Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/635436
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 3 FEbruArY 2016 5 Continues from Page 1 Bonnici explained that the ultimate aim of the law is to guarantee the freedom of artistic expression – an issue that came to the fore when authors Alex Vella Gera and Mark Camill- eri were hauled to court on charges of obscenity for having written a sexually explicit story in a student newspaper. "We disagree with the concept of a big brother-like government that tells people what they are allowed to see," he said. "There should be a red line, not to stifle artistic ex- pression but to protect vulnerable people. We don't want the Camill- eri and Vella Gera case to repeat itself." The distribution and consump- tion of pornography is currently il- legal. To amend this dead letter law, Bonnici's Bill proposes that por- nography be legally distinguished from "extreme pornography". The latter will remain illegal, and include child porn, rape videos, disability porn, and necrophilia. Live sex shows will also be deemed to be "extreme porn" and hence il- legal. Sex shops will also be allowed to open and people will be allowed to display pornography in private lo- cations – so long as they are accompanied with clear warnings forbidding children from enter- ing. However, Bon- nici insisted that the reform has in no way been proposed to en- courage people to open sex shops, and that they will only be permitted as a legal consequence of the removal of laws that stifle artistic expression. PN opposes removal of vilification law Speaking in Parliament, shadow justice minister Jason Azzopardi hit out at the government's "po- litical hypocrisy" for proposing the condemnation of revenge porn, while at the same time appointing Cyrus Engerer as special ambassa- dor to the EU. "The Opposition is in favour of the criminalization of revenge porn but not of the decriminalization of the vilification of religion," he said during a parliamentary debate on a set of proposed legal package. The draft law notably proposes the criminalization of revenge porn – now punishable by a maxi- mum two years' imprisonment or a fine ranging between €3,000 and €5,000. "Revenge porn is one of the most cruel and malicious types of crimes, with the intention of tar- nishing the dignity of an ex-lover," Azzopardi said. "Cyrus Engerer was convicted of revenge porn and received a suspended sentence of two years' imprisonment. The government hailed him as a soldier of steel, and rewarded him with a high-paying job in Europe. Is this logical and just? The same government that condemns revenge porn as a crime that should be punishable by jail had exalted someone who was con- victed of revenge porn." The law notably proposes the de- criminalization of religious vilifica- tion. Displaying front covers of the French satirical magazine 'Charlie Hebdo', Azzopardi condemned vilification as "is the intentional act of mocking things that people hold dear". He noted that Denmark, Finland, Austria and Germany have main- tained vilification of religion as a crime, and insisted that atheism too must be respected and legally protected from vilification Earlier, justice minister Owen Bonnici said that he person- ally knew victims who were "broken" by re- venge porn and who had to deal with col- leagues sharing the lewd pictures at work and who had to com- mission IT experts to try and remove the pic- tures from the Internet. "In Malta, a man re- cently created a Facebook page displaying revenge porn pictures of the girls he had slept with. It's un- acceptable, and this law will send a clear message to unscrupulous people who share such pictures. "We will be the third European country to introduce it, but I am sure that we will by no means be the last." He hailed his proposed legislation as one that guarantees artistic free- dom, and a step towards "a more democratic and European society" "A country doesn't simply be- come European by introducing European laws, but when its people start speaking, thinking and acting like people with crucial European values such as tolerance," he said. "Tolerance means that one might disagree with what others say but will nevertheless fight for their right to say it. "Some people are scared of change and of leaving their com- fort zones, but future generations will look back at this moment as a next step towards Malta becoming more European." Recounting last year's attacks on the Charlie Hebdo of- fices in Paris, Bon- nici warned that it is "useless to post 'Je Suis Charlie' on Facebook in solidar- ity with the people of France and then vote against these proposals". "We must open the doors as widely as possible to freedom of expression. "I don't want to live in a society where the government acts as 'Big Brother', telling people what ideas the public is allowed to consume. He noted that the United King- dom first started discussing simi- lar proposals around a century ago, following the publication of DH Lawrence's 'Lady Chatterley's Lover'. "Let's be European and accept the principle behind the law, to pro- tect the freedom of artistic expression," he urged Par- liament. The proposed legal package also proposes the decriminalization of non-extreme pornog- raphy. Calling for Parliament to take a "reality check", Bonnici noted that the fourth most popular website in Malta is a por- nography website. He noted that a 2002 law already criminalizes hate crimes based on religion, gender, race, sexuality, gender identity or political belief, and will remain in place. "If you insult a religious group with the intention of inciting ha- tred, you are liable to imprison- ment. The government respects all religions, and indeed found a solution to the Muslims who were praying outside in Msida. Anyone who believes that we want to open the doors to a public onslaught on the Church has got their facts all jumbled up. "I don't want people who dress up as a religious figure for Carnival to end up charged in court with vilifi- cation as though he was a criminal. Let's put everything in perspec- tive." He brushed aside rumours that the reform has been penned to pave the way for the establishment of sex shops. "All this law will mean is that shops that want to sell pornograph- ic material must do so in a specially designated area. One must truly be a creative thinker to believe that to be a green light for sex shops." News mP decries irony of government condemning revenge porn while 'exalting engerer' Two inmates remain in hospital following influenza outbreak miriam Dalli TWO inmates remain in hospital following the influenza outbreak at Corradino Correctional Facility (CCF). The influenza, which is a vari- ant of the swine flu, landed three in hospital. One of the patients, Giuseppe Cassar known as ix-Xifu, died of complications. An autopsy will determine the cause of death. Eight other inmates were isolated from the rest of the prisoners. Since the outbreak, officials from the Public Health Depart- ment were deployed to the prisons to discuss the situation and put in place the necessary preventive measures. Over the weekend, the Malta Po- lice Association issued a directive ordering its members not to escort any prisoners showing flu symp- toms unless they were offered protective clothing. The directive was lifted on Monday morning when masks and clothing were provided. Late on Monday night, the Home Affairs Ministry released a statement stating that a man died at CCF. Reporting that the man had a history of health issues, the ministry said that the prisoner died from what are believed to be natural causes. Questions to the Ministry for Home Affairs on this case and preventive measures adopted at CCF remained unanswered. Owen Bonnici Jason Azzopardi