Talks are under way with the EU to stop it from funding the destruction of traditional wooden Maltese boats to replace them with more modern and safer craft, the Malta Maritime Museum’s curator has said.
The EU directive, while having “good intentions”, requests fishermen to surrender their licences in exchange for compensation in an effort to control fishing.
Its objective is to provide financial measures for the implementation of the common fisheries policy (CFP) and the sustainable development of fisheries and aquaculture areas, supporting fishermen in complying with new requirements.
But as part of the Mediterranean Maritime Museums Association, efforts were being made to create awareness of how “bad” the funding of the traditional boats’ destruction was and to explain their importance, curator Liam Gauci said.
He acknowledged there was consensus between the EU and the affected countries to stop this practice, as heavy local investment continues to be poured into these vessels, including through the engagement of two full-time boatbuilders to restore its own collection.
Countries like Greece, for example, are also working on salvaging and restoring traditional hulls through private ownership after thousands of these were destroyed as a result of the policy.Meanwhile, in Malta, the largest surviving dgħajsa tal-Latini – measuring 48 feet – is now into its first year of restoration to seaworthy status by one boatbuilder, and the other is working on the mammoth task of saving Heritage Malta’s collection of 82 traditional Maltese boats, accumulated over the last 30 years.
"A luzzu could be bought for €4,000, but its ‘massive, intrinsic, uncalculated value’ went beyond that"
As the custodian of the collection, the museum is home to all varieties of these, Gauci said, stressing however, they were just five per cent of its remit.
Work on the 100-year-old boat, bought by the national agency, is a “big headache”, soaking up hundreds of thousands of euros on wood and research, Gauci said, explaining that aims to save every luzzu on the island required money, manpower and concrete plans and could not just rely on volunteers.
He was reacting to the concerns of the newly set up Malta Traditional Boats Association, which is predicting the luzzu will be a thing of the past within three decades.
“We wish they can all be saved, but in the cold light of day, this is a very difficult exercise to achieve,” said a pragmatic Gauci, questioning what “traditional” really meant and putting the luzzus – not even 100 years old – into their wider context.
In restoring these wooden boats, even the environmental aspect needed to be taken into account, he said.
While the EU policy, “with all the good intentions”, was funding the destruction of the traditional fishing boats, its Horizon programme, one of its latest calls for projects specifically aimed at preserving traditional crafts, appeared to be a contradiction, said associate professor of maritime archaeology at the University of Malta, Timmy Gambin.
Passionate about maritime heritage in general, Gambin said it was not only about nostalgia.
A luzzu could be bought for €4,000, but its “massive, intrinsic, uncalculated value” went beyond that, spilling over into the Malta Tourism Authority posters, postcards, the Instagram pictures of the iconic eye on these boats and the visits to Marsaxlokk.
Taking a proactive approach, Gambin called for financial concessions and incentives, such as tax breaks, for full-time fishermen, using these boats, to sustain the tradition.
He also suggested the creation of a national census of the number of boats, their use and condition to determine the situation.
“While the Cultural Heritage Act states that anything 50 years old is considered cultural heritage, triggering its protection, the rule does not seem to apply to the traditional Maltese boats,” Gambin said, pointing out that nothing was stopping anyone from wantonly destroying them.
Highlighting also the demand for this rare knowledge, he recounted how one of the few remaining boatbuilders was approached for a job and could not take it on until 2024.
Moved to tears by the lost skill
An elderly builder of traditional fishing boats says he is moved to tears when he thinks of the “lost” skill.
Giuseppi Baldacchino, now 82, learnt the dying trade from his father and would have loved to pass on to the next generation what he says has become an “art form”.
His advanced age means he no longer has the strength to build wooden boats alone, but he has “all the experience in my head, and especially in my heart” and would be happy to take in a couple of apprentices to share this.
“They would have to be interested, dedicated and passionate,” Baldacchino insisted as prerequisites, saying it required patience and dedication.
He says fibreglass dealt a big blow to the wooden vessels: it was back in the 1970s that this material took over and when Baldacchino built his last luzzu, although he continued to construct cabin cruisers and other types of vessels out of wood. His Msida garage is still full of equipment, drawings and models.
The part-time boatbuilder had spent nine years as an instructor at the nautical school, but recent initiatives to use his rare skills did not kick off.
“The Italians, and in particular the Sicilians, have continued this tradition,” Baldacchino pointed out, lamenting that it no longer existed here. The Malta Traditional Boats Association has noted that many are being abandoned, left to decay and destroyed, with the Cleansing & Maintenance Division recently removing about 70 off the streets.
