Queen makes children's day

Some 2,500 schoolchildren yesterday gave the Queen an effusive welcome as she was ushered into the Cottonera Sports Complex where Children's Day was being celebrated.

Queen Elizabeth II, in Malta on the second day of her state visit, arrived at the complex accompanied by Gozo Minister Giovanna Debono at about 11.30 a.m., 15 minutes after her husband the Duke of Edinburgh.

As he was waiting for his wife, Prince Philip chatted with some of the children.

Students, some in school uniform, others in sports gear, had been gathering at the complex since 8 a.m. They carried small Malta flags bearing the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting logo on the back.

Nigel Barbara, nine, said more children from his school were supposed to go to the ceremony but parents did not let them attend because they were afraid of a terrorist act.

The children were entertained for some time by the band of the Royal Marines after which they assembled a collage representing the countries and cultures of the Commonwealth.

The collage served as a backdrop to the stage where the Queen sat during the activity.

A performance was given by the St Joseph School choir, made up of some 300 children.

When the Queen entered the complex, wearing a checked grey and black coat, matching hat and black gloves, the children stood up, cheered and waved their flags.

Her Majesty walked to the podium, flanked by Prince Philip, Education Minister Louis Galea, Mrs Galea and Mrs Kate Gonzi, chairman of the HSBC Cares for Children Fund, which sponsored the event.

Dr Galea welcomed the Queen and thanked her for her visit. He said that on Children's Day, which this year was being celebrated four days late to coincide with the Queen's visit, childhood was being celebrated as a time to play, discover and learn.

The day recognised children's vulnerability and the need for protection, he said, pointing out that there were over one billion children suffering from severe deprivation.

The minister's speech was followed by a show called Networking In The Commonwealth put up by students from Maria Regina Junior Lyceum, Maria Assunta Secondary School and Verdala Junior Lyceum.

HSBC Bank (Malta) executive head Shaun Wallis presented the Queen with a framed painting by Debbie Caruana Dingli showing a young Prince Charles and Princess Anne with Lord and Lady Mountbatten on a boat in Grand Harbour.

The painting is based on a photograph taken in 1954 by Frank Attard, then a staff photographer of The Times.