This is the school at which Mark Vella Gera taught
Published:
April 23, 2008 at 8:00pm
Let’s clear up any misconceptions that it might have been St Michael’s independent school. It was this school (description taken from its website):
‘St Michael School is a Catholic private secondary school run by the Society of Christian Doctrine M.U.S.E.U.M. The school caters for boys between the ages of 11 and 16.’
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This man used to teach at this school too some years ago.
Herbie – “This school too” being which? Are you referring to St Michael’s School in tal-Balal?
Please clarify. Thanks.
Thank you for clearing that up but please be a bit more careful next time. When you exposed him you said:
“Mark Vella Gera was sentenced to two years in prison, suspended for four years, for sexually propositioning primary-school boys at St Michael’s independent school”
Independent school does not bring church school to mind and as my children go to the private school my heart skipped a couple of beats.
Anyway, thanks again for clearing that up.
He also thought at another St Michaels. The one in San Gwann, just before Vibes
David Buttigieg – See Herbie’s comment above, which is a little bit cryptic, and which I asked him to clarify. There’s also a couple of comments by a girl called “Rach” somewhere on this blog, stating that he taught her in Tal-Balal. Maybe he taught at both. He has spread his tentacles pretty far, after all.
Yes he taught at both the latest being at tal-Balal
It looks like he likes to haunt the St Michael’s Schools, then – St Michael’s in Qormi, in Sta Venera (or would the Qormi/Sta Venera ones be the same?), AND tal-Balal.
This is what happens when these things are kept under wraps, these people keep spreading their tentacles.
Herbie – Yes. If St Michael’s MUSEUM School in Qormi sacked him for the same reason – as somebody else implied on this blog – then I fail to see how they (the MUSEUM) can go on preaching about do-gooding when they allowed this pervert to infiltrate children’s schools further, and this time teaching religion to boot! (Apparently, he taught English at the boys’ school.)
Amanda- the unfortunate thing about all this is that is very difficult to identify such perverts before the damage is done. There is no interviewing techniques or tests that can identify child molesters or sex molesters (maybe the presence of a goatee ;)).
Another point is the fact that rotten apples are found everywhere and it is unfair to put everyone in the same basket. In general, St Michael School and its staff have (and are still doing) a very excellent job in the education of their pupils (the same goes for the majority of MUSEUM members)
Chris – The MUSEUM’s failure here – if I have understood the sequence of events correctly – was in sacking him without, if such was the case, reporting any wrongdoings of his to the police. (I am assuming that the reason he was sacked from St Michael’s MUSEUM school in Qormi, where he taught English, was because of a similar incident. I do not believe that it was a one-off incident, seeing how he has spread his tentacles where he could easily prey on children – going as far as organising sleepovers in Gozo and trips to Sicily in the name of a weather club.) He was then free to get another job with children, which, apparently, he did – as a religion teacher at St Michael’s School in Tal-Balal (according to various posts on this blog).
I am assuming that the court case of yesterday pertains to his “cyber”/SMS contact with pupils at the latter school, The Times online yesterday having reported that he was a religion teacher at a private school.
It is true that “rotten apples are found everywhere” but if he had done something similar at the school in Qormi, hence his being sacked, then they failed to protect other children by not taking the matter further.
Take a look at this:
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20080423/local/cyberspace-rules
The Times are now actually saying that his name was not released “to protect the name of the school”. (They did not use the words “private school”, as they had in the mysteriously vanishing online report of the 22.04.08.)
Should not more consideration be given to his possible prey? (He runs a (weather) club for children aged 11 – 15, for God’s sake, even taking the kids on sleepovers to Gozo and trips to Sicily – See http://www.maltaweatherclub.com/activities.htm)
I expect that the school where this perpetrator was teaching takes a position, both to assure to the pupils and their families that the school is safe, and also to safeguard their own reputation. Being a church school makes the matter worse.
Well done for naming and exposing this insane guy publicly.
Parents have the right and the obligation to know with whom they are trusting their children.
I’m an ex-student of the school in question. And you have no idea of the dedication and amount of effort they put in their work. So please don’t even dare to critise the school or pass any judgement on the school!! Not to mention the fact that if you browse in the school’s website Mr. Vella Gear is not a member of the staff anymore.
I knew Mr. Vella Gera as well, apart from being an excellent teacher, he’s a very good friend and not the monster that you’re depicting him.
Everyone does mistakes even though his mistake is particularly grievous, it’s up to the court to pass judgement – this not our role!
In my opinion, justice has been done (the man has been given his sentence, afterall) so please, now stop all these personal attacks!
I think that some, aall most of you are misinformed or not informed at all. I am a Past Pupil of saint Michaels School and a member of the Society of Christian Doctrine, and I know this case inside out. First and foremost he does not work More at St. Michael, from when there where the allegations that there could be something going on. it was very immature, that someone published his name… if the courts say it is not the case then why should one shout his name allover the place. The name and other information was not published to save guard te identity of the children and youths concerned. Parents would have Known in a better way rather tthan this… I may assure you that the members of the society of Christian Doctrine working at St. Michaels School qormi are very dedicated and serious in there work, and, I believe, that the only reason that they teach for is because they believe it is there vocation.
@ Paul Borg
A paedophile IS a monster. Period. He should thank his lucky stars he got a suspended sentence.
If he got an actual prison term he would really have a hard time behind the prison walls. There is a hierarchy among criminals and child molesters are the lowest of the low.
A “mistake” is when one forgets to buy milk, and not when one preys on children, Mr. Borg.
And yes, he has been found guilty. But is the punishment meted out enough in the light of what he did? Do you call this a deterrent? I am not advocating that he be hung drawn and quartered here. Just that a punishment has to be effective, and make other would be predators think twice before doing something similar.
The person targeted those who could not defend themselves. Our society should saveguard our children from people like him. And whilst you may find him a friend, and may I applaud your friendship BTW, I would prefer if he keeps his distance from young members of our society.
@Paul Borg
I am mostly annoyed at the fact that name was unpublished and that Vella Gera is still organising meetings/courses wherein he is inviting kids to attend. On 20th May 2008 he posted an advert on his forum on weathermalta.com while another invitation has been circulated on this blog.
Personal attacks do hurt but rest assured that repetative abuse on kids goes a couple of steps further…at least in my book.
