Leading international writers join PEN in calling on Europe to protect press freedom in Malta
Photo: CC BY-SA 4.0
Update - 26 April 2018
The response from Kurt Farrugia, Head of Communications for the government of Malta to PEN International's open letter of 16 April 2018 - which marked the 6 month anniversary of the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia - distorts the meaning of PEN's letter and fails to address PEN's legitimate, well-founded concerns regarding the investigation into Caruana Galizia's murder and the management of Europe's Capital of Culture, Valetta 2018.
We reiterate our call for an independent, impartial investigation into the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia, in line with international human rights law.
16 April 2018 - Leading writers from Europe and around the world have written to the European Commission today, on the six-month anniversary of the brutal assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia, Malta’s foremost investigative journalist, expressing their grave concern regarding developments in the investigation into her assassination and ongoing reprisals against her family and sources.
Over 250 influential writers, publishers and PEN members including Margaret Atwood, Salman Rushdie, Anne Enright, Ian McEwan, Kamila Shamsie, Neil Gaiman, Eva Bonnier, Elif Shafak and Colm Tóibín are calling on the European Commission to ensure justice for Daphne Caruana Galizia, and for the protection of journalists and whistleblowers in Malta.
“European culture and values are our best protection against hatred and oppression. And Daphne fought for these values until she no longer could. Her death has left hundreds of thousands voiceless, while the state-appointed leader of a European cultural event in Malta slanders Daphne’s legacy and ridicules people’s calls for justice. We hope—and it’s clear this is a hope shared by many in Europe—that the European Commission will help fill the vacuum Daphne left and remind the Maltese government that there are lines such as this that must never be crossed," said Daphne Caruana Galizia’s family.
In particular, the letter raises profound concerns regarding allegations of shameful behavior of the management of Valletta 2018, the European Capital of Culture, in relation to her case. This programme is overseen by the European Commission’s Creative Europe.
“The assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia was ordered in direct response to her journalistic work in exposing rampant government corruption at the heart of the EU. Since her death, the Maltese authorities have not attempted to investigate the crimes she uncovered and appear deeply reluctant to seek justice for her killing,” said Jennifer Clement, President of PEN International.
The open letter also restates PEN’s broader fears relating to the ongoing investigation by the Maltese authorities into the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia, which we believe does not meet the standards of independence, impartiality and effectiveness required under international human rights law.
Even after her assassination, senior government officials, including the Prime Minister, Joseph Muscat, are insisting on trying thirty-four libel cases against her, which have now been assumed by her family. In addition to these cases, the Prime Minister is taking a further libel case against Caruana Galizia’s son, Matthew Caruana Galizia, himself a Pulitzer-Prize-winning journalist. PEN believes that these proceedings are in direct reprisal for his mother’s work in investigating corruption within the current Maltese government. The Prime Minister is currently compelling Matthew to return to Malta to stand trial, despite independent security experts advising him to remain outside Malta due to substantial threats to his life there.
PEN has a long history of supporting writers at risk and campaigning for the protection of freedom of expression and recently submitted a joint report to the United Nations on the situation of freedom of expression in Malta. PEN calls on the Maltese authorities to respect and protect freedom of expression, journalists and whistleblowers in line with international standards.
To read the letter, please click here.
To read the letter in French, click here.
To read the letter in Spanish, click here.
To read the letter in Italian, click here.
To read PEN’s recent joint report to the United Nations on the situation of freedom of expression in Malta, please click here.
For more information/press/interviews contact:
Contact PEN International: info@pen-international.org +44 (0)20 7405 0338.