This update covers developments relating to the freedoms of expression, association and peaceful assembly from 1st November 2024 to 10th June 2025.
GENERAL
Government denies criticism on lack of progress in rule of law
On 16th March 2025, the Civil Liberties Union for Europe released its yearly report on the rule of law in Europe. Malta is among the lowest performers in the EU in terms of their rule of law scores, and the country disregards part of the Commission’s recommendations.
Malta is pointed out as grappling with political manipulation in the judicial appointment process and as struggling to tackle high-level corruption. Regarding media freedom, Malta is among the countries in which threats to the independence of the national media regulatory authorities have been observed. Similarly, Malta has not taken action to implement the provisions of the European Media Freedom Act.
The Maltese government reacted to this report and denied the criticisms formulated therein. It affirmed its commitment to reforms in justice and governance and cited reforms implemented to address these issues. The Justice Ministry noted that the section on Malta was written by the Daphne Caruana Galizia foundation without consultation with the Ministry, and claims that various points are wrong or without full context.
Continued absence of a National Human Rights Institution
On 19th November 2024, the Ombudsman presented a new Bill to the Government, outlining an approach to create a National Human Rights Institution (NHRI) in Malta by leveraging the existing institutional framework. Malta is one of the few remaining EU countries without such an institution, the continued absence of which was also highlighted in the 2025 Liberties report on the rule of law in Europe.
New controversial law on magisterial inquiry
On 2nd April 2025 a law amending the Criminal Code was approved, making it more difficult for citizens to request an investigation into potential corruption. The Bill No. 125 was presented in January 2025 without consultation with any stakeholders and swiftly pushed through Parliament. On 3rd April 2025, the civil society movement Repubblika held a protest in front of Parliament, condemning what it described as an abuse of power by the Government regarding the issue of the magisterial inquiry.
The law was signed by President Myriam Spiteri Debono and published in the official Gazette on 11th April 2025.
Previously, any citizen could directly approach a magistrate with a request. The new provisions of the Criminal Code strip away this direct access and force citizens to file a police report before requesting an inquiry. The matter can only be brought before a judge if the police fail to take action within six months. Furthermore, the citizen must provide admissible evidence—meaning evidence that would be accepted in a court of law, not merely information suggesting suspicious or illegal behaviour.
This move by the Maltese government has drawn sharp condemnation from legal experts, civil society, and the opposition. Various protests were organised in front of the Parliament demanding that the bill be abandoned. These protests were called by the following CSOs or movements: Repubblika, #occupyjustice, Fondazione Falcone, Aditus Foundation, The Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation, Vuċi Kollettiva, and PEN Malta. The NGO Repubblika immediately announced it would challenge the constitutionality of the law.
No comprehensive measures to protect unaccompanied minors arriving by sea
From 1st January to 31st December 2024, there were 238 sea arrivals in Malta. According to Amnesty International, concern persists about Malta’s failure or delay in responding to distress calls from refugees and migrants at sea. The organisation further notes that Malta continued to cooperate with the Libyan authorities to intercept people and send them back to Libya, which was not a safe country for the disembarkation of rescued people. Those who reach Maltese shores are automatically detained on public health grounds.
On 8th April 2025, the UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances issued its findings on Malta’s implementation of the International Convention on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. The Committee expressed concern that civil society organisations, including human rights defenders and victims’ groups, were not consulted during the preparation of the State party’s report. The Committee regrets that Malta has not established enforced disappearance as an autonomous offence in its national law and highlighted the absence of information and comprehensive measures to protect unaccompanied minors from enforced disappearance, particularly in migration and trafficking contexts.
Malta condemned for not assessing the risk in removing two Uyghur Muslims to China
On 4th February 2025, the European Court of Human Rights found that Malta would violate Article 3 of the Convention if the State removes a Chinese couple to China without, from now on, rigorously assessing the risk they would face on their return to Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region as Uighur Muslims, six years after rejecting their asylum claim.
EXPRESSION
Trial of murderers of journalist Daphne Cruana Galizia
On 5th June 2025, the jury of Malta’s Criminal Court in Valletta reached an 8-1 verdict in the trial of two men accused of supplying the explosive material that killed the anti-corruption journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in 2017. Daphne Caruana Galizia had written extensively about suspected corruption in political and business circles in Malta, and was murdered on 16th October 2017 with a car bomb. Robert Agius and Jamie Vella were found guilty of complicity in her murder as well as the murder of lawyer Carmel Chircop, who was shot near his home in October 2015. The trial lasted weeks and around 280 witnesses were summoned to testify. On 10th June 2025, they were jailed for life.
