Paul P. Borg

 

People have to stop waking up one fine morning and excitedly dreaming up the bright idea of using a protected field or that protected garigue, or that stretch of coastline or thinking of pulling down this or that important building simply to make more and more and more and more money. This has to stop. Heritage is sacred. Money is important, but not sacred. These dreams must decelerate and stop, because when we have turned all our land into tourist-beds or flats, and when we have destroyed all our trees, and when we have fried all our fish and shot all our birds, we shall find that we cannot eat money.

 

The 'Technocentric'

A technocentric person is one who believes that the environment is there to suit solely his wishes and for him to use as he pleases without much serious thought about how it would hit other beings.  He may feel that the sun revolves about his person and about his wishes. He is a person who holds that the human being is the most important creation in the whole universe. All creation may be used to satisfy his desires, luxury, finances, economy etc. etc. Humanity is the most important aspect in all nature. All must bend to humanity's needs, even the wishes of other humans. An extremely technocentric society destroys forests, garigues, fertile valleys, fertile fields, rubble walls, uses heavy machinery to destroy natural surroundings. Nurture to a technocentric person, means money and money and money.

 

The 'Ecocentric'

An ecocentric person, on the other hand, is one who strongly holds that the environment is not there for him to modify. The world around him has also a right to enjoy the same natural surroundings. He is not the centre of the universe. An extremely ecocentric person believes that the natural environment must under no circumstances ever be modified. Such a person even believes that animals have also the same right as the human animal to the benefits of nature. Such a person fights to defend nature because he thinks of the rights of his offspring as well.  Money is not his priority at all, but Mother Nature is. 

 

Striking a balance

A balance has to be struck somewhere in between the two extremes in such a way, however, that Mother Nature is not hurt nor compromised, simply because in the end Man suffers. We all suffer. I love the very first of the Ten Commandments; in this case I am of course not referring to the first of our Catholic Ten Commandments given on (old) tablets to Moses on Mount Sinai, but I make explicit reference to the Cree Indian Ten Commandments. It is a simple, straight forward but emphatic guide through life: Treat the Earth and all that dwell thereon with respect.

I never tire going through them slowly and understanding their significance, especially when one ponders the great damage and the great disrespect we are showing to Mother Nature and at the same time the great disregard we frequently show towards others especially when chunks of what actually belongs to society is usurped by the few who manage sooner or later to get away with it anyway. I always find it puzzling how our Ten Commandments do not include an explicit statement as another commandment: Love your natural environment, love creation.

 

These are the Cree Indians' Ten Commandments:

1.                   Treat the Earth and all that dwell thereon with love and respect.

2.                   Remain close to the Great Spirit.

3.                   Show great respect for your fellow beings.

4.                   Work together for the benefit of all mankind.

5.                   Give assistance and kindness wherever needed.

6.                   Do what you know to be right.

7.                   Look after the well-being of mind and body.

8.                   Dedicate a share of you efforts to the greater good.

9.                   Be truthful at all times.

10.               Take full responsibility for your actions

 

 

Of natural beauty

Most environmental aspects related to our Maltese countryside are similar in nature to each other, due not only to our size but as well due to the shared characteristics of our Mediterranean geography, history, religion and identity - specifically culture in particular, that is, the way we as humans with our character have been relating and are relating to our available natural environment. I habitually refer to the Selmun promontory in Mellieħa as my case study because this is the spot I am familiar with most; even in its differences and diversities one can clearly detect a sameness applicable to all Malta and Gozo.

I always considered the Selmun promontory as too beautiful a natural environmental site not to attract the attention of developers. Like a beautiful woman, one cannot help but looking and admiring. And that is usually the stage civilised people reach. Or are supposed to reach. Indeed, the Knights of Malta themselves had decided to build a castle on top of the hill, a beautiful vantage point at Selmun itself in order to use the edifice as a summer residence close to the countryside. Centuries later the Government of Malta decided to follow suit by building a hotel also at the top of the hill at the same vantage point. But there have been people who in the recent past went beyond that already advanced stage even at Selmun by building houses on the garigues and by building, incredibly, nothing less than a fish factory on the garigues. Civilisation notwithstanding, of course.

Understandably the natural beauty of the Selmun countryside and its environs of bays, sandy beaches, hills, sheer cliffs, fields, clayey slopes and garigues, was what caught the attention of many people wanting to focus their interest on a place of enjoyment and relaxation where man can relate in a harmonious and peaceful way with Mother Nature. This beauty was further enhanced by the peasants working in their fields and their families inhabiting the surrounding irziezet. This physical beauty was then even further pronounced and assumed a deeper meaning in the spiritual relationship of man and nature in all the aspects of Mother Nature.

