Authorities warned against using intimidatory tactics to shut up whistleblowers
In January a magistrate ordered an inquiry into Pilatus Bank inquiry leaks
Rule of law group Repubblika warned the authorities on Monday not to try using intimidatory tactics to shut up whistleblowers.
Its warning came after its former president Robert Aquilina said he had been summoned to police headquarters for interrogation about the sources of his recent book about Pilatus Bank.
Last January a magistrate ordered the police to investigate how an inquiry report about the bank ended up in Aquilina's hands, leading the NGO to challenge a decision not to prosecute the bank’s top officials. Aquilina has vowed not to reveal his sources.
Repubblika said whistleblowers were essential for the fight against corruption and legislation, both local and European, was meant to protect them.
The Constitution as well as the European Human Rights Convention also protected journalists and authors from revealing their sources.
These were legal principles which protected democracy and any attempt by the police or the authorities to trample them undermined the people's fundamental rights, Repubblika said.