Moviment Graffitti is today releasing a video showing how Government is enforcing illegitimate private interests in the Comino nature reserve.

The incident, which took place on Sunday, 14 June 2026, shows Malta Tourism Authority officials forcing a group of friends, who were lying on a rocky part of the public Blue Lagoon beach, to move away. Although there were no sunbeds or umbrellas in the area where they were sitting, authority officials ordered them to leave and even threatened to call the police.

While there are concessions for the placement of sunbeds and umbrellas in certain parts of the Blue Lagoon beach, these in no way grant sunbed operators a permanent right of occupation, let alone the authority to use public officials to remove beachgoers from a public beach.

Moviment Graffitti is in no way calling for disciplinary action against the officials involved. We know that this is a systemic issue that goes beyond individual responsibility. The Comino nature reserve, and the Blue Lagoon in particular, have been taken over by a Government-sponsored web of commercial interests that prioritises mass tourism over the public’s right to enjoy this unique place and over environmental protection.

Besides the occupation of public space by sunbeds, the Blue Lagoon is crowded with kiosks and other businesses selling all kinds of goods, services and activities. Most damaging of all is the constant flow of large boats ferrying thousands of tourists to the area, many of whom are recruited from places such as St Paul’s Bay and Sliema.

Last year, Moviment Graffitti visited the Blue Lagoon and released a video showing how the so-called cap of 12,000 persons per day was an absolute failure. As many as ten vessels could be berthed at the Blue Lagoon at any one time, and many of these vessels made multiple trips per day, bringing hundreds of tourists to this small, legally protected beach on each journey.

It is telling that Government continues to refuse to publish the carrying capacity study on Comino, despite repeated requests and despite the Court recently ruling that Cabinet secrecy cannot be used as a blanket justification for undermining the public’s right to access this important information.

The stubborn refusal to publish a study that may reveal the harm being caused by the current commercially driven system to an important nature reserve once again shows that Government feels more loyal to big business than to the public interest.

As long as this situation persists, the public will continue to be pushed out, and Comino will continue to be denied the protection it deserves so that a few fat cats can continue to enrich themselves.

We call for this situation to change immediately and stand ready to take further action against the theft of our public spaces and heritage by greedy interests.

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FILMAT: Uffiċjali pubbliċi jinfurzaw interessi privati illeġittimi fil-Blue Lagoon

Il-Moviment Graffitti illum qed jippubblika filmat li juri kif il-Gvern qed jinforza interessi privati illeġittimi fir-riżerva naturali ta’ Kemmuna.

L-inċident, li seħħ nhar il-Ħadd, 14 ta’ Ġunju 2026, juri uffiċjali tal-Awtorità Maltija għat-Turiżmu (MTA) iġiegħlu grupp ta’ ħbieb, li kienu fuq parti bil-blat tal-bajja pubblika tal-Blue Lagoon, jitilqu minn hemm. Minkejja li ma kien hemm la sunbeds u lanqas umbrelel fiż-żona fejn kienu qegħdin, l-uffiċjali tal-awtorità ordnawlhom jitilqu u saħansitra heddewhom li jsejħu lill-pulizija.

Filwaqt li hemm konċessjonijiet għat-tqegħid ta’ sunbeds u umbrelel f’ċerti partijiet tal-bajja tal-Blue Lagoon, dawn bl-ebda mod ma jagħtu lill-operaturi dritt permanenti ta’ okkupazzjoni, wisq anqas l-awtorità li jużaw uffiċjali pubbliċi biex ineħħu nies li jkunu qed igawdu bajja pubblika.

Il-Moviment Graffitti bl-ebda mod mhu qed jitlob li tittieħed azzjoni dixxiplinarja kontra l-uffiċjali involuti. Nafu li din hija problema sistemika li tmur lil hinn mir-responsabbiltà individwali. Ir-riżerva naturali ta’ Kemmuna, u b’mod partikolari l-Blue Lagoon, inħatfet minn xibka ta’ interessi kummerċjali bil-barka tal-Gvern li tagħti prijorità lit-turiżmu tal-massa fuq id-dritt tal-pubbliku li jgawdi dan il-post uniku u fuq il-ħarsien ambjentali.

Minbarra l-okkupazzjoni tal-ispazju pubbliku mis-sunbeds, il-Blue Lagoon hija mimlija b’gabbani u negozji oħra li jbigħu kull xorta ta’ prodotti, servizzi u attivitajiet. L-akbar ħsara qed issir bil-fluss kontinwu ta’ dgħajjes kbar li jġibu eluf ta’ turisti lejn iż-żona, li ħafna minnhom attivament jinġabru minn postijiet bħal San Pawl il-Baħar u Tas-Sliema.

Is-sena li għaddiet, il-Moviment Graffitti żar il-Blue Lagoon u ppubblika filmat li wera kif l-hekk imsejjaħ limitu ta’ 12,000 persuna kuljum kien falliment totali. Sa għaxar dgħajjes kbar tat-turisti setgħu jkunu rmiġġati fil-Blue Lagoon fl-istess ħin, u ħafna minn dawn id-dgħajjes jagħmlu diversi vjaġġi kuljum, u jġibu mijiet ta’ turisti lejn din il-bajja żgħira u legalment protetta f’kull vjaġġ.

Huwa sinifikanti li l-Gvern għadu jirrifjuta li jippubblika l-istudju dwar il-carrying capacity ta’ Kemmuna, minkejja talbiet ripetuti u minkejja li reċentement il-Qorti ddeċidiet li s-segretezza tal-Kabinett ma tistax tintuża bħala ġustifikazzjoni ġenerali biex jinċaħad id-dritt tal-pubbliku għall-aċċess għal din l-informazzjoni importanti.

Ir-rifjut bis-saħħa li jiġi ppubblikat studju li jista’ jikxef il-ħsara li qed issir lil riżerva naturali importanti mis-sistema attwali mmexxija minn interessi kummerċjali juri għal darb’oħra li l-Gvern iħossu aktar leali lejn in-negozji kbar milli lejn l-interess pubbliku.

Sakemm din is-sitwazzjoni tibqa’ għaddejja, il-pubbliku se jkompli jiġi mbuttat ’il barra, u Kemmuna se tkompli tiġi mċaħħda mill-protezzjoni li jistħoqqilha sabiex ftit sinjuri privileġġjati jkunu jistgħu jkomplu jħaxxnu bwiethom.

Nappellaw biex din is-sitwazzjoni tinbidel immedjatament u nibqgħu lesti nieħdu aktar azzjoni kontra s-serq tal-ispazji pubbliċi u l-wirt tagħna minn interessi tar-regħba.