Malta: Disinformation report on Manoel Island concession narratives

In 2000, the Maltese government granted a private company a 99-year lease to develop two abandoned sites steeped in history on Malta’s north-eastern coast, including Manoel Island, a small island measuring just 0.3km² , home to a magnificent fort and lazzaretto and nestled within one of Malta’s natural harbours. Come 2025, the Manoel Island project would be the site of particular controversy and contention, as the concessionaire was accused of breaching the contract’s terms and public pressure built for the island to be returned to the public as a natural heritage park, leading the concessionaire to enter into talks with the government about rescinding the contract. While narratives surrounding the subject have mostly not been clear-cut disinformation, they are illustrative of the ways in which they can mold and misrepresent an issue.