Gakbu
You wrote that you know the case inside out. Fine.
When was the school going to go public on the matter? The culprit is till now still in contact with kids (his website is still up, fishing for prey?) Just because he was removed from the school, whilst keeping the school image squeaky clean, does not help in preventing his access to children.
When exactly would this “Parents would have Known in a better way rather tthan this” have happened?
And “better” for whom?
The parents?
The children?
The school?
The predator?
@ Vanni
I respect the law and have full faith in the law. Mr. Vella Gera has been awarded the maximum punishment by the court in terms of the law.
He has his teaching warrant, suspended – and rightly so. So the court is keeping him away from children.
Mr. Vella Gera admitted all charges brought against him – so that he recognises his errors – A monster never adimts he’s done anything wrong, since in his perverse mind what he does is ‘good’
@Gakbu
I’m sure that the vast majority of MUSEUM members are dedicated and trustworthy. I know lots of members and ex-members of this society, and I can assure you that even if someone has left this society ages ago, the upbringing he has received as regards morality and moral values as such, continues to show.
Obviously I’m generalising here; there are MUSEUM members and ex-members who are bad apples, and this happens in all types of social groups.
As we have already discussed elsewhere, institutions or social groups who come into contact with under-age children are thrown in a bad light when such things happen. THIS IS NOT FAIR. That is why I am in favour of publishing these perverts’ names. If a MUSEUM member has somehow broken the law, it’s himself/herself that is wrong, not MUSEUM per se.
That is why in such situation:
the institution should cut off the defaulting member from its ranks publicly and not try to quiten things up.
Civil society should publish the names of these perverts, so as to make it more difficult for them to hurt any more.
@Gakbu and others
I think I understand how you’re feeling at the moment about this.
I have spent 5 incredibly happy secondary school years at St. Paul’s Missionary College at Rabat. To this day, I have very fond memories of these times, and of the many priests that have shaped up my being. I think that most ex-students could share my views that we were reared up to be open-minded to all facets of life.
Unlike what most people can think, we were very free to discuss and withold views that weren’t at face value very Christian. I still remember long-winded discussions about, amongst other things, Communism, anarchism, pornography, safe-sex and sex outside marriage, homosexuality, etc (and this was 25 years ago)
Being a very small school, we were very close-knit, and even when we left school and pursued different careers, meeting one of the priests even many years after I left always left me amazed on how much they cared about each and every individual.
Having said that, I was extremely shocked when a couple of years ago, I heard reports of priests who where once my teachers and guides, who were accused and indicted of peadopholia. To be frank, I spent days and nights wondering whether in those days at school, I was unknowingly the victim of such people. And this emotion was shared by other ex-students I still encounter or work with.
I was extremely affected by the mention of one priest in particular; when I was a student there, this guy was one of the teachers for 5 whole years, and at the time, we were always puzzled how this guy was still a priest; he was so in love with women! And now, many years after, we hear that this priest (an incredibly intelligent one at that) is accused of ‘playing around’ with young boys!
Bottom line is (1) people change, and I am now at peace in myself that although at the time, this guy was very normal, too normal, or at least he showed us to be normal, in actual fact, he has now changed and his acts should be punished. (2) I still have great respect and fondness of SPMC and its priests, and appreciate the sterling work they do in their profession, both in Malta and as missionaries in other countries.
I condemn these priests who allegedly did these horrible things but do not condemn SPMC.
Paul Borg – Unless you are Mark Vella Gera himself “in disguise”, then I sincerely fail to see how you could refer to him as “an excellent teacher” and “a good friend”. An excellent teacher is not one who preys on his charges; neither is he one who actively seeks out the company (be it virutal or otherwise) or such charges. As for referring to him a “a good friend”, there’s a Maltese saying which goes “ma’ min rajtek, xebbahtek”. No further comment about that.
Justice has absolutely NOT been served. A suspended sentence is nothing, especially when the court has banned the media from publishing his name. Mark Vella Gera is free to prowl the internet, the weather club, etc with parents being in total oblivion as to his “conviction”.
The law is an ass.
Gakbu – You are more-or-less confirming my suspicions, that this was not the first time that Mark Vella Gera did something of the sort, if you knew about such a case at the MUSEUM school. From what I gather, he taught English there.
This case concerns, apparently, a Mark Vella Gera (of whom there seems to be only one – good thing he’s not a Joe Borg) who taught RELIGION at a PRIVATE school. Quite a few people have confirmed that yes, a Mark Vella Gera taught religion at St Michael’s School in Tal-Balal, hence the confusion.
If my suspicions are correct, then you could hardly say that the people at the MUSEUM school are “very dedicated and serious in their work”, because if you knew about a similar case to this one their, then they should have gone to the police about it, and not left him free to prey on other children (just as the court has done, incidentally).
@ Amanda Mallia
You missed my point completely.
1. I’m Paul Borg NOT Mark Vella Gera in disguise.
2. My experience with Mr. Vella Gera was a positive one. To me he was an excellent teacher and a good friend.
Wikipedia defines Friendship as “a term used to denote co-operative and supportive behavior between two or more humans.” Hence, being a friend to Mr. Vella Gera means aiding him in this difficult moment. No matter the offences he has committed, I cannot forget my positve experience with him.
Paul Borg – The court is not keeping him away from children. If it were, then how do you explain these:
http://www.homeworkelephant.co.uk/SchoolsByTypeIndependentCatholicSecondaryforBoys.shtml
http://www.peda.net/veraja/ipm/esp?vp=singlemodule&m_id=26139&sp=thred&t_id=13723
http://worsleyschool.net/communicate/visitors
If the court has banned the media from publishing Mark Vella Gera’s name, then he is free to prey on other children at least on the above sites, and – seeing that he’s spread to Canada, the UK and Finland – you could imagine how this man’s mind works.
Re Paul Borg’s remarks, I’ve often wondered whether Malta is the only place where committing a crime is classed as making a mistake (zbalja) and then translated into English in a way that doesn’t make sense at all (‘he made a mistake’). As Vanni pointed out, making a mistake – in English, at least – does not have the same meaning as committing a crime.
