‘What happened to the masterminds?’

At the vigil marking 16 months since the assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, activists reiterated their call for justice for the slain journalist, drawing attention to the lack of progress on the investigation into her death.

Professor Vicki Ann Cremona referred to news reports last November claiming the masterminds behind the assassination had been identified, asking what had happened since then.

“It would seem that these masterminds have disappeared into thin air because they were never mentioned again, and have never been caught. Is this yet another lie by the police and the government? Or are the people behind this murder so protected that they are trying to make people forget that these instigators exist?” she said at the gathering in Valletta.

Referring to the series of corruption scandals involving the highest levels of government, Cremona said that Caruana Galizia’s last words served as a warning that people must unite in the fight for the good of the country, saying the time had come to separate justice from power and political parties.

In the 16 months since her assassination, three suspects have been arrested but there is still no trial. Prime Minister Joseph Muscat continues to pursue a libel suit against her work, demanding that her family discredit her as a condition to dropping the case. It is one of dozens of posthumous defamation suits that continue, most from members of government.

Earlier, Occupy Justice activists asked ‘Who killed Daphne?’ with huge letters laid out in Castille square. “The Prime Minister can look out of his office window and enjoy the view of the question that we’ve all been asking for the last 16 months. Maybe that will remind him that the assassination happened under his watch,” the group said.

Words like ‘impunity’, ‘corruption’ and ‘desperate’ also formed part of the activists’ life-size scrabble, as activists said they wanted ‘answers’, ‘liberty’, ‘action’ and ‘truth’ on who commissioned the journalist’s death.

Calls for justice for Caruana Galizia were also made again by international press freedom organisations on social media. Reporters Without Borders reiterated the demand for a public inquiry.

Journalist #DaphneCaruanaGalizia was assassinated 16 months ago today in #Malta, and still there is no justice. We call yet again for a public inquiry to determine whether her life could have been saved and how to protect journalists who remain at risk. It's time to #endimpunity. pic.twitter.com/ajhocS21PF

— RSF in English (@RSF_en) February 16, 2019

“We call yet again for a public inquiry to determine whether her life could have been saved and how to protect journalists who remain at risk. It’s time to #endimpunity,” the organisation said.

The call for an “immediate public inquiry” was reinforced by a number of other international organisations, including Article 19 and the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom, that joined personal tributes to the slain journalist on social media.