Six Maltese had rights breached over seized land, European court rules

A delay in granting compensation to six Maltese nationals who had been deprived of land in "abbar breached their right to have the property protected, the European Court of Human Rights ruled.
The case was referred to the Strasbourg-based Court by Miriam Galea, Grace Borg, Emanuel Cassar, Joseph Cassar, Annemarie Despott and Carmen Zammit late in 2013.
They said they were the holders of the utile dominium of a portion of land, whose direct owner was the State. The land in question included a snack bar that was rented to third parties. In 1965, part of the land was declared to be required for a public purpose.
The shop was eventually demolished and a civic centre and service roads were built. It was later decided that a new shop would be built by the government. This was leased to the same third party that used to run the snack bar.
The applicants instituted constitutional redress proceedings in March 2010 complaining that their land had not been taken in the public interest. They asked the court to annul the declaration in respect of their property, order its return to them and award adequate redress.
In mid-2012, the Civil Court (First Hall), in its constitutional jurisdiction,...

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