The European Commission has been asked to investigate the murder of Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia and the independence of the media in Malta.
The request was made by the heads of eight of the world’s largest news organisations in a letter to Frans Timmermans, the first vice-president of the commission.
Reporting about the request, The Guardian, whose editor in chief Katharine Viner is one of the signatories, said the letter described the murder as “shocking” and an “appalling reminder” of the dangers that journalists and citizens practicing journalism faced as they tried to uncover corruption and criminal behaviour.
Ms Caruana Galizia was killed in a car bomb near her home in Bidnija last month.
The letter says that the murder could not be allowed to achieve the “clear objective of silencing Ms Caruana Galizia’s investigation into corruption at the highest levels in Malta.
They also pointed to analysis by the European Commission that raised concerns about the lack of political independence of the Maltese media.
“Daphne’s murder, combined with the structural issues the Commission identified, demonstrate the need for a full investigation into the state of media independence in Malta by the commission.
“We ask that you use your office to engage the Maltese government in urgent dialogue to ensure that it is aware of its obligations as a member of the European Union to uphold the rule of law, and to maintain press freedom and free expression.
“The murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia demonstrates the danger that journalists face in the pursuit of truth. It also demonstrates the fear that the corrupt and powerful have of being exposed.
“We request that you use all powers at your disposal to ensure that Daphne’s death is fully investigated, and to send a clear signal of support to journalists working in the public interest, in Malta and all over the world.”
The other signatories are Dean Baquet, executive editor of the New York Times, Jérôme Fenoglio, director of Le Monde, and James Harding, the director of news and current affairs at the BBC, Wolfgang Krach of Süddeutsche Zeitung, Lionel Barber of the Financial Times, Mario Calabresi at La Repubblica and Antonio Caño, of El Pais.