On October 20, the European Parliament paid tribute to Daphne Caruana Galizia on the fifth anniversary of her assassination and debated the state of Malta’s rule of law.
In a resolution adopted after the debate by an overwhelming majority of 564 votes (over 95 per cent), the parliament expressed its alarm at the institutional failure of law enforcement and justice in Malta and the impunity afforded to former Labour prime minister Joseph Muscat, his ex-chief of staff, Keith Schembri and former Labour minister Konrad Mizzi.
The European Parliament also showed its concern about the deficient implementation of the recommendations of an independent board of inquiry that was set up in December 2019 by the Maltese government to establish whether Daphne’s death could have been prevented, following strong international pressure.
A damning 437-page inquiry report concluded that Daphne’s assassination was allowed to take place by the culture of impunity created by Muscat, that extended from the highest echelons of power within Castille to a restricted circle of politicians, businessmen and criminals.
The public inquiry also found that exponents of both major political parties had tried to silence Daphne by all means.
Daphne was the most targeted journalist by vexatious libel lawsuits in Europe, most of which were brought by Maltese politicians and their business associates.
Muscat, Schembri and Minister Owen Bonnici had given their approval to Henley & Partners, the sole concessionaire of Malta’s golden passports, to file a SLAPP suit against Daphne through the UK courts that would cause her very serious financial repercussions.
At the time of her death, Daphne faced 47 civil and criminal libel suits filed in various jurisdictions including the United States.
The Labour government weaponised strategic hate against Daphne while failing to provide her with protection against threats over her writing on political corruption and organised crime.
Labour MP Glenn Beddingfield ran a self-titled blog to insult and intimidate Labour critics, foremost among them Daphne.
Beddingfield wrote his blogs during duty hours at Muscat’s own secretariat paid for by the state. Although Muscat was conscious of what was taking place, he did not lift a finger to stop him.
In April 2016, Daphne revealed that Mizzi and Schembri had opened secret Panama companies.
Then, on February 22, 2017, she wrote in her blog about a mystery company in Dubai called 17 Black Ltd with connections to alleged corruption related to the power station contract given to Electrogas Malta consortium.
On May 26, 2017, it was further revealed that 17 Black, which turned out to belong to businessman Yorgen Fenech who stands accused of being the murder mastermind, had been created with the specific aim of transferring money to the Panama companies of Mizzi and Schembri.
Daphne was the most targeted journalist by vexatious libel lawsuits in Europe- Denis Tanti
The Daphne Project, that has continued Daphne’s work after her demise, further revealed that Mizzi and Schembri planned to receive $150,000 monthly into their Panama companies.
Several magisterial inquiries have been launched into crimes of corruption and money laundering allegedly involving Mizzi and Schembri, among others.
By March 2021, a number of these inquiries were concluded and reports were handed to the office of the attorney general. However, both the police commissioner and the attorney general sat on these inquiries involving persons close to the corridors of power.
MEPs from the European Union’s civil liberties committee entrusted with the assessment of progress in the investigations, trials and reforms that followed Daphne’s murder, have concluded that impunity continued to be afforded to Muscat and his allies who remain unprosecuted in connection with serious and substantiated evidence of corruption.
In contrast, within three weeks of the murder of 27-year old Slovak investigative journalist Ján Kuciak, who reported on fraud by people connected to the country’s governing party, Robert Fico resigned as Slovakia’s prime minister amid colossal anti-government protests across the country.
Fico and his ex interior minister, Róbert Kaliňák have since been charged in court with creating an organised criminal group and each faces up to 10 years in prison.
Daphne’s priceless contribution to investigative journalism has been recognised by the European Parliament which launched the Daphne Caruana Galizia Prize to reward outstanding journalism reflecting EU values.
The European Parliament has also honoured Daphne by renaming its Strasbourg press room after her while various European countries and international organisations have bestowed merited posthumous honours upon her.
Yet, in Malta, Daphne’s own country, the speaker of the house of representatives, Anġlu Farrugia, would not allow a hall inside the Maltese parliament building to be named after Daphne.
Farrugia claimed that his decision was intended to avoid eroding the impartiality of the house of representatives, but it appears more likely that he was bending to Prime Minister Robert Abela’s whims to save his own skin.
Abela has shamefully refused to attend any event held to commemorate the fifth anniversary of Daphne’s assassination.
In contrast, last February 21, Abela’s counterpart, Slovak Prime Minister Eduard Heger attended the ceremony of the unveiling of a monument erected at a central square in Slovakia’s capital city of Bratislava to honour Kuciak and his fiancée, Martina Kušnírová on the occasion of the fourth anniversary of their slaying.
On that same day, Slovak President Zuzana Caputova honoured the memory of Kuciak and Kušnírová by lighting a candle and laying flowers in front of the house in which they were killed.
Abela evidently lacks the political courage to eliminate the culture of impunity that has flourished under his disgraced predecessor. He does not want to live up to his responsibilities in the national healing process so badly needed after Daphne’s assassination.
Abela has done practically nothing to implement the recommendations put forward by the public inquiry report into Daphne’s murder that was handed to him in July 29, 2021. Her family still struggles with vexatious SLAPP and libel suits that it inherited after her death.
More than five years after Daphne’s assassination sparked international outrage and raised serious questions about the rule of law in Malta, justice has still not been served.
Denis Tanti is a former assistant director at the health ministry.