Former OPM official Neville Gafà has been cleared of threatening Avvenire journalist Nello Scavo on social media last summer, with a court declaring that the facts were “not at all convincing”.
Criminal proceedings against Gafà stemmed from a tweeted exchange on June 27 in a reaction to an initial message by NGO Alarm Phone announcing that 95 migrants at sea had been intercepted by “Europe’s Libyan allies,” and “returned to a war zone”.
That message had prompted Gafà to comment, “You better stop your dirty business…”
Scavo, a vocal critic of Malta’s handling of the migration crisis, had tweeted back, “dirty business, dirty oil, dirty agreement by governments. Anything to say about this dirty ways”?
“Stop your dirty business. If not we will be stopping you.”
The journalist had subsequently testified in court, claiming how he had felt threatened not only by Gafà’s message, but also by the non-reply he was met with when he had replied, “Exactly who is ‘we’?”
Confidential information about the perceived threat had landed before the local police authorities from a third party source and Gafà was taken in for questioning in August.
In his statement to the police, the former OPM official insisted that his “dirty business” remark had been directed at Alarm Phone and not at the Italian journalist who, having replied to his earlier tweet, had been included among the recipients of his message.
Gafà claimed that Maltese authorities would do their utmost to combat illegal migration.
Moreover, he had pointed out that he had never retaliated nor sought legal action against the journalist who had directed serious accusations in his regard.
When delivering judgment on Tuesday, the court, presided over by magistrate Charmaine Galea, observed that Scavo had only filed a police complaint locally after the police had been told of the incident by a third party.
If someone, especially a journalist who is afforded police protection in his homeland, felt so threatened, one does not “wait for the police to suggest filing a complaint to protect himself,” the court remarked.
Scavo had not in any way explained how he had felt threatened and his tweets gave no indication of his troubled state, the judgment read.
Nor had he reported the matter to police authorities in Italy and had gone to police authorities in Malta one month after the social media exchange.
Free and independent media is a “crucial element within a functioning democracy,” and many stories about discrimination, corruption and misuse of power all came to light, thanks to investigative journalists, magistrate Galea observed.
However, freedom of expression was a fundamental right that was to be respected all round.
In the light of all evidence and the particular circumstances of the case, the court concluded that the allegedly threatening tweet was indeed not a threat but a political comment about a topic that sparked conflicting sentiments.
The prosecution had not proved its case beyond reasonable doubt, the court said, clearing Gafà of all criminal liability.
Lawyers Edward Gatt and Mark Vassallo were defence counsel. Lawyer Kris Busietta appeared parte civile. Superintendent Fabian Fleri and inspector Lydon Zammit prosecuted.
European Centre says acquittal is 'an injustice'
The European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) in a statement expressed its regret over the court's decision.
It quoted Scavo as saying that this process had given him an even deeper insight into the Maltese situation and the climate of severe tension and continuous de-legitimisation in which the island’s journalists were forced to work.
"Gafà’s acquittal today is not only an injustice to Scavo. In failing to recognise how journalists are pressured and intimidated, it is also a disappointment for everyone who considers that receiving threats and insults should not be a routine “part of the job” for journalists," the European Centre said.