‘Europe will respond forcefully’ – MEP

The European Parliament’s Mission to Malta met with urgency this morning following “new revelations on the rule of law” in the country at the request of Greens MEP Sven Giegold who said, “the European Parliament will respond forcefully”.

Geigold said the European Parliament should use all its means “to ensure that, this time, concrete action is taken”.

“The European Commission has to overcome its light touch policy on the rule of law problems in Malta and urgently act as the guardian of European values,” he added.

Giegold said that the MEPs investigating the rule of law in Malta decided to write to the new head of Europol, for a meeting to promote their involvement in the investigations.

MEPs will be calling for an urgent meeting with Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans following the recent revelations on the investigations into the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia and fresh allegations on Minister Konrad Mizzi and the Prime Minister’s chief of staff Keith Schembri. They will also be requesting meetings with Maltese authorities.

On Sunday, The Shift News also revealed the government had doctored a report on the rule of law in Malta prepared for the Caruana Galizia family and handed it to journalists investigating her assassination.

READ MORE: Murder in Malta: government gives journalists a doctored report

The report was an assessment of the collapse of the rule of law in the country, which should not have been in the government’s possession.

Geigold said: “The situation in Malta is unbearable. The new revelations must lead to drastic changes to counter the general perception of corruption and a weakening of the rule of law. Minister Mizzi and Keith Schembri have to step down or be dismissed. The programme for the sale of passports must be suspended immediately”.

READ MORE: Revealed: doctored report shows extent of collapse of rule of law in Malta

The MEPs will also be asking for a meeting with the Conference of Presidents to debate the situation with the EU Commission and adopt a plenary resolution.

A consortium of 18 news organisations is pursuing stories investigated by assassinated journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia. The news organisations include the New York Times, The Guardian, and Süddeutsche Zeitung, the newspaper behind the Panama Papers revelations. The ‘Daphne project’ was organised by an investigative non-profit organisation called Forbidden Stories.