Last Sunday, a large protest took place between Attard and Rabat aimed at trying to save over 500 trees that will face the chop as a result of the Central Link project.

This protest was organised by young people. Nobody expected to see that many at the protest, and the sheer number shows just how far the environmental movement has come in Malta. It also shows that youth activism is taking off in Malta, which is an important part in any democracy. Given that it was held on a Sunday afternoon, when most would be enjoying the summer sun by the sea, proves this even more so.

Youths are the future of this country, and so it is always a welcome sight to see youths fighting for what they believe in.

Most of the time, when one thinks youth activism, Moviment Graffitti comes to mind. They have been fighting for a greener Malta and protesting on social issues for many years now, and their unique style of protests always garner media attention.

This protest, while being supported by Moviment Graffitti, was not organised by them, and shows that other youths can take up a cause and have their voices widely heard.

While many, many people physically attended the protest, many more who did not attend shared posts about it on Facebook, commented and watched live videos etc.  the activists came from all walks of life, and from all sides of the political spectrum.

Others disagreed with the protest. It is pertinent to note that people should obviously air their disagreement with something should they feel the need to, however if someone crosses the line into hate speech, then they must be prepared to face the legal consequences. Hate speech is unacceptable, and the courts have taken action on hate speech in recent times.

There are of course valid arguments as to why this project, or rather a project, is needed as the area does indeed suffer from congestion issues and this could help in the short term.  But it is how you display your disagreement which must also be thought about.

Some people who took to social media, wrote despicable, hateful and vile comments, all while trying to seem funny and cool. Newsflash, it’s pathetic.

While not everyone was in favour of the protests, one must acknowledge that healthy activism in a country is a cornerstone in any democracy, and seeing so many people physically stand-up for what they believe in is certainly refreshing.

Politicians need to stand up and take note. Perhaps the idea of constructing a tunnel instead of taking away 500 trees, in addition to planting more, is an idea the government can revisit? Perhaps the government needs to come up with a better strategy to tackle congestion, by possibly offering better alternative transport, rather than just widening roads which, if car usage continues to increase, will solve absolutely nothing in the medium-to-long term.

When such a large number of people speak up, the government should take a step back and consider more alternatives, perhaps there are others which they have not yet thought about. Perhaps they could involve more people and think outside the box in terms of finding solutions to the traffic flow issues in the area.