A public inquiry into Nicolette’s murder is needed

When Nicolette Ghirxi was murdered we were told by the Police Commissioner that after reporting the messages and emails she had received from her ex-partner, Nicolette refused to undergo a risk assessment.

The Foundation for Social Welfare Services, responsible for Appogg, had also suggested that Nicolette turned down the offer to undergo a risk assessment at the hands of social workers.

It was also suggested that the nature of the messages she had received from her eventual killer were insults rather than threats, implying that even if she accepted the assessment it may have given a low to zero risk outcome.

Nonetheless, new information has emerged since then suggesting that Nicolette may have been talked out of a risk assessment by the professionals involved in her case. A voice message Nicolette sent to someone close to her on the day she filed the police report appears to support this thesis.

The FSWS has stood by the version given by its social workers, insisting no such incident occurred. The police has remained silent on the basis that an internal investigation is underway to determine how the police behaved and whether the systems worked well.

In these circumstances it is pertinent that the facts are established and an analysis is undertaken of the reporting systems in domestic violence cases.

Given the new information that has emerged, the fact that just four days before her murder Nicolette had reported to the police that her ex-partner could be in Malta and they did nothing about it, takes on greater relevance.

An internal investigation by the Police Board is not enough. This will only look into the actions of the police officers. Nicolette’s lawyer is right when he says that in a situation where different agencies are involved - the police and Appogg - a wider probe is required that will also delve into the dynamic between the different agencies.

This leader supports calls made by various quarters, including the Opposition, for a public inquiry with full powers to look into the systems, procedures and behaviour of professionals involved in handling domestic violence cases.

Nicolette’s case may have a different dynamic than that of Bernice Cassar, which had triggered an independent inquiry (not a public inquiry) that led to several suggestions. Nonetheless, the latest femicide shows that there are still glaring gaps in the manner by which domestic violence cases are handled and followed up.

A public inquiry into Nicolette’s murder will hopefully establish whether there were any failings by the professionals involved in her case or whether the failings are the result of inadequate procedures that may not be sensitive enough to capture what would initially appear as borderline cases.

But a public inquiry will also serve to gauge any progress, or lack of it, achieved since the Bernice murder and make recommendations for further change.

The government should avoid another show of force with the victim’s relatives as it did on the Jean Paul Sofia inquiry and agree to holding a public inquiry into Nicolette’s murder.

The Prime Minister, Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri and Parliamentary Secretary Rebecca Buttigieg should step up and take the initiative without further delay.

We just hope that the government has learnt its lesson from the Sofia debacle.

It is in the national interest to fully understand how the State is dealing with domestic violence cases and whether victims are being afforded adequate protection.

Nicolette’s murder is just another brutal reminder that a lot more still needs to be done, not least to bring about a cultural change in attitude.

We just hope the government avoids the senseless and useless tug of war with the victim’s relatives and women’s rights campaigners. This is the time for everyone to pull on the same side of the rope in the best interests of victims.

A public inquiry at this stage - not in a year’s time - is the right thing to do.