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6 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 27 MARCH 2022 OPINION 2 maltatoday EXECUTIVE EDITOR Matthew Vella mvella@mediatoday.com.mt 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 • 15 JANUARY 2023 Back to censorship, under 'progressive' Labour Editorial IN a Facebook post about the police's decision to press charges against satirist Matt Bonanno – over what can only be described as an innocuous (though hard-hit- ting) online comment - former Education Minister Evarist Bartolo argued that a democratic society "is measured by the extent to which it tolerates criticism and prickly comments". There can be little doubt that Bonanno's brand of humour is indeed 'prickly'; and there is also plenty of evi- dence that Malta – as a democracy – is not very 'tolerant' of that form of satirical approach, either. In fact, Matt Bonanno himself is but the latest target in a string of similarly 'censorious' cases, opened by the po- lice against various other writers and commentators over the years. And it seems that certain Nationalist MPs also need reminding, that some of those cases take us all the way back to when the PN was last in government (and when people like historian Mark Camilleri, and author Alex Vella Gera, had likewise found themselves in the dock, over similarly 'offensive' published material.) Clearly, then, we are looking at a problem which tran- scends both the individual charges pressed against Matt Bonanno; as well as the partisan hue of the current polit- ical establishment. The problem is, very simply, this: that by Evarist Bar- tolo's own yardstick, Malta does not measure up to very high standards at all, when it comes to such fundamental democratic values as 'freedom of speech'. And this has very worrying implications for the state of our country's democratic health, in general. It is not just that we evidently still find it difficult, to even understand that elusive concept of 'free speech' to begin with; but we also tend to invest absurdly dispro- portionate resources, when it comes to actively pursuing such trivial cases in court. Bonanno's case makes a particularly good example. Apart from the prohibitive costs involved in defending himself from such spurious charges, Bonanno also faces the (admittedly unlikely) possibility of a maximum sen- tence of up to E50,000. This is because the police chose to charge the suspect - not with 'hate-speech' (as one might expect, given the circumstances) - but with two violations of the Electronic Communications Act: namely, Article 48 - which "pro- hibits the use of electronic communication networks or apparatus for a purpose other than their intended use"; and Article 49, which holds that: "Any person who by means of an electronic communications network or apparatus […] threatens the commission of any crime" is liable to a fine of €25,000. Given the nature of Bonnano's comment – a clearly tongue-in-cheek proposal to 'carpet-bomb' both the Riv- er of Love organisation, and the entire town of Bugibba – the police's over-reaction is clearly just as exaggerated, as the humour which provoked it. But this, too, has implications for Maltese democracy. It seems that, not only is Malta merely 'deficient' (in the literal sense of the word) when it comes to our core dem- ocratic values; but we are arguably 'inimical' to those very values, too. In this case in particular, it seems the Police Force went to extraordinary lengths, to brow-beat a single 'prickly' online commentator into submission. And in so doing, other institutions – including the law-courts themselves – have now been embroiled in the same charade, as well. Apart from the sheer disregard for basic human rights, displayed throughout these proceedings: this also consti- tutes a classic case of 'misallocation of resources'. Surely, the country's entire justice system should have far more serious work to attend to, than prosecuting a comedian for 'cracking a joke' (no matter how distasteful that joke may have appeared, to some). And indeed, the anomaly only intensifies when one also considers all those other occasions, where the same Police Force failed to act on similar (albeit much more serious) cases of hate-speech, incitement to violence… or even outright death-threats. Questions have, in fact, already been legitimately raised regarding an apparent case of double-standards. Unaccountably, the same Malta Police Force chose to ig- nore other reported death-threats, in the past: including one which threatened to 'shoot [female pro-choice activ- ists] in the head' (in which case a police report was filed more than two years ago; but never acted upon since). And while the comparison may be odious: it is worth remembering, too, that the police's (and other institu- tions') 'failure to act' was cited as at least one the causes, behind the recent, shocking femicide of Bernice Cassar. Nonetheless, the more pressing question concerns the political direction of the country as a whole. It may have been facile, for an inexperienced Nationalist MP like Eve Borg Bonello to argue (as happened in parliament this week) that cases like Matt Bonanno's only show us how 'authoritative' and 'dictatorial' the country has become, under its present [Labour] government. It does, however, certainly remain anomalous that such clearly anti-democratic behaviour is taking place today: under a Labour administration that also prides itself on championing 'human rights'; and having a 'pro- gressive, moderate' agenda. There is nothing 'progressive', or 'moderate', about simply bullying people into silence. So if the Labour Party does want to retain its reputation, as a 'progressive political force' in this country: this is one area that cer- tainly needs attention. 15 January 2013 Gay adoptions – experts should decide what is in children's best interest PRIME Minister Lawrence Gonzi said adop- tion rights to parents should be guided by experts' evaluations of what is in the best in- terest of children. Gonzi was replying to questions from Malta- Today over Joseph Muscat's stance in favour of gay adoption. "Any such evaluation by experts should be free of any prejudice towards any sexual orientation," Gonzi said, whose government's bill to regulate cohabiting partnerships came under fire by gay couples. Muscat has however told MaltaToday that legislation on gay parents' adoption was not on his legislative agenda. Meanwhile, speaking at Villa Arrigo this morning as part of his electoral campaign, the Prime Minister vowed that a new PN-led gov- ernment will continue to grant all the best possi- ble care for the elderly. While listing his government's achievements in this sector, Gonzi revealed his intention to broaden the home help services, currently being granted to hundreds of elderly persons around the Maltese islands. Gonzi said that should he be confirmed in office, he would ensure to extend the current service to one where the carers would take on a role which would be similar to an "almost per- sonal assistant" to the elderly person. He said that the plan was for those family members who are currently receiving a 'solidari- ty pension' whereby family members take care of their elderly parents or a relative at home, would be the net beneficiaries, which could practically mean they would receive a full-time salary from government for doing so. When asked about waiting lists for elderly waiting for operations at Mater Dei Hospital, or seeking entry to homes, the Prime Minister said that while the public-private partnership with private hospitals has already proved to be removing the burden for cataract and other operations for elderly, more money is being invested in community services to cater for the reality of a growing demand for elderly to enter homes. ... Quote of the Week "There's still much more to do to strengthen journalists' freedom of expression. It makes no sense to send someone to jail for using mockery as a way of serious comment on current affairs" Former Labour minister Evarist Bartolo on the controversial criminal arraignment of satirist Matt Bonanno MaltaToday 10 years ago