Also, I am astonished that there are so many people who don’t realise that sexual attraction to children is a form of sexuality, like being attracted to men or women. There is no ‘help’ for it; there is only deliberate avoidance. Putting a man who is attracted to children in a room full of them is about as sensible as giving an alcoholic, reformed or otherwise, a job behind a bar counter.
Paul Borg
when saying that people at St Michaels are dedicated, I was never referring to MVG.
He went against the school ethics and used to chat with students on MIRC which in does days was popular. He used to call us names in class and ridicule the fact that I didn’t do very well in English. When I had any queries I used to go directly to the Head of school. He(the head) was always there to listen to my problems and always took action.
When a teacher was told that MVG was chatting with students and saying very nasty and sexually explicit things, action was immediately taken and he was fired from school and sent away from the Society of Christian Doctrine.
As you all surely do not know, the first reason why a member of the MUSEUM will be expelled is child abuse.
When saying we are unprepared, I can assure you that you are wrong. After the catechism classes we stay for an hour or more for what we call the assignment, in which we study various subjects and once a week we study pedagogy. As most of the member are teacher with a degree from the university of Malta they teach each other from there experience and knowledge. The Society is given the permission from the Archbishop himself to teach catechism.
On the fact that MVG news about him being fired from St. Micheal qormi, it was left private for the good of the students.Please note that he has also been baned from all church schools.
@Gakbu – I appreciate your sentiments, but surely you realise that sacking Mark Vella Gera after it became known that he was saying ‘nasty and sexual things’ to his pupils in Internet chatrooms is the equivalent of sweeping the garbage out of your house and into the street, saying that you have done your bit? You must realise that people like this move on to fresh pastures, and this is made all the more easy for them if their identity is deliberately concealed. Malta is such a small society, and yet there is such silence around paedophilia, and paedophiles are invisible. Maltese parents, so protective of their children in all other spheres, think nothing of handing them over to the temporary custody of men about whom they know nothing at all.
Gakbu – You said (as several others have inferred) “When a teacher was told that MVG was chatting with students and saying very nasty and sexually explicit things, action was immediately taken and he was fired from school and sent away from the Society of Christian Doctrine.”
That just about goes to show how serious and dedicated the MUSEUM people are – zilch! They should not have left this man free enough (with a clean sheet) to find another teaching job. He’s still got various links on various internet sites for contact with children, albeit under a guise of a weather club, homework help, etc.
You also said “On the fact that MVG news about him being fired from St. Micheal qormi, it was left private for the good of the students.Please note that he has also been baned from all church schools.” Why church schools only, I ask? To protect the Curia, or the man himself? (no consideration was given to ANY other children. For that alone, Gakbu, with that sort of reasoning, no wonder these things continue to happen. Shame on you too, for knowing, and for not reporting him TO THE POLICE.
Paul Borg: The courts have removed Mark Vella Gera’s warrant to teach children but banned publication of his name. How does that translate into ‘keeping him away from children’? You may feel sentimental about your friendship with this man, but that need not cloud your view over what he has done. People are not ‘out to get him’. They’re out to protect children. A man who takes advantage of children can never be a good teacher.
Gakbu: “it was very immature, that someone published his name… if the courts say it is not the case then why should one shout his name allover the place.”
It is precisely because the courts banned publication that lots of shouting is necessary – and not just about the name of the man who exploited his advantage over the children in his care.
Spreading the word around is currently the only way to minimise this man’s contact with children. It’s not an ideal system, it’s not even properly effective in the long run, yet you are shocked not that this sort of thing can and will happen again, but that the perpetrator has been named.
Dear Daphne I recall that i once saw you you where walking at in with Babu with a cap in your head and some hear in front of your face. When you passed by I realised that it was you. Yo smilled at some of the kids I had taken there to play foortball. I also noticed that some of your friends touched the head of the kid that was a goaler, maybe they are also pedophial? I think they are not. But answeing your above statment: the only action that they could have taken was that there was no way to procide… he did every thing out of school hours and school premisis. Out of the resoponsablity of the school. The funny thing is thata private school just assumed him as a teacher without doing some research on him and on his backround.
I also think that you must get to know better the society of christian Doctrine. I think that you may have some misconceptions about it. I also think that you are anti-Cathlics.
An other amazing fact that I think you have not considered is that 90% of child abuse is done at home. You must have known this, you’re so bright and talk so much. I can also assure you that the only reason that I attend andteach at the society of christian Doctrine is because I am insane.
Yes I spend 5 hours a day at the centre and and have nearly no free time. I Am insane for God. But I think you woun’t understand.
Daphne Thank you For calling us unsane because we are!
Best wishes
[Moderator – I’m guessing that the subject you teach doesn’t involve reading or writing.]
SORRY I did not correct my English, and also have some punctuation mistakes.
Gakbu – You said “The funny thing is thata private school just assumed him as a teacher without doing some research on him and on his backround.”
I think that the “funny thing” is that a society that preaches good did anything but, leaving a criminal free to fish for other prey.
Gakbu: Your English and punctuation are less of a problem that your absurd logic. The school’s hour and premises are not the issue. The school knew and did nothing about it except attempt to protect its own name. Banning a paedophile from teaching in church schools does nothing to protect children generally. The correct course of action was to go to the police. Thankfully, some parents recognised that. It is a disgrace that you, a teacher, do not.
Gakbu,
Your attempt at damage control is not working. Just because people are questioning the school’s modus operandi, where it seemed that it felt that it only had to protect ITS students (and cynical me thinks it more likely its name), there is no need to call us anti clerical. What comes next? Excomunicating us?
Gakbu: The best way for MUSEUM to defend its social reputation is to act in the interests of the wider society rather than just its own. Then there would be no need for you to leap to the society’s defence with arguments that only rubbish its reputation further. For the sake of MUSEUM – although I am no fan of the organisation – I hope that your views are not typical of its teachers.
@ Corinne
To be fair on Museum or whatever, this could have happened in any other school, and I suspect that we would have seen much of the same cover up.
Daphne wrote something elsewhere that I found extremely interesting, and very true. Most maltese are brought up to accept things coming from elders (betters??) blindly. Just because teacher says something, than it has to be true. That teacher is a perv makes his crime more serious, and a religious to boot. Thank God that my kids were born rebels, and encouraged to question everything.
