Public officials in Malta should have a “higher threshold for criticism”, media freedom representative for the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Harlem Désir said.
In his report to the OSCE Permanent Council, Mr Désir urged public officials to drop the lawsuits against slain journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.
“It should not be possible to pass on liability to family members in defamation cases,” Mr Désir said. The lawsuits continued to result in “extreme financial and psychological pressure” on Ms Caruana Galizia’s family.
Ms Caruana Galizia faced 47 libel lawsuits at the time of her death. Over 30 of the lawsuits, all of them civil libel proceedings, continue to seek damages from the journalist’s family, Mr Désir noted.
It should not be possible to pass on liability to family members in defamation cases
He had previously condemned the murder of the journalist. In a statement last year, he said Ms Caruana Galizia had been “subject to severe harassment and threats for her critical work”.
He also expressed hope that all those involved in this “horrific crime” – both perpetrators and masterminds – would be identified and arrested.
Earlier this year, Mr Désir welcomed the new Media and Defamation Act, and called on the authorities to engage in further legal and policy reforms on civil defamation legislation.
He noted that the decriminalisation of defamation and libel was an important step toward alleviating the pressures faced by journalists in the country.
His office had analysed the Media and Defamation Bill while it was still being debated in Parliament, where it had found that there was only a “vague description” of the role of the proposed Media Registrar.
The analysis had suggested changes to the wording used in connection with the provisions on public figures and private citizens who are involved in matters of public interest.
The report had also called for a “more balanced approach” with regard to the defence of truth in defamation cases.
Mr Désir said he had received a reply from Justice Minister Owen Bonnici, informing him that recommendations concerning actions to be taken by the operator of a website following a notice of complaint were “taken on board”.