HONOURS AND AWARDS 2005

XIRKA ĠIEĦ IR-REPUBBLIKA

NICHOLAS J CAUCHI  S.Ġ.

His Lordship Mgr. Nicholas Joseph Cauchi has received his Episcopal ordination 38 years ago.  In fact, he was appointed Apostolic Administrator for Gozo and Auxiliary Bishop with the title of Vico d’Augusto in 1967 by His Holiness Pope Paul VI.  

Bishop Cauchi was ordained priest in 1952 and after pursued his studies at the Università Gregoriana from where he graduated Ph.D., and at the Institute of Sociology in Rome from where he obtained the Licentiate in social science.  He provided a significant contribution to the education and formation of students at the Gozo Seminary where in 1955 he was appointed to the Chair of philosophy and sociology while in 1963 he was appointed Prefect of Studies.  

Bishop Cauchi is one of the founder members of the Social Action Movement and worked hard to organize the social weeks of the Movement in Gozo.  He was also a ‘moral advisor’ to the Cana Movement.  He had taken an active and important part in the institution of the then Gozo Civic Council.  

Bishop Cauchi is also a renowned preacher and writer.  His publications on religious  themes   include   Il-Kelma   tar-Ragħaj   (The  Word  of  the Shepherd), Ir-Reliġjon fid-Dinja (Religion in the World), and Omm il-Feddej (Mother of Christ).  He represented the Maltese Episcopal Conference in the synods of bishops held in 1974, 1994 and 2001.

THE NATIONAL ORDER OF MERIT

   HONORARY OFFICERS  

RONALD GALLIMORE  U.O.M.  

Ambassador Ronald Gallimore served as Ambassador at the Delegation of the European Union in Malta between January 2001 and January 2005 and he is therefore closely associated with the process of negotiations for Malta ’s accession to the European Union.  Ambassador Gallimore was undoubtedly instrumental in the successful outcome of these negotiations and moreover played a constructive and informative role prior to the democratic decision of the Maltese people in 2003 to accede to the European Union in the following year.  

Before his posting in Malta , Ambassador Gallimore held various other appointments with the European Commission, including responsibilities related to economic co-operation with the People’s Republic of China and to regional co-operation in the Mediterranean .  He also served as Counsellor in the Delegations of the European Union in Morocco and Bangkok .  

ATHINA MARTINOS  U.O.M.  

Mrs Athina Martinos is very closely linked to the growth and development of the Maltese Shipping Register.  As President of a major and reputable shipping company, the Thenamaris Group of Greece , Mrs Martinos was among the first of the primary international ship owners to express and indeed to tangibly show confidence in the still emerging Malta Shipping Register and to remain loyal for all these years despite the attractions of other jurisdictions.  

Mrs Martinos was instrumental in the transfer of the major part of the Thenamaris fleet to the Maltese Shipping Register, a decision which drew the attention of the international shipping community to the advantages of registering in Malta and to the long term strategy of the Malta Government to ensure the reputability of the Malta Flag.  Since then the Malta Flag has grown to become what is today’s one of the world’s largest Flag State .  

In the mid-1990’s, Mrs Martinos transferred control of her family’s shipping business to her three sons.  Nevertheless, she still retains a strong involvement in the Thenamaris Group now organized into three separate ship operating companies run by her sons who continue to back the Maltese Flag wholeheartedly. In fact the Thenamaris Group now has over seventy ships, involving a total of over 3 million gross tonnage, flying the Malta Flag.  

Mrs Martinos was awarded the Lloyds List/Propeller Club Lifetime Achievement award at the first Lloyds List Greek Shipping Awards held in November 2004.  This prestigious award was bestowed on her as an appreciation for her role in leading the Martinos family into shipping forty years ago and for her continuing active association with the industry until this very day.  

MEMBERS

ANTON AGIUS  M.O.M.  

Mr Anton Agius is undoubtedly one of Malta ’s leading sculptors who has nurtured a technical ability to work in a variety of forms and materials on scales ranging from small images to public monuments.  

Mr Agius studied art at the Malta Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce between 1951 and 1953 and continued his studies at the Malta Government School of Art.  In 1957 he won a Malta government scholarship to Rome where he studied at the Scuola Del Nudo dell’Associazione Artistica Internazionale, at the Accademia di Belle Arti and at the Scuola delle Arti Ornamentali.  In London he studied at St Martin’s School of Art , when he was awarded the National Diploma in Design, Modelling, Sculpture and Letter Cutting. He served as art teacher in secondary schools, lecturer at the University of Malta and member of the Malta Aesthetics Board.  

