Pro-divorce movement challenge advert ban

The pro-divorce movement yesterday filed a constitutional application against the Broadcasting Authority, asking the court to declare that the decision to stop airing one of their adverts was a breach of their rights.

The advert in question features a clip of a short interview with Mgr Charles Vella, the founder of the Cana Movement. The interview had featured on One TV’s Bla Aġenda.

The Yes For Divorce, Yes For Marriage movement said the decision to stop airing the clip was a form of censorship that violated their right of freedom of expression.

In the clip, Mgr Vella says, among other things, he was not scared by divorce because of his belief in the sanctity and indissolubility of marriage, but people who could not deliver such a level of commitment should have the right to choose an alternative marriage.

Lawyer Therese Comodini Cachia and legal procurator Peter Paul Sammut signed the application.