As an old student of St. Michael’s (Qormi) I’m saddened to find that my old school was dragged into this outrageous affair.
I’d like to state, without the slightest hesitation, that the staff of St. Michael are dedicated, hard-working individuals who all have the best interest of their students at heart.
However, I am NOT about to blasphimise by saying that ‘Everyone does mistakes’ … what Mark Vella Gera did was the most disgusting and shocking news I have heard in a long, long time.
Speaking personally, I hated the man from the first day he started teaching me. Reasons ranged from favouritism, cruelty, lack of consideration for other people’s problems, among other things.
I am pleased that justice has dealt this man a blow, and only hope that the pervert will read this comment and realise what a twisted, evil thing he has become.
PS: I simply plead with people that you do not blacklist the school. It is a fine school, and I was proud to be a student there. It should not suffer for one man’s sins.
I`m finding this all so hard to understand. What I have understood doesn`t make sense so I wonder if I have got the wrong end of the stick –
This is what I have understood
1. MVG used to teach English at the MUSUEM school St.
Michael. I presume they checked him out before they
employed him.
2. They found out that he was using MIRC to say `nasty
and sexually explicit things` and fired him
3. The MUSUEM didn`t feel any responsibility towards
other children and left him free to carry on his
unsavoury behaviour. If for some strange reasoning
they wanted to keep the whole story `private` they
didn`t even warn MVG to keep away from children in
the future and keep track of him to make sure he
complies.
4. The second St. Michael school didn`t check why he
had left the first St. Michael school. I refuse to
believe they did and the MUSUEM kept quiet about the
real reason he was fired.
5. His sentence is the maximum permitted by law.
6. If his SMS`s didn`t thankfully find their way to the
Police who knows how this story would have ended.
7. If I hadn`t read his name on this blog I might have
sent my child to one of his camps.
8. The MUSUEM who dedicate their lives to teaching religion
to children and forming their characters just washed
their hands of the whole affair. I presume they sleep
at night and don`t feel any guilt.
Please tell me I have misunderstood the whole story.
@ Paul Vassallo
I’ll take your word that it is a fine school, but it acted despicably. Agreed it is not its fault that it had a bad apple, and it was right in getting rid of him when his misdeeds came to light. What irks me is that it failed to protect other students who did not go to the same school. In my eyes, its actions put it, if not on the same level as Mark Vella Gera, than just a short step under him. In making sure that it did not attract any adverse publicity, it adopted a very unchristian washing of hands.
But again, I do suspect that most other schools would have acted in like manner. After all it is a typical Maltese idea to sweep the dust from in front of one’s door, and to hell where it ends up, at least my side is clean.
I don’t want to be misunderstood – I am shocked of Mr. Vella Gera’s acts; however, he was a good teacher – VERY strict (No doubt Paul Vassallo and Gakbu will agree) and in moment of need, he was there to help me out.
Maybe I was lucky to have witnessed the best part of MVG.
As regards his ‘mistake’ – you’re right daphne, I did use the wrong word. He committed a crime (a grevious one) for which he has been convicted. That says it all.
” He committed a crime (a grevious one) for which he has been convicted”
Convicted, but still able to repeat the offence.
BTW, has anybody here considered what this judgement means to those brave kids who came forward? They have plucked up courage, and recounted what happened. The court slaps the fella on the wrist, and all is fine and dandy? NO, and NO again. These children have a right to see that their act of courage did not go in vain. The sentence was nothing more than an insult to their courage. And further to this. Will the next abused child bother to tell if he sees that the courts are not there to protect and punish? But who gives a …. . They are only kids after all.
Paul Borg: I assume you mean he was strict in controlling his pupils. That’s one of the problems with paedophiles. They’re in control. The children they pick on are not.
Paul Vassallo – You said “I’d like to state … that the staff of St. Michael are dedicated, hard-working individuals who all have the best interest of their students at heart.”
The emphasis seems to be on the “their students”. As I have said repeatedly, sacking this teacher was no solution to the problem, which is that this man was left free to fish for other prey, which he ultimately did.
Marika Mifsud – You seem to have understood the sequence of events the way I did.
Like you and I following this case closely, there’s also the man himself. He’s doing his utmost to cover up his tracks on internet now … Refer to my comments under “One example of why child molesters should be exposed” on this blog.
His name has even disappeared from the court section of http://www.gov.mt, though that may be for legal reasons.
The more parents (and organisations) know about this man’s history, the less chance there is of him preying on innocent kids, though with internet, there’s no stopping him.
Vanni – Yes, the law is an ass; the people who continue to protect this pervert are moreso
@Vanni
I agree completely with your last comment… as an educator I’m ashamed that this fella was once a part of the education system! When I read the article last night I immediately started jotting down notes on how I should approach my kids the day after! I gave them a speech on how dangerous it is to chat online, to give your mobile number to strangers and to other adults..(especially if they are not related to them)and whenever they feel uneasy about something they should first and foremost talk to their PARENTS..not even to me or to any other teacher and/or adult person.
It is a shame that although the children and their parents went to the police and authorities, the final sentence was (in my opinion) an insult to them! a slap on the wrist is nothing!I am a parent too and if something like this should happen to one of my kids( may God forbid that)I really do not know how I will react, after seeing justice has failed us!
I am quite emotional when it comes to children as in their innocence they DO NOT KNOW BETTER!!!! so it is true, for the majority of kids what adults tell them IT MUST BE TRUE!!
I for one teach them that they should think, think think!!! whatever bother them they should talk to their parents….unfortunately then you meet children whose parents are no good doers and have never time to talk to their children. This is how a child in need of confiding personal things to a parent ends up talking to a teacher, councellor… out of 100 good teachers you find that odd being that destroys the life/ or lives of children.
This case was handled with utmost disregard for children…PUNISH the monster and punish him good!!!!
Castration might be a solution :)
What did you expect the school to do?
Se mai, pending proceedings the court should have suspended his warrant to further protect the well being of the children. Again I ask the question, if such a high ranking institution did not make such interim action – what was expected of a school?
@ Paul Borg – the law courts don’t seem to take it seriously. 2 yrs in prison is not enough for a pedophile(as long as the other prisoners do their job).
Firstly and foremost he has a mental disorder, which should be dealt with by very professional specialised psychiatrists, second to none is the fact that the law should protect children from such a monster and from eventual other incidents after his 2-yr term in Kordin.
