the campus could be built on alternate sites, Mr Pulis said he was not the right person to ask but insisted that no development should take place on agricultural land.

Sources said yesterday that the government was looking into the possibility of having the university campus split in two by identifying a 25,000 square meter area in another location. However that would still mean that the Zonqor campus would take up more than 60,000 square meters of pristine agricultural land. As far as the farmers are concerned, even one hectare of arable land taken up for development is one too many.

 

*Names have been changed to protect the identity of the farmers