Tomorrow marks six years from the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia. Who would have thought that, six years later, there would still be so much left to say?

How boring, some of you might think, reading this. Harping on and on about the same thing, for years too! Why the repetition? Why haven’t we just moved on? Lots of people die in suspect circumstances.

I’ll remind our readers that that is not a good thing.

I’ll remind them that Daphne’s assassination was not normal. We’ve said this before but it bears repeating because, despite the six years that have passed, there is still a long way to go in this country.

Daphne was effective and a threat to those who refused to play by the rules because she was on the ball. No scandal escaped her. With her ‘international network of spies’, the government of the day and public persons had to toe the line or risk public exposure. Daphne meant public accountability and her assassination was an attempt to ensure an end to it.

Daphne’s death should have been the catalyst that the government needed to scare it straight, to stop it from hurtling down a path of no return. Unfortunately, and incredibly, it was not and, despite this major democratic failing, the assassination of a journalist on European soil, the government continues to fling itself with abandon into the arms of one scandal after another.

Whether it is the fraudulent hospital deals, public land given away for a pittance, the last-minute turn around on Jean Paul Sofia’s public inquiry, the medical disability scandals or the driving licences racket, the government’s footpath seems to be littered with banana skins. 

Yet, astonishingly, the government manages to pick itself up and carry on, perhaps bruised and muddied, but largely unharmed.

This phenomenon is a reason why Daphne’s cause remains relevant, even six years later. Basic accountability at government level in the face of sheer wrongdoing remains woefully absent. It is this same lack of accountability that encourages further lawlessness. The same lawlessness that allowed Daphne to be killed in broad daylight outside her home in the firm belief that the perpetrators would get away with it.

Without Daphne, it is important for civil society to understand its role as a watchdog. To notice the wrongdoing, to call it out, to recognise corruption as not normal. We must reject claims that “this is the way politics works in Malta” and register dissent and discontent where appropriate. Because a free pass never resulted in higher standards and we’re paying for these bad decisions with our taxes, our health and sometimes our life.

We have seen the power of public discontent. We have seen it in Daphne’s memorial outside the law courts, which stands today despite Minister Owen Bonnici’s tireless efforts to “clean it up”. We saw it when the 2019 protests led to the resignation of Joseph Muscat, we saw it again this summer when a public outcry forced the government to backtrack on its refusal to hold a public inquiry for Sofia’s death.

Daphne’s death should have been the catalyst that the government needed to scare it straight, to stop it from hurtling down a path of no return- Martina Farrugia

The wheels of change turn slowly, true, but they can spin a lot faster when the government is faced with a vocal, present and engaged civil society.

Achieving that engagement is not easy. Protest fatigue is real, so is disillusionment as a result of slow change and a lack of accountability and visible results. It doesn’t help that our public broadcaster often “misses out” on reporting on vital pieces of news. But there are people who are trying; NGOs, pressure groups, journalists, lawyers, some social media personalities and a few good politicians are trying and should be supported rather than given flak for not doing enough or not doing it better.

Direct your frustration at those in power who have the power to change things and choose not to. Who, instead of recognising a problem and admitting responsibility, entrench themselves further in their positions, forcing citizens and victims of their own policies to fork out money and waste valuable time fighting for rights that are often so basic.

Ask yourself why this happens, what they have at stake that stops them from putting the interest of the country first. Then demand better.

Malta isn’t going to get better on its own. It takes time and effort, yes, sometimes even six years of it and probably longer. Believe me, no one is doing it for fun.

It’s done for love of the country, for aspirations that your home and family deserve more. It’s done for the sheer, honest belief that “right and wrong are not a popularity contest” and that documenting the truth and calling out wrongdoing provides an “oasis of sanity” in a country that so often appears to be topsy-turvy.

There is hope in the country. There has to be if it is to remain a space worth living in. We can’t bring Daphne back but we can remember her work, her sacrifice and learn from our mistakes.

Martina Farrugia

Tomorrow, there will be a silent gathering in Bidnija at 3pm, mass at 6pm at St Francis’ church, in Valletta and a protest march in Valletta at 7pm with the vigil to follow. Join us. Remember that what happened six years ago was also a result of years of apathy that saw us shrugging our shoulders at each new scandal and allowed the government to believe that the country was theirs to do with as they wished. It’s not. It is our home too. Let’s act like it.

Martina Farrugia is a lawyer and activist with Occupy Justice.