https://www.um.edu.mt:443/library/oar The OAR@UM digital repository system captures, stores, indexes, preserves, and distributes digital research material. 2026-09-06T08:55:53Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/148938 Title: The Gozitan diaspora Abstract: ‘The Gozitan Diaspora’ paper is the very first attempt ever in our nation’s history to present scientific, data driven, thoroughly researched estimated information as to how many people of Gozitan origin live around the world. Global Gozo with 410,000 Gozitans who live outside Gozo makes Gozo one of the world’s tiniest set of islands which has one of the highest Diaspora world-wide. Besides the numbers which are crucial, this paper talks about what these numbers can mean economically to the Gozitan homeland and its people - what the many successful Gozitans around the world can contribute in win-win situations to elevate Gozo’s economy to highest never achieved or ever-imaginable before. It brings to light that the Gozitan nation is far larger than we imagine, an international people with global outreach and incredible potential. 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/148937 Title: Deceptive practices in the digital marketplace : the role of the digital fairness act in enhancing consumer protection Abstract: The increasing prevalence of deceptive design techniques in digital markets poses significant challenges to traditional models of consumer protection. Commercial practices such as dark patterns, hyper-personalisation, influencer marketing and addictive design operate not merely through misleading information. Rather, they operate through the systematic shaping of consumer behaviour via digital environments that exploit predictable behavioural tendencies. These developments fundamentally challenge regulatory models grounded in transparency and individual choice, raising the question of whether existing EU consumer protection law remains adequate to address such practices. The existing EU framework, centred primarily on the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive and the Digital Services Act, retains partial capacity to address certain harmful digital practices. However, both instruments reveal structural limitations. The UCPD's reliance on an average consumer benchmark and a transaction specific model of decision making renders it ill-equipped to capture continuous, system-level forms of behavioural influence. While the DSA advances consumer protection by directly targeting manipulative interface design, its scope remains largely confined to visible design features, leaving deeper architectures of digital influence insufficiently addressed. Therefore, this dissertation sets out to examine the existing gaps in the EU consumer protection acquis and consider how they can be addressed in a future Digital Fairness Act, in light of existing and emerging deceptive practices. It is argued that the DFA has the potential to represent a meaningful step forward, provided that it moves beyond interface-level regulation to engage with the system-level architectures through which consumer behaviour is increasingly shaped. To achieve this, the DFA should clarify manipulation as a distinct regulatory concept, recalibrate the average consumer standard to reflect situational vulnerability, embed fairness by design as a regulatory principle and address the fragmentation that currently characterises the EU digital consumer protection landscape. Interface-level intervention remains necessary, but it is no longer sufficient on its own. Description: LL.B.(Hons)(Melit.) 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/148936 Title: The square most beautiful : the pjazza in Xagħra between historic identity and modernity Abstract: The Pjazza in Malta has Arabic origins in the Misraħ, but it was only during the seventeenth century, when the reign of the Order of St John brought stability, well-being and connectivity with European development in art and architecture that the Pjazza took its well known form: the centre of village activity, the theatre where local, political and social networks and hierarchies are displayed, and the space of community gatherings. Whilst some piazzas where planned, many others, especially in villages evolved organically. Xagħra’s Pjazza is one of the latter, formed by two crossing roads. It is also one of the remaining examples of piazzas still struggling to maintain their centrality despite twenty-first century development. 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/148935 Title: The EU's response to democratic challenges : strengths and weaknesses in political advertising legislation Abstract: This dissertation examines the European Union’s regulatory approach to political advertising, focusing on Regulation (EU) 2024/900 on the transparency and targeting of political advertising. It situates the Regulation within the broader transformation of political communication driven by social media developments, cross-border platforms, and data-driven advertising systems. The introduction of these systems has posed new risks to democratic processes, including transparency, manipulation, and foreign interference. The study analyses the constitutional framework governing EU intervention in this field, as highlighting the tension between the Union’s growing role in safeguarding democratic values and the limits imposed by the principle of conferral. It traces the development of the EU’s approach from soft-law instruments to binding regulation and examines the structure, legal basis, and regulatory model of Regulation (EU) 2024/900. Particular attention is given to the Regulation’s reliance on internal market competences and transparency-based mechanisms. The dissertation argues that, while the Regulation makes a significant contribution to improving transparency and coordination in political advertising, it remains structurally limited. Its legal basis is constitutionally contested, its enforcement is likely to vary across Member States, and its scope does not fully capture emerging forms of digital political influence. Moreover, its reliance on transparency as a primary regulatory tool raises questions about its capacity to address deeper structural dynamics within digital communication environments. The dissertation concludes that Regulation (EU) 2024/900 represents an important but incomplete response to the challenges of digital political advertising. Its long-term effectiveness and constitutional sustainability will depend on its implementation in practice and the interpretative role of the Court of Justice of the European Union. Further research and case law will be essential to assess its capacity to function as a coherent regulatory framework in the digital age. Description: LL.B.(Hons)(Melit.) 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z