Anti-corruption NGOs say Malta fails on Commission’s rule of law report

Anti-corruption activists Repubblika and the Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation, and civil society NGOs Aditus and SOS Malta, have said Malta’s government has failed to address the recommendations of the European Commission’s rule of law review from the preceding year.

In a statement, the NGOs said the current year’s recommendations were nothing more than a reiteration of pending recommendations, and said the EC had employed diplomatic language to note “some progress” on pledges made by the government.

“The devastating observation of the Commission that the Maltese State has not successfully convicted anyone despite the rampant corruption within the government is completely accurate and remains the most compelling evidence of the weakness of the rule of law,” the NGOs said.

The NGOs insisted that exaggerated delays from the courts emanated from fundamental defects in the administration of justice and the lack of human resources. “These are the responsibility of the government,” they said.

“Apart from this, the level of digitization of the judicial system needs substantial improvement. Court cases are still taking too long. We reiterate that the exaggerated delays stemming from major problems in the administration of justice and the lack of human resources, are the responsibility of the government and are in of themselves an injustice and a violation of everyone's right to a fair hearing in a reasonable time, particularly for victims of crime.”

The NGOs said an inquiry into the Vitals hospitals PPP that led to charges against disgraced prime minister Joseph Muscat was a result of the efforts of civil society despite attempts by prime minister Robert Abela to discredit the inquiry and belittle the prosecution in this case.

They also accused the government of ignoring the recommendations of the Caruana Galizia public inquiry regarding the protection of journalists, as well as that of a media experts’ committee, failing to publish a promised White Paper about legal reforms in this sector. “Journalists working in Malta still face the same risks which led to a journalist being killed.”

Not even the recommendations to strengthen anti-corruption measures made by the Daphne Caruana Galizia public inquiry have been implemented yet. “This is crucial, since a culture of impunity is one of the factors that enabled Daphne’s murder,” the. NGO said.

Although Malta is supposed to have a National Strategy Against Fraud and Corruption, this has not been implemented yet.

The Commission also reiterated its concern about the large number of persons appointed directly as persons of trust in government, and the great risks of corruption in the systems of public procurement, and in the sale of passports.

The Commission reiterated a long-standing recommendation to set up a National Institution for Human Rights. “The government is committed to publishing for consultation a revised version of a proposal regarding this measure which, so far, it has not published. A government that, year after year, ignores a recommendation like this is hostile to human rights,” the NGOs said.

“As the Commission says in its Rule of Law Report, there is no formal consultation structure on legislation. We assure the Commission that there is no informal structure, either. Our organisations have attempted for years to enter into dialogue with the authorities but so far the government has ignored all such attempts,” the NGOs added.

“The repeated recommendations of the European Commission together with the still pending recommendations of the Public Inquiry into Daphne Caruana Galizia’s assassination, of the Venice Commission, of GRECO, of MONEYVAL, of the Office of Democratic Institutions and on Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, need to be implemented. This needs to be done after effective consultation and with the participation of civil society. We are ready to start this dialogue on an implementation programme immediately.”

The Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) coalition welcomed the publication of the 2024 European Commission’s rule of law report, but urged member states to intensify their efforts to uphold media freedom, and reinforce their roles in safeguarding this pillar of democracy. 

“While some countries have taken steps to improve journalists’ safety and working environments, supported by recently-adopted initiatives like the European Media Freedom Act and the anti-SLAPP directive, the report takes into account the ongoing and, in some cases, worsening issues that the MFRR has been consistently denouncing and that demand immediate attention,” the coalition said.

It said journalists’ protections from threats and violence, ensuring their ability to work freely, were not enough. “Malta, Greece, Italy, and Slovakia in particular have made insufficient progress towards guaranteeing the safety of journalists, both physical and against abusive lawsuits… abuse and online threats against journalists, specifically female journalists, remain a pressing issue.”