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18 maltatoday EXECUTIVE EDITOR Matthew Vella MANAGING EDITOR Saviour Balzan Letters to the Editor, MaltaToday, Vjal ir-Rihan, San Gwann SGN 9016 E-mail: dailynews@mediatoday.com.mt Letters must be concise, no pen names accepted, include full name and address maltatoday | SUNDAY • 28 JULY 2019 29 July, 2009 Malta's free press under scrutiny ... again MALTA this year dropped to 37th place in the world Free Press rankings, down from 22nd place in 2008 – the third consecutive down- grade by the influential US non-governmental organisation Freedom House, which has ex- pressed concern regarding Malta's press laws, self-censorship, as well as political ownership of broadcast stations. In the 2009 Freedom of the Press report (which covers events during 2008), Malta's rating was lowered by two points, from 20 to 22, which dropped its world ranking from 32 to 38. Speaking exclusively to MaltaToday, Ka- rin Deutsch Karlekar, Senior Researcher and Managing Editor, Freedom of the Press Index, explained how "the overall rating downgrade reflects concerns in two areas – self-censorship and freedom of information (FOI) laws. "On self-censorship, the European Federa- tion of Journalists (EFJ) in 2008 condemned a Maltese news web portal Di-ve.com, for its de- cision to ban political coverage and commen- tary in the critical period directly before the general election," Karlekar told MaltaToday. On Freedom of Information Laws, the Man- aging Editor of the Freedom House's Freedom of the Press report highlighted "the continuing inability of Parliament to pass a Freedom of Information Bill makes Malta one of only a few countries in Europe without such a law." Although a Freedom of Information Act was passed by the House of Representatives last year, this will only be brought fully into force by 2010. Part of the law is expected to be put into force by a legal notice that is to be issued shortly. But further legal notices will be issued to bring the remaining provisions of the Act in force in due course. … Asked about which were those areas in Mal- ta's press freedoms that were of most concern to Freedom House, Kareklar told MaltaToday: "First of all, it is important to stress that Mal- ta's rating and ranking in our 2009 report puts it solidly in the middle of the free category – in line with France and better than Greece, Spain, and Italy." However, she warned that the lack of a free- dom of information law "puts Malta out of line with freedom of information legislation throughout most of the EU, and this remains a concern". Media self-censorship, Kareklar warned, was "a major problem in many countries around the world, and systemic self-censorship is al- ways of concern. "Over the last few years we have not ob- served self-censorship to be a problem in Malta, and it is certainly our hope that last year's incident regarding www.di-ve.com was an isolated occurrence," the Freedom House senior researcher told MaltaToday. MaltaToday 10 years ago Quote of the Week The fight for equality is not over yet Editorial "With our decision today, we either back him up or back off" Ivan Bartolo, PN Councillor, who has led the attempt to remove Adrian Delia from leader of the party since May's local and European elections JOSEPH Muscat's government can be applaud- ed for pushing civil liberties and equality at the centre stage of the national agenda. Since taking power in 2013, the government has pushed for wide-ranging reforms. From the historic introduction of civil unions in 2014 when same-sex couples could, for the first time, have their union officially sanctioned by the State, to gender identity legislation that recognised those who had been living in the shadows, Muscat's government has been re- formist and progressive. While this drive can be credited to the Prime Minister, who did not fear putting his name to each of these changes, Joseph Muscat found a strong ally in his former equality minister, He- lena Dalli. Dalli believed in the change that materially improved the lives of many people. She also roped in key people in her ministry with ex- perience in the field, who helped channel the political will for change into meaningful and radical legislation. In this respect, Maltese society today is more inclusive and equal than it ever was. Malta's top placing on the Rainbow Index of LGBTIQ rights is testament to this achievement. But it would be a mistake to believe that the job is done. Helena Dalli's departure from Cabi- net after being nominated by Muscat as Malta's European Commissioner, may give the impres- sion that government has fulfilled its mandate. The fight for equality is not over yet and this leader hopes that Dalli's replacement, Edward Zammit Lewis, will dedicate as much energy to the cause. For starters, there is the reality on the ground that in some aspects has not caught up with the legal changes. The appreciation of diversity in schools re- mains, to a certain extent taboo because of the conservative mindsets of some. There is also the growing reality of foreigners living and working in Malta, who risk becom- ing the new underclass unless concrete action fostering integration and enforcement of la- bour laws is undertaken. And there is also the 'classic' fight for equal- ity between women and men. The gender pay gap remains a blight on the progress registered over the years. Addressing this requires the State to address some of the root causes that put women at a disadvantage. There are some key policy areas the govern- ment has been toying with over the years that so far have failed to come to fruition. Increasing paternity leave is one such policy. If men and women have equal parental leave, it makes no difference in the eye of the employer whether the person in front of him is male or female. In a situation of parity, a man would be as likely as a woman to go out on leave if he be- comes a father, removing the disadvantage for women. Another issue that has often been floated is the introduction of sick leave for parents when children are sick. This measure will help reduce the stress on parents, most especially women, when children are sick and cannot be cared for by someone else. There is also the issue of representation and the lack of women in decision-making roles. More has to be done so that government bod- ies and public institutions better reflect gender balance in their top echelons. The government's drive to introduce legal changes to push for more women in Parliament was a positive development. But it must not be allowed to fall by the wayside. Equality is not a goal that is reached and for- gotten. It must be cared for and translated into new goals that reflect a changing society. Dalli's departure from Cabinet must not sig- nal an end to this drive. It is now up to Zammit Lewis to ensure that what has been achieved in a relatively short pe- riod is strengthened. But it is also his duty to reach higher and continue to drive change. Equality must remain top of the government's agenda.