The school’s role should be to report and condemn such a person’s behaviour. Maybe the school doesn’t do it publicly, but it should reassure the students and their families. Unfortunately this person’s behaviour reflects badly on the school where he was working, though probably other teachers are genuinly dedicated to their job (as much as MVG was) so the school’s authority should restore the Safety and Trust.
Having read through all the comments on this blog – and my hat goes off to you for this sterling piece of work – it is high time that Malta starts a sex-offender list. A criminal registration document was hinted at in the PN manifesto. Incidents such as this show the dire need for this, as well as an overhaul of the sentences for such monsters.
What deeply disturbs me is that it seems that this man was able to continue preying on children and that, thanks in no small part to the silence of the church. Seems to be a recurring theme for this institution. funny, they scream to protect the unborn, yet apparently when you hit five years old you are just fair game.
When the magistrate sentenced Mr Vella Gera, was he aware of his history and that he had been fired from other schools? If so, how on earth could he have given a suspended sentence?
If not, then those school administrators should be sick with guilt. Can they sleep at night knowing that they said nothing whilst a sexual predator moved to new pastures? Perhaps they were following the example set by their bishop – say sorry and it will all be OK… Or maybe they were concerned about the impact of a ‘scandal’ on the school’s income?
Little lives have been changed forever and that is tragic. And of course there will be knock on effects and repurcussions on those poor kids. Mr Vella Gera might leave the country to escape the outcry, but those kids are going to carry this incident for the rest of their lives.
When is this country going to wake up and smell the coffee? Child abuse is a sickening crime perpetrated by predators. As one comment noted, they are considered to be at the bottom of the food chain in prison – despised by all. Yet this country seems to have a phobia in naming them.
Enough is enough.
I sincerely hope that this blog opens a few eyes and the public outcry generates enough interest to grease the wheels of power to finally get something done.
After all, it is children we are talking about here. If we can’t protect them, then what the hell are we all doing?
What if this pervert abused my/your child? The least we would expect is a severe punishment from our law courts (although this would not repair mental damaged caused to the abused child)
After all these disgusting actions, this guy is now as free as you and me!
What does our law expect us to do if he had abused your child and you see him strolling on the Sliema seafront…offer him a beer?
Come on!
I wish to comment once more on the courage the kids in question showed in reporting all that happened to their parents/school staff etc. Let us not forget to commend them on such a brave act. They were certain they would find support from those around them and not afraid to speak up.
Let us not make it more difficult for them to continue with their life and education. According to me the real pity is that in this tiny island, where word gets around so quickly anyway, we do not get the words from the horse’s mouth. It is all out in the open anyway and so I do not understand why court orders are issued to stop those involved giving the correct version of things.
@ Antonella
“The school’s role should be to report and condemn such a person’s behaviour. Maybe the school doesn’t do it publicly..”
Who says it hasn’t done so? If matter (reports etc) was private then we don’t know about it. I’m pretty sure the school has done everything in its power to protect its students and their families.
As MVG used to teach in a Church School and was also a MUSEUM member, the Head of St Michael’s School was duty-bound to report him to the Response Team of the Curia. I wonder if MVG was in fact investigated and, if in the affirmative, what were the conclusions of the Response Team. From what I gather, investigations made by the Response Team are locked in the Secret Archives of the Curia and they are kept under wraps for ever and ever. Amen.
Paul Borg: If we don’t know about the matter, then neither do you – yet you say you’re pretty sure the school has done everything. What is the basis of that claim, other than your instinct?
Antonella
You said
“Unfortunately this person’s behaviour reflects badly on the school where he was working”
I totally disagree on this. I assume that when MVG was employed he was asked for a C.V. and references. I am positive that on his references there were no negative comments stating that he was asked to resign or was fired from another school because he abused or sexually harrassed children
If there were such indications or hints, St. Michael’s foundation “tal-balal” would not have employed him.
So please let’s not blame the School. I also know for a fact that the school is actually helping these children/victims.
@Paul Borg. Do you know whether the school did take an official position regarding MVG case? If so, pls inform us.
Daphne,
I work as a court journalist for media.link and fully agree with you. If this happened in England, skynews would have given us some good pics of the guy and even a vox pop with residents living nearby.
Such people should be named and shamed. And us court journalists are fed up being told what to write by some Magistrates and Judges.
Ray Abdilla
Comments range from those who say MVG is a pervert and deserves to be branded for the rest of his life while others say he must be mentally ill and should be given medical assistance.
If you fire an employee for helping himself to the petty cash, I understand that you might agree to letting him start afresh and not mentioning the fact to future empolyers but surely no responsible person would fire a person for any form of child abuse and keep quiet about it thus letting him carry on the abuse somewhere else.
I hadn`t thought about the Curia Response Team – who knows if they were advised. If they weren`t I imagine they must be livid.
Ray Abdilla – There’s another way to go about it.
Apparently, the court ban is on the publication OF HIS NAME. Leading readers to the person’s identity IN A ROUNDABOUT WAY (mentioning Googling of certain words, etc to reach a particular website, for example) would not be breaking the law, and yet the purpose of naming the guy to keep him from preying on other kids would have been served.
Incidentally, once the ban is on the publication OF HIS NAME, what’s stopping the media from displaying photos/posters of the man with a heading, instead of with his name? Extreme, maybe, but still legal.
Do all you can to keep this man from spreading his tentacles further. He’s already got them in Finland, the UK and Canada at the very least, as you can see on various links posted on this blog. And yet, the law protects HIM, but not our kids.
As I wrote earlier today, the pervert in question used to be screend on TV. Will not give the station name for the moment but I just hope that the programme producers will drop him out for future features.
Let us all lobby for a drastic change in the law and hence introduce harsher penalties for all kinds of sex offences. And offenders who act on teenagers of 18 & a younger age should get a min of 20 years – and no discounts pls if we get the Pope or Queen – enough to have their toy shrink by time.
Let us protect society from these perverts – all politicians please note.
All this makes you realise what a powerful tool the Internet is.
Joseph – You will not divulge the station’s name publically. Do society a favour, and contact the TV station yourself. If he is appearing on a pre-8 o’clock programme, then you are morally obliged to do so.
