PD proposes a Truth and Justice Commission to investigate political assassinations

Partit Demokratiku (PD) have called for a Commission that deals with truth and justice, independent from politics.

This, they proposed, is in light of the assassinations in Malta that remain unsolved or linked to government officials.

The PD's proposal comes just hours before parliament will debate the Nationalist Party's motion on Daphne Caruana Galizia's murder later tonight.

The motion was originally tabled by the whole PN parliamentary group on 15 October, a year after Caruana Galizia was slain in a car bomb.

The motion calls for an independent inquiry into Caruana Galizia’s murder and the resignation of the police commissioner and the Attorney General.

PD was speaking at a press conference just outside parliament this afternoon. PD leader Godfrey Farrugia said, "Since on 16 October 2017, Daphne Caruana Galizia was assassinated in the most brutal way imaginable, in itself a threat to the freedom of expression, a commission for truth and justice is required."

Farrugia mentioned the assassinations of Karen Grech and Raymond Caruana and argued that since all these cases were within the remit of the government in terms of having a duty towards protecting their life according to Article 2 of the European Convention of Human Rights, an independent commission would guarantee that government is held to account if it was aware of all these assassinations before they happened. 

"The Commission would also analyse whether the human rights of these three people were violated and would make recommendations for measures to strengthen the Maltese political atmosphere, to prevent assassinations from happening," Farrugia said.  

The PD proposal suggests that a permanent president presides over this commission, the same person that occupies the position of Commissioner for Human Rights in the Council of Europe.

The same commission would have the power to erect investigative boards to enquire into the murders.

The PD urged parliament to take this consideration seriously and treat it as an urgent matter, to consider the legislation necessary for such an establishment in one sitting.