MaltaMedia.com

Maltese children’s characters at EU exhibition

Posted on October 2nd, 2009

An exhibition of children’s characters from the European Union was held on Place Jourdan in the centre of Brussels. Present among these characters was Malta’s ‘Gaħan’.

The exhibition was entitled ‘27 in 23’ – that is 27 characters in 23 European languages. The director of the exhibition is Mr. Kiko de la Rosa who is from Spain.

The inclusion of ‘Gaħan’ was the idea of Ambassador Gaetan Naudi, then the Maltese Ambassador in Madrid, who had also donated a book, prominently displayed during the exhibition, of Maltese children’s tales by George Mifsud-Chircop.

Other typical children’s characters coined by Maltese authors Charles Casha and Trevor Zahra, whose books were also passed on to Mr Kiko de la Rosa, are expected to be featured in future editions of the exhibition when it tours Spanish schools.

The Ambassador of Malta in Belgium, Pierre Clive Agius, toured the exhibition together with many Belgian children. Ambassador Agius said that the exhibition, grouping so many children’s characters under one roof, personified the spirit of Europe and showed that diversity is not a stumbling block but on the contrary, a richness and a source of pride. He also spoke about the uniqueness of Maltese culture and the Maltese language.