Three men are already serving sentences for installing and detonating the bomb in the victim’s vehicle: brothers Alfred and George Degiorgio, sentenced to 40 years in prison, and Vincent Muscat, who negotiated a reduced sentence of 15 years in exchange for his testimony and who was the main witness in this trial.
Another key witness is Melvin Theuma, the middleman in the murder, who was granted a pardon in exchange for information on the suspected mastermind, Yorgen Fenech, a millionaire businessman. Fenech was arrested and charged with complicity to kill Caruana Galizia in November 2019. In September 2024, at the request of Fenech, the Valletta Criminal Court issued a decree banning the publication of any information relating “to the crime and the accused person” in any form whatsoever except for full transcripts of the court proceedings. Reporters Without Borders notes that this ban is clearly disproportionate, especially given these proceedings are of public interest. A blogger, Manuel Delia, challenged the ban before the Constitutional Court, arguing that it undermines the role of journalists in informing the public and restricts legitimate commentary on one of the most high-profile cases in Malta’s recent history. The ban had been issued without any discussions with any other party affected by the decree, and according to the lawyers, the judge did not attempt to strike a balance between the right to freedom of expression and the right to a fair trial.
Delays in bringing the case before a jury allowed Fenech’s lawyers to successfully argue for bail in February 2025. He has been released on bail with no date set for his trial. The delays were condemned by the journalist’s family, who claimed the justice system was “failing the victims”.
Five media freedom groups issued a statement to hail the June 2025 condemnations and the determination of the journalist’s legal team. However, they stress that while progress is being made on securing convictions, the wider institutional reforms outlined in the recommendations of the Public Inquiry into Daphne’s assassination have not been implemented. According to them, the Maltese authorities are not demonstrating the political will required to address the culture of impunity and widespread institutional failures that allowed this murder to take place.
We hope that (the) sentences will be a step towards a safer world for journalists by signalling to potential killers that there are heavy penalties to pay when a journalist is murdered
- Caruana Galizia family on the court sentences issued on 10th June 2025
Journalist pushed during protest
On 2nd December 2024, during a protest organised by the Nationalist Party (PN) in front of the parliament building to denounce a kickback scandal involving a Minister and a former Minister, a journalist from the TV channel ONE who was trying to obtain a comment from the PN Leader was pushed “aggressively” by an official from that party and the people who attended the Valletta protest.
The Institute of Maltese Journalists condemned the incident as well as the silence of the Nationalist Party that did not condemn the incident in public. A report was filed with the police.
Evangelist group loses libel case against journalists
On 18th November 2024, a judge rejected the defamation claims made against two TVM journalists. Pastor Gordon-John Manché launched a libel case - in his name and on behalf of the evangelical River of Love community - against TVM News Head Owen Galea, TVM journalist Alvin Vassallo, and Charles Dalli, the Editor of TVM. Manché asked for compensation because he said he felt defamed by two articles published on the national broadcaster TVM’s website in January 2022, linking the religious community to a murder suspect and reporting on allegations of gay conversion therapy.
In her judgment, Magistrate Rachel Montebello found that the articles’ contents were of public interest and did not carry defamatory implications against Pastor Manché or his community and that any reasonable reader would understand that the police were merely speaking to River of Love members as witnesses, not suspects.
Condemnations for threatening journalists covering court case
On 26th February 2025, two journalists and a cameraman were assaulted and threatened while covering a case in court in connection with a theft of cannabis. According to the Malta Institute of Journalists, the journalists and the cameraman were threatened, filmed and followed by members and friends of the families of the accused. PEN Malta appealed to the authorities to condemn this behaviour. On 28th February 2025, three people were arraigned and charged with using moral or psychological violence against the journalists and the cameraman. The Magistrate found the three defendants guilty. A protection order in favour of the two journalists and the cameraman was issued.
Circular requires teachers to get written permission before speaking to the media
On 25th September 2024, the Ministry of Education sent out Circular DES 28.2024. It provides that “Educators wishing to participate in media appearances must seek prior approval from their line manager. The request for approval must be submitted in writing, specifying the nature of the media appearance, topics discussed, and the media house involved”. Moreover, if approval is granted, the educators must adhere to a strict representation policy, ensure that their comments reflect the policies of the Ministry, and avoid “statements perceived as politically-biased or compromising the educational systems neutrality”.
