Foreign Affairs Minister Carmelo Abela will not commit to whether the government would respect a deadline to open a public inquiry into the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, despite his previous declaration on the matter.  

In a report on the state of the rule of law in Malta published in June, the Council of Europe called on the government to set up a public inquiry aimed at establishing whether the journalist’s death could have been prevented.

The council’s imposed three-month deadline for the inquiry to begin will expire later this month.  

Asked if he could envisage a scenario where this deadline was not met, Mr Abela said only that it was best to wait for the outcome of talks between the government and the council.

Mr Abela had surprised foreign journalists and activists in July when he said the government “will abide by the timing that the Council of Europe dictated”.

Fielding questions at a media freedom event in London, Mr Abela had said the Prime Minister was committed to establishing the public inquiry within the deadline set by the Council of Europe.

Since then, government officials, including Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and other members of Cabinet, have been coy when asked about the matter, saying legal advice was being sought about the impact of holding the public inquiry in parallel with an ongoing police investigation into the murder.

No objection 'in principle'

Asked for an update, Mr Abela said the government was “conscious” of the call for a public inquiry. 

In principle, he said, the government had no issue with setting up such an inquiry.  

However, the main issue was whether there could be “problems of a legal nature” if a public inquiry were to be held at the same time as an ongoing criminal inquiry. 

In this light, the government was holding talks with the council to find the best way for the public inquiry to be held.  

So far, three men – alleged contract killers – have been charged with having conducted the car bomb assassination of Ms Caruana Galizia in October 2017. The masterminds that commissioned them remain at large. Mr Abela said the government’s position had always been clear. 

“After what happened, the government’s commitment to allocate the necessary resources was there – in fact the result shows that three persons were arrested and criminal proceedings are under way,” Mr Abela said.