PBS must truly become the public's broadcaster, Bernard Grech states

Nationalist Party leader Bernard Grech stated that the time has come for the Public Broadcasting Services (PBS) to truly become the people’s broadcaster.

Grech was delivering his closing speech during the first National Media and Information Forum organised by the PN. Throughout the event, a number of themes related to the media were discussed, including the role of media in a democracy, journalistic freedom, and media financing.

Grech stated that PBS is being used to hide the truth and to deny a voice to those critical of government. He noted that during the past few years, PBS has been found guilty of discrimination against the opposition. 

Throughout his speech, the opposition leader said that the truth is a crucial tool for society to make informed decisions, and that the Maltese public should have more access to information. 

“Throughout the last few years we’ve seen the right to information become under threat,” Grech stated.

He added that government needs to change its attitude when it comes to the availability of information, noting how authorities have recently taken up the habit of bringing up every possible excuse in order to keep information under guard. 

This practice, Grech blasted, is being done with regards to parliamentary questions, and is resulting in journalists having to go to court to obtain information that should be publicly available. 

“Government should stop treating journalists and the media as the enemy,” he slammed, noting that this kind of attitude was the same one that ultimately led to the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia. 

On that note, Grech further lambasted government for its lack of implementation of the recommendations from the Daphne Caruana Galizia inquiry.

Grech concluded his speech by thanking the media, and encouraging journalists to keep insisting on obtaining information, describing them as “an essential part of democracy.”

Justice minister regrets lack of action against 'those who abuse freedom of expression'

During his speech, justice minister Jonathan Attard spoke of “those” who are currently expressing doubts about the adequacy of civil defamation remedies and the capping on damages. “One regret I have is that we have not yet acted robustly to protect the victims of those who abuse freedom of expression. Those young people who are subjected to all types of bullying online, in a period that could mark their lives forever.”

Attard emphasised that Malta was the first EU member state to transpose the directive into its laws, showing Malta’s proactive stance on protecting media freedom and addressing abusive lawsuits aimed at silencing journalists.

Attard also called for similar forums such as the one he was speaking in to be organised by the Speaker of the House, “and to truly represent society as a whole.”