He should not be on a children’s program, if that’s what he is on.
I’m pretty sure that the school took a position in the matter through an interpretation of the facts.
The fact that he was not a member of the staff anymore is one thing. And from the limited knowledge on the procedure used in the Education Department – any school is obliged to make a report to relative the authority, and such report must be a private one – in order for the authority to investigate the case.
Cuti,
In no way I blame the school, most teachers are highly and genuinly dedicated, in the same manner that ‘socji tal-muzew’ are, but it MIGHT suffer an eventu
Giannella Caruana Curren clarified many points in a report issued just a few hours ago regarding the school’s position
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20080426/letters/cyber-abuse-case
This is what I was expecting from the school.
[Moderator – That letter only adds to the confusion by withholding the name of the school and only telling half the story.]
This is an appeal to anyone (including several people who have posted comments on this blog) who knows about any of Mark Vella Gera’s immoral “activities”, past or present, however small or irrelevant they may seem, to get in touch with the Vice Squad (telephone number 112).
Also, if you know about any other victims or places / internet sites/domains from where such activities where carried out, it is important to forward such information to the Vice Squad.
This appeal is not being made by the police, but I know that they would welcome the information. The more information they have, the safer it is for our children.
Thank you.
Gakbu, perhaps your English is not so good cause MVG taught you and he had his mind on anything but English !!! (this is just tongue in cheek) also, I was also an SDC member (socju) for 5 years. Kindly stop being apologetic and look at the truth (something you can’t do from within the narrow mindedness of your society). I know how such a society operates, and I only got to realize all this once my blinkered vision fell away. Your society NEVER took serious steps – they just shooed him away. Did this man ever appear before the Curia commission set upo specifically for such cases ? No he did not make a mistake – he committed a grave grave sin. And please, leave any medieval sermonson forgiveness to yourself and those like you.
The society, in my opinion, sinned too by not doing enough to protect prospective victims.
Gakbu, pleas, hallina nghixu
Gakbu,
yes, I also attended the assignment (assenjatur) – you also know very well mate how despotic your society is, or haven’t you realized yet ? Then how come all posts are rotated except for those of the superior general ? Believe me, there’s enough material to start a new blog here, believe me.
We had our superior who made all our life hell, and the people at the top only realized when six of us resigned within one year.
Gakbu, I hope for your own sakeyou open your eyes – if in the future you feel your calling is somewhere else (especially in marriage) I hope you won’t be told by the top hierarchy that you’ll be spending eternity in hell in return for a lifetime of pleaseure !
If you know your history well, you know how your Dun Gorg ran away from ex-members, somthing still happening in 2008 !!!
Just to clarify a point – MVG was not fired from St Michael Foundation at Tal-Balal because of these incidents. He was sent away last December because he still had one document pending – that from the Curia. When this document never came, he was asked to leave and to return when he got it. MVG got up, packed his bags with no questions asked. TILL THEN, NOBODY KNEW THAT HE WAS A PERVERT!!!!! The story of the dirty emails came out 4 months after he had left the school, thanks to some boys reporting it to their teachers. ST MICHAEL FOUNDATION AT TAL-BALAL ARE INTOLERANT OF SUCH PERVERTS AND IF IT WEREN’T FOR THIS SCHOOL, MVG WOULD STILL BE ABUSING KIDS VIA CYBER MAIL. (However, thanks to such a dumb-assed legal system, I don’t think anything will stop him carrying on. Apparently, the guy is a wizard on computers!)
Polly – Thank you for confirming the assumption I made in response to Gianella Caruana Curran’s letter which appeared in The Times yesterday. The letter itself and online comments can be seen on this link:
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20080426/letters/cyber-abuse-case
As you can see in my comment on that letter, apparently the school is justifying the ban on the name of the publication of the school with the fact that they STOPPED the abuse. Unfortunately, though, those particular incidents ONLY may have stopped. The man is not in prison, apparently still went around till at least last year wearing his “Muzew” badge”, and still has his name linked to at least 3 education-related internet sites, as Google check on his name will reveal.
Yes, the guy is a wizard on computers, apparently. (Run a Google check for “MVGMALTA” (with no spaces), and voila’!)
He’s getting photos and references to himself deleted from most sites as they are “exposed”. (Though the “contact” mobile number – 79710114 – which still appears on such sites is his, as a quick “surname & name” search on http://www.go.com.mt will reveal. It’s ALSO the same telephone number currently appearing on an internet advert for a weather course “especially useful for sailors, divers, … STUDENTS AGED 15+…”.
This man is being protected; children are not.
Polly – You said “MVG was not fired from St Michael Foundation at Tal-Balal because of these incidents. He was sent away last December because he still had one document pending – that from the Curia. When this document never came, he was asked to leave and to return when he got it.”
Why was he taken on board as a teacher in the first place (and kept there for a term, as confirmed in The Times link above) if the school was still awaiting a document from the Curia? Can you shed any light on that?
It seems that the school may not have run a proper check on him after all. I certainly hope that the school my children attend is not so lax when it comes to employing school staff (be they cleaners, teachers, assistants, handymen or whatever).
Polly – Above I mention the weather course “currently being advertised.” Within the last 10 minutes or so the advert has been modified. First of all, the course is now advertised as starting in October, rather than on the 7th May as it had been originally. Secondly, although “students” are mentioned, any reference to age (15+) has now been removed. He has, however, still left HIS OWN mobile number as a “contact” on the advert. Verify it here:
http://www.go.com.mt/edirnew_dev/directoryclient2/Request.aspx?name=mark&surname=vella%20gera&street=&town=Select a Locality
The reaon I am posting this is because I strongly feel that children have a right to protection from this man and people like him. Whilst the course is not only aimed at students, it has been worded in a way to attract them. The students could well be minors, given that he there’s still an advert appearing online for his “weather club for boys and girls aged 11 – 15 years”:
http://www.maltamedia.com/artman2/publish/out_about/article-5556.shtml
Polly – I don’t believe it! This man’s too quick! The above links are incaccessible already! He’s way too quick, but at least the club for kids advert is being removed (from the Malta Media site, at least)
Polly – I had already copied the advert in question, and am pasting it here:
Online News from Malta
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Home | Features | Podcasts | Weather | What’s On | Letters to the Editor | Contact Us
Out & About
——————————————————————————–
Weather Club for boys and girls aged 11 to 15
By MaltaMedia News
Apr 1, 2008 – 9:23:49 AM
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The Weather Club, which meets on a regular basis is a great opportunity to meet boys and girls aged 11 to 15 who are also interested in the weather.
