We need a National Coalition on Justice Reform, pushing for implementation of key proposals

Today, as Malta commemorates Victory Day, we reflect on the true cost of our freedoms and remember all those who paid with their lives for our liberties, including Daphne Caruana Galizia. Honoring her memory, and that of all other victims of injustice, demands a robust, independent justice system capable of eradicating the culture of impunity that allow such tragedies to happen.

Following the recent jury trial of Yorgen Fenech, which has left many citizens disillusioned and frustrated with our judicial system, Momentum is calling for immediate structural reforms. With the 2026 general election behind us, the time for campaign rhetoric has passed; our focus must shift to building a “Just and Beautiful Malta”. For decades, consecutive administrations have engaged in procrastination and convenient legislation on essential legal reforms. We must finally heed the detailed, valid proposals put forward by key legal minds to establish an impartial, efficient judiciary.

Momentum publicly commends the detailed work of Dr Franco Debono, whose November 2011 Private Members’ Motion remains an important blueprint for justice reform in Malta. We call for the implementation of his core structural proposals: separating the investigative and prosecuting roles within the Police Corps to keep seasoned inspectors on the ground; separating the roles of inquiring and adjudicating magistrates to eliminate legal contradictions; re-defining and limiting the Attorney General’s broad, unreviewable discretion by imposing a legal duty to provide public, objective reasons for court routing decisions; and overhauling jury selection to ensure transparency and randomness.

We commend the anti-corruption and anti-mafia legislative package drafted primarily by Dr Jason Azzopardi and presented in January 2022. This suite of 12 separate bills represents a clear framework for transparency and systemic accountability, designed to implement the recommendations of the Daphne Caruana Galizia public inquiry. We urge the immediate consideration and adoption of Azzopardi’s key legal instruments:

• Introducing Unexplained Wealth Orders (UWOs) to require public officials to justify the source of their assets and end the impunity associated with illicit gains;
• Establishing a dedicated, Specialised Judicial Office of magistrates tasked with investigating corruption and organised crime;
• Creating new criminal offenses to penalise abuse of public authority, obstruction of justice, and wilful dereliction of duty by public officials;
• Enacting a specific legal framework to criminalise mafia-style criminal associations in Malta; and
• Entrenching media freedom as a fundamental human right in the Constitution alongside domestic anti-SLAPP laws to protect independent journalists from malicious lawsuits.

To go alongside these proposed reforms, Momentum presents its own governance proposals to establish a transparent and accountable justice framework:

• Establishing an independent Office of the Special Prosecutor with a specific mandate to investigate and prosecute corruption and major crime, free from political or administrative interference;
• Upgrading the decisions of the Ombudsman and the Commissioner for Standards from consultative recommendations to legally binding, executive decisions backed by adequate resources;
• Supporting civic responsibility by introducing fiscal incentives and tax credits for citizens who perform their civic duty on a jury; and
• Mandating the National Audit Office to conduct independent, annual audits of the assets of all elected officials under a Public Integrity Act.

Momentum policy advisor Karl Anthony Borg said “Economic prosperity means very little if our citizens cannot rely on the courts to deliver prompt, visible, and unbiased justice. Instead of settling for minor, surface-level adjustments that only delay real accountability, it is time to enact thorough structural reforms.”

For detailed reference, we direct the media and the public to the archives of Dr Franco Debono’s work at www.riformagustizzja.com, as well as the parliamentary archives of 2022 detailing Dr Jason Azzopardi’s 12 anti-corruption bills.

A healthy democratic society is measured by more than just economic metrics; its backbone is a legal system that is efficient, transparent, and accessible to everyone. The era of superficial, piecemeal tweaks must end. We must commit to systemic, meaningful reform without further delay.

Malta can no longer afford cosmetic half-measures. We must adopt these comprehensive, structural reforms now.

There is hope, you can help!

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