Several environmental NGOs on Friday launched the campaign Ġustizzja għal Artna to resist the unprecedented threat facing our country's environment, quality of life, and democracy: the Government's legislative package that seeks to dismantle all planning safeguards currently in place.

More information about the campaign can be found on www.gustizzjartna.org, the groups said in a statement. Groups across Malta and Gozo, both formal and informal, are invited to join by emailing [email protected]. These groups may include non-governmental organisations, residents, students, workers, and farmers: all non-partisan groups whose aims are in line with those of the campaign are welcome to participate.

The campaign was launched as the government attempts to push through two planning bills which have been strongly rejected by environmentalists. Bill 143 aims to give dictatorial powers to the Planning Authority, render local plans ineffective, and open the door to destructive development in every corner of the country. Bill 144, presented under the guise of reforming the appeals process, in reality seeks to strip people of their right to effectively challenge Planning Authority decisions by creating countless obstacles and removing the Court's power to revoke development permits.

It was only thanks to the timely intervention of organisations, communities, and individuals that these malicious plans were temporarily halted. Widespread public anger forced the Government to pause their passage, the groups said.

But the threat remains. The struggle must now intensify. The so-called consultation process, which closes on 7 September, is nothing more than a smokescreen designed to weaken public resistance to this developers' coup. These Bills are structurally rotten - devised solely to empower developers and their friends in corrupt authorities - and cannot be salvaged. At the same time, the Government has published three draft legal notices that would grant a blanket amnesty for all sorts of planning and environmental illegalities, regardless of scale or location.

The campaign demands are clear:

1. The immediate withdrawal of the draft bills and legal notices. Consultation cannot take place on legislation that is fundamentally flawed, malicious in intent, and beyond repair.

2. The urgent introduction of a measure suspending works on developments approved by the Planning Authority while an appeal is ongoing, through an amendment to existing law.

3. The publication of a White Paper to launch a genuine consultation on the broader planning reforms Malta truly needs.

Ġustizzja għal Artna is launching a season of people's resistance to this total assault on the people's right to live in a country not ruled by greed. Details of initiatives and actions forming part of the campaign will begin to be announced in the coming days.

Organisations

BirdLife Malta

Din l-Art Ħelwa

Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar

Friends of the Earth Malta

Front Żgħażagħ għall-Ambjent

Għawdix

Moviment Graffitti

Nature Trust - FEE Malta

Ramblers Association

Wirt Għawdex