Meetings include watching weather-related dvds, weather and meteorology-related PowerPoint presentations and short weather courses about the weather, clouds, weather forecasting and severe weather, etc.
During the break and before and after meetings one can play various games including Wii Nintendo, table tennis, billiards and table soccer.
Boys and girls joining this new club also benefit by receiving an interesting Weather Newsletter four times a year. They alo receive 15-day weather forecasts three times a week and weather warnings by email and SMS 24 hours before the onset of severe weather.
These meetings are also combined with other activities such as on-site storm watching and cloud and weather observations, together with one or two sleepovers in a farmhouse in Gozo and a possible trip to Sicily, all of the above-mentioned at very cheap rates, thanks to sponsors.
There is free transport to the premises at Zebbug and back home for the following locations: Attard, Balzan, Lija, Iklin, Naxxar, B’Kara, Swatar, Swieqi, Msida, Paola, Tarxien, Fgura, Zabbar, Isla, Bormla, Birgu, Kalkara, Luqa, Qormi, Siggiewi, Zebbug.
The next meeting is on Saturday 5th April from 1000 CEST to noon.
For more information or to join email on [email protected] or call on 21462375 or 79710114
© Copyright 2008 by MaltaMedia.com
Polly – My mistake. The advert’s still there. Here’s the link:
http://www.maltamedia.com/artman2/publish/out_about/article_5556.shtml
Polly – He’s removed his mobile number from the “weather course for students”.
So Mark Vella Gera is very obviously deleting all “traces” of his name / photos / mobile phone number from the weather sites as they are “exposed”.
He would do much better to remove them from these links and from any others which may have already been “exposed”, and from similar ones which haven’t:
http://www.homeworkelephant.co.uk/SchoolsByAreaMalta.html
http://www.worsleyschool.net/communicate/visitors/info/malta.html
Most importantly, he would do best to severe all contact/links with sites (be they virtual or otherwise) frequented by children. Not for his sake, but for the children’s, obviously.
A good start would be those sites posted as links on his various weather sites, being websites of clients such as schools, a young sailors club, English language schools, and similar places, amongst others.
@ Amanda Mallia
re MVG’s links you posted… if you click on the first one and go on his name an email address comes up. Since it is a hotmail address most probably it is deactivated (hotmail = msn messenger). Unless he used another chat address.
Were is Bondi Plus!
Meerkat – I don’t know about that.
All I know is that he does not seem to have been stopped officially from holding a weather club, seeing that it was still being advertised (see MaltaMedia link above) until a little while after the link in question was posted on this blog.
(Given the way the man’s deleting evidence of his involvement in certain sites, etc – by deleting his name, mobile number, etc – when “exposed”, probably means that he’s following this site pretty closely. I’m glad he know what people think of his abhorrent behavour, too.)
I was a student at St.Michael’s school and finished in 1993 I can say that I received all the necessary education from these people.The people from the MUSEUM society are doing a great job and for this I thanked them with all my heart.It was very sad to see that Mark Vella Gera was a teacher there.Fortunatley he was never my teacher because I was 5th form, and he used to teach the Form 3 and form 4 for sure.Not sure if he ever thought Form2.If I recall properly he was also part of the society and used to teach Doctrine at Lija.Vella Gera was restricted to leave the school and Society but I cannot say if this was in connection with these molestation.But a friend of mine told me that his case to leave to society was huge that the society herself cannot accept.
Very sad Mark to hear that you is one of irrispectable people that cannot distinguish a child from an adult.It is ashame that you was teaching religion all these years.A very good example of a roman catholic.
Malcolm
I am an ex St Michael School ( Qormi) student. Mark Vella Gera this pedophile, taught me english for two years and from first day I hated him. I got punished several times by him with no reason! When ever I tried to raise my point to him he punished me more. Though the sentence given to Mark Vella Gera being accused of chatting on the internet & sending sms’s with sexual connotations, is a funny one, the authorites must keep Mark Vella Gera and monsters like these away from our society! More over their internet and sms’s must be observed so that none of the children will be their prey! We have to secure our children from these kind of rubish that has no space in our society! Mark Vella Gera, if you are sick, keep your self locked in a cage and not hunting for children. I hope you are reading this and I guess that you remember who I am!
Ok fine – its obvious that this man did very wrong (and I don’t recall ever being fond of his habit to penalize students for being right – yes, I was one of his students), but seriously, there is a limit (no I do not recall him ever acting too friendly towards students in my time there).
I should note though that the St Michael foundation provided myself with a good basis in education and in my time there they had come forward in leaps and bounds. I wonder how things have changed this past decade.
I do hope that MVG seeks help with this. Its easy to pass judgement without attempting to understand the nature of any underlying conditions that may exist.
Can you please show us the OTHER school at which MVG taught?
L-ewwel nett nixtieq niccara xi ftit punti dwar dan il-kaz.
1. MVG kien jghallem fl-iskola St.Michael School Qormi tal-Muzew u wara li kien qed jitkellem ma’ studenti ‘about nasty things’ gie rrapurtat lid-Diretturi. Dan tkecca mill-iskola u mal-ewwel irizzenja minn tal-Muzew.
2.Sadanittant bdew il-proceduri kemm fil-Muzew u anke ukoll il-Curia u ma thallix jghallem fi skejjel tal-knisja.
3. Mar jghallem fi skola st. michael (independent school) u hemm thalla jghallem ghax ma hemmx bzonn warrant ta’ teacher.
