Repubblika unveils anti-corruption manifesto

Repubblika has unveiled an anti-corruption manifesto that calls for several legal changes to strengthen the fight against corruption, financial crime and abuse of public office.

The manifesto also calls for constitutional amendments and new laws to strengthen media freedom and the protection of journalists.

Repubblika also wants the criminalisation of ‘ecocide’, a crime of corruption at the expense of the environment.

The 64-page document was released today by the anti-corruption NGO as part of the events marking seven years since the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia. Repubblika published a redacted version of the manifesto not to fall foul of a court decree that has banned any commentary on Caruana Galizia’s 2017 assassination and people accused of her murder.

Read the redacted document below:

The publication titled Defending Integrity – An Anti-corruption Strategy And Manifesto, identifies 10 priority areas Repubblika will focus on to mobilise what it is calling, “a civic anti-corruption alliance”.

The NGO appealed to other civil society organisations to join its efforts to coordinate anti-corruption initiatives. The organisation wants civil society to monitor the conduct of public authorities and denounce and act on wrongdoing whenever this is revealed. The NGO also appealed to specific segments of the population, among others educators and donors, to join the fight against corruption.

Repubblika’s priority areas include renewed pressure on the authorities to implement the recommendations of the Daphne Caruana Galizia public inquiry. The recommendations included the introduction of a new law on unexplained wealth that is necessary in the fight against financial crime; the introduction of a specific crime for holders of public office who hinder or try to hinder police investigations; the introduction of a new law that criminalises ‘a mafia-style association’ similar to what is present in the Italian penal code; the criminalisation of abuse of office by public officials; and a new code of ethics for public officials and elected representatives.

But Repubblika also wants reforms to the Freedom of Information Act to ensure it operates even when authorities are reluctant to reveal requested information. It also wants rules for funding of political activities and the introduction of state funding of political parties.

The group also wants the creation of special anti-corruption magistrates with a dedicated pool of judicial police reporting directly to them.

Repubblika is also calling for a reform of the whistleblower law to ensure people who come forward with information of wrongdoing are truly protected.

The organisation is also calling for the social reuse of assets confiscated from criminals and amendments that grant legal standing to civil society organisations to speak for victims of corruption, whether identified or not, during criminal proceedings.

Similarly, Repubblika wants environmental NGOs to be given legal standing to speak for the environment during criminal proceedings against perpetrators of corruption that is done at the expense of the environment.

Repubblika President Vicki Ann Cremona said in her introduction that people’s in the country’s administration are “accountable to everyone, not just to those who voted for them”.

“It is, therefore, imperative that the scrutiny of the conduct of people who are granted political power is constant, consistent, and vigilant. This is why we argue for strong and independent institutions empowered and expected to act to prevent, detect, and punish wrongdoing even if – especially if – the perpetrators are people of power,” she said.