Anton Agius has been honoured with a number of prizes and awards for artistic achievement, including a First Prize in the Human Rights Art Exhibition held in 1968 at the Malta National Museum, the Onoroficenza Per Meriti by the Associazione Culturale Amici di Pan of Florence in 1979, the Artist of the Year award in 1980 and the Targa d’Oro by the Associazione Nazionale Artistica Culturale of Italy in 1982.  In 1999 he was awarded First Prize in the International Art Biennale of Malta .  

Anton Agius has participated in a number of exhibitions in Malta , London , Edinburgh , Italy and Lithuania .  His works are also to be found in private collections in many parts of the world.  

The bronze monuments of Anton Agius are to be found all over the island.  Among his major works are the Monument to the Worker at Msida, the Freedom Monument at Vittoriosa, the monument of Dun Mikiel Xerri and compatriots in Valletta, the monument commemorating the victims of the Sette Giugno riots in Valletta, the bust of Anton Buttigieg at Qala, Gozo, the statue of Manuel Dimech in Valletta and that of Guzè Ellul Mercer at Dingli.  

PHILIP FARRUGIA RANDON  M.O.M.  

Apart from his legal competence, Dr. Philip Farrugia Randon is also an accomplished artist and author.  Moreover, for a number of years, he was a well known producer and presenter of programmes on local radio and television.  

After graduating in law at the University of Malta , Dr. Farrugia Randon joined Barclays Bank, subsequently Mid-Med Bank, as a legal adviser and in 1996 he was appointed General Manager for legal affairs of Mid-Med Bank.  He is currently the Head of Group Legal Department as well as a Director of HSBC Bank Malta plc.  

Dr. Farrugia Randon studied restoration of oil paintings in Florence and he is in fact himself a keen watercolorist, having taken part in several art exhibitions both locally and abroad.  

Dr. Farrugia has written extensively on a wide range of topics and for an equally diverse range of audiences.  His legal publications include Aspects of Maltese Law for Bankers (1983) and The Word of the Court, a series of 13 volumes published in 1992.  His art publications include Caravaggio in Malta (1989), which he co-authored and edited, Turner’s Malta Watercolour (2000) and, more lately in 2004, Caravaggio Knight of Malta .  He has also written stories for children which he published in 2001 in the book Puttinu u Toninu, for which he was awarded the National Literary Award for Children’s Literature.  

Dr. Farrugia Randon has also held a number of public and NGO appointments, including that of Chairman of Public Broadcasting Services, council member of The St. John’s Co-Cathedral Foundation and President of the Cana Movement.  

CHARLES GRECH ORR  M.O.M.  

Mr. Charles Grech Orr, a solicitor by profession, can rightfully be considered as the doyen of Maltese journalism.  He has contributed immensely to the progress of journalism in Malta and, over a long number of years, he has mentored many aspiring journalists, especially in relation to the importance of sound journalistic ethics.  

Mr. Grech Orr started his journalistic career in 1947 at the age of twenty when he was still a law student and had just obtained his Diploma of Legal Procurator. After freelancing as a law reporter for The Times of Malta until he received his warrant of Legal Procurator in 1948, he was employed by the Allied Newspapers Group as an Assistant Night Editor and Night Editor.  He was subsequently appointed Features Editor, Chief Sub-Editor and Assistant Editor.  He also served as Malta correspondent of the Exchange Telegraph News Agency and, until 1965, as the accredited correspondent for Reuters News Agency and the New York Times. In 1965, at the age of thirty-seven, he became the Editor of The Times of Malta, a position he held for a full twenty-five years.  In this latter capacity, Mr. Grech Orr dutifully and to the best of his ability fought for the liberty of the Press and the right to freedom of expression.   

During the 1970’s, when the newspaper which he edited faced and indeed overcome many trials and tribulations, including the ransacking and burning of The Times Building, Mr. Grech Orr ensured that The Times did not miss a single publication.  

Mr. Grech Orr was also co-founder of the Malta Press Club, now the Institute of Maltese Journalists , in which he served as Vice-Chairman from 1990 to 1993.     

