Public Consultation: reform must ensure an enabling environment for free expression

We submitted our response to the Maltese Government’s public consultation on media reform on 31 October 2025. This forms part of our mission to advance restorative justice for the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia, and to promote reforms that strengthen freedom of expression and media freedom in Malta in line with Council of Europe standards.

The need for reform stems directly from the findings of the Public Inquiry into Daphne Caruana Galizia’s assassination. For public interest journalism to play its vital role in Malta’s democracy, the State must ensure that reforms create and sustain an enabling environment where freedom of expression can thrive, underpinned by strong protections for media freedom.

By introducing the far-reaching changes needed to build such an environment, the State would make the assassination of another journalist not only impossible but unimaginable. It would also send a clear message that the dehumanisation, threats, and attacks faced by Daphne are unacceptable and will be met with immediate accountability.

This reform process must lead to the creation of an environment that protects journalists, guarantees the public’s right to know, and rebuilds trust in Malta’s democracy. It must meet international standards, and not result in weak or merely symbolic or half-measures.

There is no middle ground for genuine reform. To protect journalists, Malta must disarm and dismantle the networks of corruption and abuse of power that enabled Daphne’s assassination. The State faces a decisive choice: to implement meaningful reform that prevents future deaths, or to allow the systemic failures that enabled Daphne Caruana Galizia’s assassination to persist.

We are ready to work constructively with the Maltese Government and all stakeholders to ensure that reforms fully comply with the Public Inquiry’s recommendations and international standards on freedom of expression.

Document: Public consultation media reform: Submissions by the Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation