Malta as Atlantis

I refer to the letter "Malta as Atlantis" by Alexander George Farrugia (December 3) to clarify that it was the Malta Tourism Authority that organised, and indeed made possible, the visit by the camera crew of the Italian television station La7 to film footage for their programme, which focused on the hypothesis that Malta constitutes the remains of what was once Atlantis. This programme was shown on November 24.

It was also the MTA which, together with Matrix Malta and the Prehistoric Society of Malta, organised a seminar on 'The mysterious past of ancient Malta' on December 6, last year. The main speakers for this event were Dr Anton Mifsud, author of the book Malta: Echoes of Plato's Island, and Graham Hancock, the international best-selling author of the book Underworld, which also mentions the 'Malta as Atlantis' theory.

Mr Hancock was in Malta as a guest of the MTA. The seminar was also covered by a number of European print and television journalists, who were brought over especially for the event by the authority.

Moreover, the theory that Malta could be the site of Atlantis was expounded in the first of a series of television programmes produced by Mr Hancock entitled "Underworld: Flooded Kingdoms of the Ice Age". The programme was shown on the Discovery Channel UK and on satellite Sky Digital 551 on August 14 of this year.

The Malta Tourism Authority intends to continue tapping similiar opportunities to promote Malta as they arise, while actively seeking new avenues of publicity in order to generate interest in the islands' unique history and heritage.