A protest walk against plans to build three new hotels in the south, which objectors fear could lead to “another Buġibba in the south”, only attracted a few dozen participants yesterday.
The march was promoted on social media and in the press but failed to attract any members of the Opposition or prominent NGO leaders. It was held along the virgin coastline which stretches from Smart City to Żonqor Point, Marsascala. The area has been chosen as the location for three hotels with about 700 rooms. The planned development will also feature a promenade and a beach club, on public land outside development zones.
John Paul Cauchi, who organised the walk, yesterday expressed concern that the development would see the pristine green area heavily built upon.
“Hotels will open this entire coast to development; we’re talking wide roads and serious construction. We don’t want to see a natural area turned into another Buġibba in the south,” Dr Cauchi said, questioning why the proposed hotels were not being developed on existing construction sites, such as the abandoned Jerma Palace Hotel.
Details of the proposed development emerged in a briefing paper prepared by the government’s privatisation unit on the request of the chairman of the Consultative Council for the South, Labour MP Silvio Parnis.
The briefing paper was discussed at length by the council last week. Malta Developers Association president Sandro Chetcuti is among the council members and, when contacted, he labelled the land as “shabby”, claiming the development would not be affecting any useful land. Residents yesterday hit out at such comments, insisting the area was pristine countryside, which should be enjoyed by future generations.
The Żonqor coastline is littered with WWII pillboxes, 16th century coastal batteries and countless examples of endemic flora.
“This coastline is far from useless. It deserves protection not destruction. I’ve been coming here since I was a child and I want my children to enjoy it too,” Marsascala resident Lino Camilleri said.