On 1st November 2025, the Union of Professional Educators took a stand against this circular and outlined various concerns. First, this directive contradicts rights guaranteed in the Maltese Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights. Second, they assert that curtailing the educators’ ability to speak freely dilutes public debate and diminishes the quality of information available to the community. Finally, fear of reprimand from unsanctioned media appearances may lead educators to abstain from valuable community discussions.
In March 2025, a follow-up circular tried to distinguish between school staff and educators but the contentious parts remained.
On 1st May 2025, the Commissioner for Education within the Office of the Parliamentary Ombudsman, Vincent De Gaetano, declared that the restrictions at stake violate freedom of speech.
This blanket restriction is clearly in violation of teachers’ and educators’ right to freedom of expression since such a limitation cannot, by any stretch of the imagination, be considered to be reasonably necessary… in a modern democratic society
- Education Commissioner Vincent De Gaetano
On 2nd May 2025, a secondary school teacher participating in a TV show together with the Education Minister Clifton Grima, said he had to get approval from five different people before speaking to the Minister publicly.
Abortion remains a sensitive topic on which misinformation circulates
Abortion is only allowed in Malta if the mother’s life is at immediate risk.
In May 2025, the Mediterranean Digital Media Observatory published a report on Malta’s anti-abortion narratives and found that “the near-blanket-ban contributes to the stigmatisation of abortion, and in turn the cultural stigma creates an information drought. It is much easier for misinformation and disinformation about abortion to spread where a lack of access to reliable information and lack of openness to discussion on the subject prevails”.
The European Citizens’ Initiative called “My Voice, My Choice”, calling for access to safe abortion care everywhere in Europe, has been supported by five different organisations in Malta: Doctors for Choice; Voice for choice; Men Against Violence; Women’s Rights Foundation and Lawyers for Choice. In total 4 497 signatures were collected between April 2024 and April 2025 in Malta, surpassing the 4 320 signatures treshhold.
On 28th May 2025, on the International Day of Action for Women’s Health, women walked in Valletta dressed in traditional Maltese clothing “to draw attention to the injustice that women, non-binary individuals, and trans men face due to the lack of abortion rights in the country.”
ASSEMBLY
Ship carrying humanitarian aid for Gaza attacked by drones in Maltese waters
On 2nd May 2025, a ship carrying humanitarian aid for Gaza was attacked by drones off the coast of Malta. According to the group navigating it, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, an activist group formed in 2010 aiming to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza, drones hit the ship twice in international waters, igniting a fire and breaching the hull. The group accuse Israel of the attack. The vessel came from Tunisia and was en route to Malta to pick up activists, including Greta Thunberg.
In the days following the attack, activists were brought to shore by the Armed Forces of Malta, and the government appointed a surveyor. There was some back and forth between the captain and the Maltese government, and the solution found was to tow the vessel to the Libyan port of Misrata.
Pro-Palestinian protests
On 16th November 2024, a protest led by Moviment Graffitti was held in front of the American Embassy at Ta’ Qali to demand an immediate embargo on Israel and for peace in the Mediterranean region, and also appealed to the US Government to take concrete steps to control the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.
On 30th March 2025, a demonstration was held in St George’s Square in Valletta to demand the imposition of sanctions on the Israeli government for its disrespect of international law. The event was organised by eleven NGOs.
Lecturers and students protest over unresolved collective agreement
On 17th December 2024, lecturers and students from the Maltese College for Science and Technology protested in front of the Ministry of Education in Floriana over the unresolved collective agreement for college employees. They emphasised that the agreement remains unsigned despite having expired three years ago.
ASSOCIATION
Investor citizenship scheme is contrary to EU law; possible impact on charities
In 2020, Malta introduced the possibility to acquire Maltese citizenship by ‘direct investment’. Often called “the golden passport scheme”, it granted foreigners a passport and thereby the right to live and work in any EU country in return for a significant financial contribution. The European Commission took Malta to court in 2022 over the scheme.
On 29th April 2025, the European Court of Justice ruled that the acquisition of Union citizenship cannot result from a commercial transaction and expressed that the bond of nationality with a Member State is based on a specific relationship of solidarity, good faith and the reciprocity of rights and duties between the State and its citizens.
In the wake of the ruling, on 1st May 2025, the Prime Minister Abela said that the country earned €1.4 billion through this programme and that funds from the citizenship-by-investment scheme had gone towards charities and helped save band clubs from eviction. This programme would now vanish and endanger jobs. The new investigative platform Amphora Media examined that claim and found it partly misleading: only €131 million – less than a tenth of the €1.4 billion figure – has been committed to social projects, and of which only a third has been disbursed.