MR. MINTOFF

UNDER FIRE
How he was persuaded to return paintings THE Holy See last year threatened Mr. Dom Mintoff, the former Prime Minister of Malta, with ecclesiastical sanctions over his removal of paintings by Caravaggio from St. John's Cathedral, Valletta, to the Government museum, stated the Maltese Catholic Action paper " Voice of Truth " last week. ..Mintoff did not return the Caravaggio paintings to the Church authorities until he was threatened by the Holy See with ecclesiastical sanction," states the paper, which adds that Mr. Mintoff has been agitating against the Church for years yea and that he has never denied that he is not a churchgoer. On Sunday, parish priests throughout the island denounced Mr. Mintoff's increasing anticlerical campaign. Last week he is reported to have publicly attacked Archbishop Gonzi for what he alleged was Church meddling in local politics.