Lands Minister Silvio Schembri said he still supports the government’s decision to hand over management of Miżieb and Aħrax woodlands to hunting federation FKNK on Friday, despite the courts declaring the deal null and void.
“I supported the decision in the past, and I continue to support it now,” Schembri told Times of Malta, when asked if his position on the deal has changed.
On Wednesday, the court concluded that the concession was null from the start because it had not been done by public deed and did not follow the rules required when transferring public lands.
Schembri highlighted this point when asked whether the Lands Authority will sign a fresh agreement to hand FKNK guardianship over the 1.5 million square metres of natural land.
"At no point did the court state that this land should not be provided or handed over," Schembri said.
The guardianship deal dates back to a 1986 pledge, and Schembri echoed a previous government statement saying that the agreement was a way to finalise what was previously promised.
He said the court highlighted the procedure of the agreement, not the agreement itself.
According to the court, the 2020 guardianship deal, which was quietly signed in October 2020 at an event featuring ministers Ian Borg, Clint Camilleri, and Aaron Farrugia with no prior discussion, should have been undertaken through an official public deed, an appeals court concluded.
"As a government, we took note of what the court said, and we are seeing similar contracts with other NGOs, so that we can regulate our positions, in the past and future, so that we are in line with what the courts are saying."
When questioned if the agreement will change following criticism of FKNK having full guardianship of the public land, Schembri said he makes no distinction between different NGOs.
He added that he has received numerous calls from different organisations regarding the title of land ownership, which are then portrayed differently in the media.
"FKNK is an entity which I support, they do very serious work, I support them as much as I support other entities which are against the work of FKNK."
Earlier on Friday, Environment Minister Miriam Dalli said she wants the two woodlands to be "accessible to the public" but avoided saying what she thought of the guardianship deal.