Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1527938
11 EDITORIAL maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 16 OCTOBER 2024 IT was 2:58pm when the silence in the rural village of Bidnija was shattered by a massive blast. The unthinkable had happened. Daph- ne Caruana Galizia was murdered as she drove down the hill. Today, marks seven years from that day when the life of a journalist, a wom- an, a mother, a daughter, was snuffed out in a flash. In court testimony, farmer Francis Sant had described what he saw on that fateful day as he dove up the hill and saw Daphne's white car coming towards him on the oppo- site side of the road. "The person inside the car appeared to be panicking. It made me afraid. I heard a small bang, like fireworks. Then I heard a piercing scream… a second, much larger explosion happened a few seconds later and the car came towards me, past the wall and into the field. I saw parts of her ripped off… It was terrible. Then I saw blood... I realised they were human parts. I could do nothing… It was so cruel." The haunting description of Daphne's last moments is gut-wrenching but it would be a mistake to erase it; suppress it; and silence it. It must be recalled and retold. But it would also be a mistake to mark the seventh anniversary of Daphne's assassina- tion by stopping at the events that took place on 16 October 2017 and the court process- es that followed, which lifted the lid on the criminal plan to eliminate her and the peo- ple who made it happen. Daphne's murder will forever be a stain on the national conscience. It requires a collec- tive effort to understand and address the ills that created the climate of impunity and im- propriety that emboldened some to kill her when she became too inconvenient for them. Seven years on, the time is ripe to reflect on Daphne's legacy. A few lessons may have been learnt but too much still has to be achieved. Legal and constitutional amendments to strengthen freedom of expression and pro- vide better protection to journalists remain stuck in limbo. Despite having promised a White Paper last year when it received new recommendations from the Experts Com- mittee, the government has failed to deliver. Even where it has acted – the quick trans- position of the EU anti-SLAPP directive – it is far from perfect and could be substantially improved. It is pretty obvious that Robert Abela's gov- ernment has little appetite to rock the boat and instead of moving forward with the nec- essary media reform, several exponents in the administration are instead toying with regressive ideas such as increasing penalties for libel and re-introducing criminal libel. But Daphne's legacy is not just about the media, journalists and freedom of expres- sion. The conclusions of the public inquiry a few years back had proposed the introduc- tion of a raft of laws to combat corruption. From laws to criminalise the dereliction of duty by public officials, to laws criminalising mafia-style association, to a system of ade- quately resourced investigative magistrates focussed on corruption and major crimes, the public inquiry laid down a blue print for legal reform that would have given the State the tools to combat corruption and financial crime. Nonetheless, the recommendations re- mained just that – recommendations to be forgotten, shelved. To this day, the incestuous relationship between big business and political parties; the disregard for proper ethical behaviour by politicians; the inability of the police and our judicial system to convict those accused with corruption; leave a sour legacy. The only enduring change is the activism that was ignited by Daphne's murder; ac- tivism that seeks justice and strives to hold power to account. This activism has acted as a national conscience of sorts – it led to a magisterial inquiry that resulted in crimi- nal charges being filed against former prime minister Joseph Muscat and several others. The bomb that killed Daphne also ignited our collective conscience and made us real- ise over time that the first step for criminals to succeed is for good people to say nothing. This leader hopes that seven years on, this country can find the courage to heal by en- suring justice in its entirety is done. When the bomb went off maltatoday MaltaToday, MediaToday Co. Ltd, Vjal ir-Rihan, San Gwann SGN 9016 MANAGING EDITOR: SAVIOUR BALZAN EXECUTIVE EDITOR: KURT SANSONE EDITOR: PAUL COCKS Tel: (356) 21 382741-3, 21 382745-6 Website: www.maltatoday.com.mt E-mail: dailynews@mediatoday.com.mt Committee has acknowledged the transformative potential of machine learning in tackling the most complex problems in science. AI is no longer seen merely as an aid to research but as a partner that can unlock new possibilities and reshape how we approach the mysteries of life and the universe. For the public, this signifies a future where the combination of AI and human ingenuity accelerates scientific progress. The work of Hassabis, Jumper, Baker, Hinton, and Hopfield is a testament to what can be achieved when computational power is harnessed to explore the natural world. As AI tools become more accessible and powerful, their potential to drive scientific breakthroughs will only grow, promising a future where science moves faster, solves bigger challeng- es, and reaches new heights of discovery. By honouring AI contributions in chemistry and physics, the Nobel Committee has acknowledged the transformative potential of machine learning in tackling the most complex problems in science