Mr. Grech Orr has only recently published his memoirs ‘In the Editor’s Chair’.  

SALV J STELLINI  M.O.M.  

Ambassador Salv Stellini has to be given a substantial part of the credit for the successful outcome of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, which was held in Malta in November 2005.  Ambassador Stellini, who is currently an Advisor to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and non-resident Ambassador to Portugal , in fact had been appointed by Government as Chairman of the Task Force which was charged with the organisation of this Meeting.

Ambassador Stellini is a career officer of the Malta Diplomatic Service.  He had joined the Service in 1966 and was initially posted at Malta ’s Permanent Representation to the United Nations in New York and at the Malta High Commission in London .  Between 1977 – 1981 he was seconded to the Commonwealth Secretariat in London , following which he moved to the private sector where he was involved in export marketing.  

Ambassador Stellini rejoined the Diplomatic Service in 1988 when he was appointed resident Ambassador to the United States of America and non-resident Ambassador to Canada .  During this period he was closely involved in the extensive preparations for the summit meeting held in Malta in November 1989 between the then Presidents of the United States of America and of the Soviet Union .  In 1991, Ambassador Stellini was posted to London as Malta ’s High Commissioner and as non-resident Ambassador to Ireland .  In 1996, Ambassador Stellini was appointed Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a position he held until his retirement from the Service in 2001.  

PAUL XUEREB  M.O.M.  

Dr. Paul Xuereb has, for over forty years, provided a major contribution to the development of library science in Malta , this apart from distinguishing himself in the field of culture.  

Dr. Xuereb graduated from the University of Malta as Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in 1955 and as a lawyer in 1958.  He pursued further studies at University College in London from where in 1967 he obtained a postgraduate diploma in librarianship.  Dr. Xuereb joined the academic staff of the University of Malta in l965 and was appointed University Librarian in 1967, following which he proceeded to develop the University Library into the foremost library of its kind in Malta and Gozo both from the professional and the technical aspects.  

Dr. Xuereb was a founder member of the Malta Library Association and was active in promoting the ideals of the Association in setting high standards for professional librarianship. He also represented the Malta Library Association at the international level, particularly in such bodies as the International Federation of Library Associations and the Commonwealth Library Association, of which he was President for a number of years. 

Dr. Xuereb was also a drama critic for the Sunday Times of Malta, a member of the Manoel Theatre Management Committee and President of the Friends of the Manoel Theatre.  He was also Chairman of the Printed Matter Appeals Board and member of the Malta Book Fair Committee.  

Dr. Xuereb is the author of various books which include Melitensia , Il -Poeżija bil-Malti (Maltese Poetry), A Bibliography of Maltese Bibliographies, and The Manoel Theatre: A Short History.  He contributed “ Malta ” articles to the Encyclopaedia of Library and Information Science (1976) and to the World Encyclopaedia of Library and Information Science (1993).
 

MIDALJA GHALL-QADI TAR-REPUBBLIKA

CARMEN TESTA  M.Q.R.  

Mrs. Carmen Testa is a shining example of selfless dedication to the Maltese migrant community of West Sunshine , Australia , in particular the women of that community.  Mrs. Testa migrated to Australia in the early 1950’s and, even in those early days, she was instrumental in helping Maltese migrants to overcome their language and literacy barriers.  

After retiring from a teaching career in 1985, Carmen Testa founded the Western Region Maltese Community Council Women’s Group, which is an organisation dedicated to eliminating isolation among Maltese women in the Western suburbs of Melbourne.  Under Mrs. Testa’s leadership, this Group works with women who, because of different cultural values and experiences, or a limited grasp of English, feel isolated from the mainstream community and the services it provides.  Without this help and encouragement, many of the women involved in this group would have great difficulty in gaining access to important family and other welfare services.  

Over the years, Mrs. Testa has been involved in many other voluntary activities, including acting as Secretary for the Maltese/Australian Welfare Association, for the Maltese Elderly Citizens of West Sunshine and for the St. Paul ’s Elderly Support Group.  She is also a Presenter on Community Radio, promoting broadcasting in the Maltese language.  

Mrs. Testa’s voluntary community work has already been recognised extensively. Apart from other awards, she has received the Manoel de Vilhena Cultural Award in 1994, held under the patronage of the Prime Minister of Malta, the Council of the Ageing Senior Achievers Award in 1996 and the Order of Australia Medal in 1998.