4. Hemm sar kaz iehor li wara tressaq ghand il-pulizija inghata sentenjn habs
Jien ma nafx kif kulhadd qieghed idahhal is-socjeta tal-muzew f’keffa wahda… dan ifisser mohh maghluq u ma jafux jirragunaw. Sinjal li qatt ma ltqajtu ma’ nies tal-museum ghax huma nies mill-ahjar u ghenuni lil b’mod personali fil-hajja tieghi. Grazzi minn hawn ghalihom. Bl-istess ragunament takom li ma tafdawx lil tal-muzew iktar ghax zbalja wiehed u skondkom kollha huma hekk, mela issa nibdew nghallmu lit-tfal u nghidulhom biex ma jafdawx lil genituri taghhom ghax jibdew isakkruhom u jabbuzawhom (…kaz ta’ l-austria)
Open up your minds and think pls!! Stop abuse but do not misjudge people because of one person!! THINK
[Moderator – You see, that’s the problem. If the intentions of the Muzew really were good, then they would have reported him to the police and he would have not been able to get a job at the independent school. Think about it.]
Dear moderator you are not here to give your opinion, think about it!!!
The thing that you all cannot understand that they did not have enough evidence to go to the police. If yes, I can assure you that all the action would have been taken. The thing is that the second school did not check well the C.V. of this teacher and did not confirm it. From this forum I have concluded that the St.Michael at ta` Balal is just the school where I will never send my kids; the teachers there do not need a warrant and also can invent any sort qualification and previous work experiences in there C.V. because no body will confirm it. The problem is the bad administration of the Balal school.
Moderator start acting as a moderator. And for your last comment; dear moderator, start THINKING.
[Moderator – It is up to the police to collect evidence, not the Muzew, which is why they should have filed a police report on the mere suspicion.]
Can anyone show us this Tal-balal school?
[Moderator – St Michael Tal-Balal]
I am a mother of two sons and as such, feel that these situations are utterly shocking and almost unbelievable. Off course, such behaviour has to be stopped.
However, I would also like to add my criticism to Daphne’s sweeping statement against all men who offer to do voluntary work with youngsters. I think this is grossly unfair and utterly predjudiced. Both my sons went to church schools and attended Muzew where they were (thankfully) never molested and were well educated by dedicated men who have the true spirit of God in them.Unfortunately, this comment of yours Daphne, rather wrecks your courage in exposing this situation.
Another thing that I want others to reflect upon is the fact that this man was obviously a very disturbed person and like other sick persons, deserves also an element of symphaty too. I actually find it in my heart to feel sorry for such an individual who can bring himself ,so irresponsibly to ruin his reputation, his career and hurt the people who loved him through this. No doubt, his court case was an enormous if just ordeal in his life, he is surely feeling ashamed and guilty and knows that any further possibility to make good in the future will be forever denied to him by a society which cannot trust him ever again. Let us be truly Christian and let him now exist in peace (if at all possible!). What had to be done was done, everything possible must be done to ensure that he never the possibility to repeat his actions – let him be now.
I am thinking also (though I don’t know them at all) of the family he must have injured so much. His parents are as much victims as the boys he abused and their parents – they must be suffering so much. No one chooses his own children and sometimes- despite our best intentions- they do not turn out as we would have wished them to do. Let us not rub too much salt on their wounds.
And one final point. Cases like this justly anger society but they can also be of huge detriment to those being accused of similar cases whose guilt is not already proven. It is possible- if improbable- that some others being accused of similar behaviour are not as guilty as one would imagine. No innocent person must suffer or suffer more harshly than he or she should.
I hope I have irritated nobody by trying to find a level of moderation in this condemnation. I sympathize fully with the abused boys and their families. What I wanted to point out in such a situation- that like wartime – everybody is hurting and nothing stands to be gained from this mess.
Let God judge us all as no doubt, he will.
[Moderator – Paedophilia is not a disorder or a sickness, so you can no more feel sorry for this man than you can feel sorry for a heterosexual person simply because he is so.]
I feel sorry for all sinners – whether sick or not- and that includes each and every one of us to different extents. That does not mean that they should not be punished and strictly controlled but he is being punished and will always continue to be.
Isabel – By your reasoning, we may as well do away with the Law Courts, because people will be judged by God.
Face facts – this man did wrong, and he must face the consequences of his actions. Yes, I do feel sorry for his parents, but that does not mean that his name should not be made public and that he should not have been given a stiffer sentence (and not just a short-suspended one). The fact that his surname is uncommon (and hence his family also drawn unwittingly into it) may also have been one of the reasons for the ban on its publication, though such reason would still be unjust, leaving many children potentially his future victims.
Dear Amanda
i suppose that you are hoping for a reply from me so that journalism can have its field day. So I will indulge you.
I have never said that this man didn’t do wrong, that the law courts are an unnecassary institution, that his name should not have been published or that he should not have had a stiffer sentence. In fact, I respect the law courts to the extent that I do not profess to know their job better than them.
Face facts yourself – this man IS (justly) facing the consequences of his actions.
I have said and continue to say that compassion is a necessary quality and I, and I hope also you and others, do not want to have as much to answer for as this person does.
Daphne says that paedophiles are not sick and nor can they be be helped or cured. What should we do with this person now that he has been punished, is fully exposed and cannot right his wrongs? Maybe you have an answer to that.
I have made my point now and I have no intention of continuing with this discussion. I’m sure that many disagree with me but I also disagree with many.
He used to teach both at St Michael School, Qormi and that of Tal-Balal.
I attended both and i can safely say that they have nothing to do with this man.
Isabel – You said “What should we do with this person now that he has been punished, is fully exposed and cannot right his wrongs? Maybe you have an answer to that”
1) The man’s sentence (a suspended one), especially when combined with the ban on the publication of his name, is far too lenient.
2) He is NOT “fully exposed” (well, at least I have not seen any of his rumoured webcam antics – Joke!). If by “fully exposed” you mean on Daphne’s blog and on the various emails circulating, then you are very much in the wrong. You have to understand that exposure on such media is limited to a few hundred, or thousands at best. What of the several thousand other parents still unaware of the danger this man poses to their children?
3) I agree that he “cannot right his wrongs”, but leaving him out of jail and unnamed leaves him free instead to create more such “wrongs”. The fact that he actively advertised his “weatherclub for boys and girls aged 11 to 15 years … with sleepovers in a farmhouse in Gozo … and trips to Sicily” until long after his conviction is testimony to that.
Oh yes, he could “right his wrongs” by continuing to wear the MUSEUM badge he apparently wore till at least late last year. Maybe that way he’ll dupe more adults into trusting him with their children. And then what? Maybe YOU have got an answer to that.
he used to teach me religion…. YEY me