The aspect of a scenic beauty and peace, coupled with an abundance of Mediterranean flora and fauna, may indeed be the actual cause that kills these same natural environmental factors from which it emanates and will, almost certainly, paradoxically ruin its very existence. And I am not referring only to this area but to all natural environmental sites in Malta band Gozo.

Overdevelopment invariably results in the very sad ruin of the beauty and peaceful relaxation it tries to establish for the many who seek it. It is sometimes very difficult to convince people that there is nothing wrong with leaving the garigues wherever they are on our limited land footprint as Mother Nature has managed to develop them. Man can only infuse a man-made synthetic make-up that will never ever be natural. It is worth remembering that it has taken Creation millions of years to develop natural beauty, but it will take just a nervous and impatient, well-paid bulldozer to destroy natural beauty!

 

A suggestion

A well-planned project for any area by the authorities has to look at many factors, including sustainable cultural and environmental aspects. Of course I am aware people know this simple fact already, but I also know that people who matter very often decide to overlook this altogether for some reason or other. The list of aspects to be considered does not include simply physical spots or sites in a locality like the Castle at the top of the hill at Selmun, in the cased of the Selmun promontory, or the nearby hotel or indeed the derelict long-forgotten Fort Campbell; nor solely the surrounding Wied l-Imġiebaħ, Wied il-Mistra, Wied il-Kalkara. But it should also include the whole countryside of the promontory, including other valleys, Għajn Ħadid, it-Taqtiegħat, il-Blata l-Bajda, Qortin Simber, il-Kalkara, ix-Xagħra ta' Barra with the underlying Ġnien tal-Kalkara, other cliffs, garigues and vales. It should also included fauna and it should include flora. And it should include history.

Not only that: but it should include the aspect that glues everything together. The cultural aspect should be extended to include the actual peasant and inhabitant of the fields and of the garigues, the use he made of them to get a living and most of all his emotions and his fears and his beliefs. This is what enlivens our countryside and this is what is frequently  overlooked when it should not.

Traditional characteristics and the collective memory of a community will be still reflecting every physical or geographic spot in a manner to give them life. Geography and history become alive when they are reflected in society's emotions recorded in people's beliefs, fears and superstitions, folktales and traditions.

Perhaps it may be a good idea to suggest compiling immediately a more detailed inventory of what is found on site physically, amending and improving any existing list, enlisting in detail all the innumerable rural architectural, historical and other spots of cultural importance that need to be tied to the plan. This way spots of archaeological importance (Punic, Bronze Age, Roman, paleochristian, troglodytic etc.) are not overseen, but indeed properly recorded, conserved and in the process their presence exploited for obvious beneficial reasons.

I am aware that such an exercise was carried out in the past by people who were dedicated and who loved our cultural and environmental heritage, because at that time I was asked to help and I did happily involve myself as best I could with my knowledge of the area. But this lengthy and laborious exercise was not extended as far as I know to all the promontory and many, many spots have not been recorded at all.

Furthermore, this activity meant probably next to nothing even for the recorded sites at Selmun, since many an aspect recorded has been tampered with, I would indeed say, cruelly tampered with, and indeed in some sorry cases destroyed notwithstanding. The precious and unique old cobbled road leading down Selmun hillside was supposed to be a scheduled site even as a result of parliamentary action was taken by Evarist Bartolo many years ago, but this same precious ċangar has been left neglected completely and in a sorry state.   

The valley, or the garigue, the cliffs or the bays, wherever they are on these islands are further enriched if we were to stress the traditional characteristics still evident in every shrub and in every stone and in every saying. Research has to be made. Legends, stories, folktales, sayings, mannerism, agricultural methodologies, techniques - all have to be recorded. Informants have to be sought. Hours have to be spent. Questions have to be asked.

A lot of work has already been done at least with reference to this beautiful area Selmun, but lots and lots of more work must still be done. So much information is waiting patiently to be collected before it is too late, because each old peasant who dies takes with him/her valuable information that is not found in books at the University. That is knowledge lost forever and ever from our national memory. Those are shades of our identity lost. Without them the picture will never be complete. Man can talk and man can feel, so that he and his immediate environment are mutual reflectors across the years. Without them the picture of our identity will remain blurred unfortunately without us even realising it. The field of work is endless for people, even for dedicated interested students at University who want to roll up their sleeves and who have our heritage at heart.

The work is there ready to be done.