Nationalist Party takes Broadcasting Authority and PBS to court over alleged constitutional violations

The Broadcasting Authority and state broadcaster PBS have been taken to court by the Nationalist Party claiming PBS’ ongoing censorship and inability to uphold its constitutional duties had violated the party's fundamental rights.

The PN claimed that the fact that no solution was ordered, despite a recent BA decision in its favour, about a complaint it had filed against the state broadcaster, meant that the BA had also violated its right to an effective remedy.

The application was made in the First Hall of the Civil Court, in its Constitutional Jurisdiction.

The controversy centred on the failure by the national broadcaster to report the events that took place inside and outside of parliament on July 12, when Labour MPs rejected an opposition proposal to launch a public inquiry into the death of Jean Paul Sofia on a construction site at Corradino.

During the court proceedings, PN General Secretary Michael Piccinino testified that the Broadcasting Authority had ruled in favour of the PN complaint, acknowledging the lapse by the state broadcaster in not reporting the incidents and airing footage. Nevertheless, no directive was issued to PBS to comply with the decision, and the broadcaster took no action to do so.

The plaintiffs argued that this conduct by PBS and the BA constituted a breach of their constitutional duties, ultimately leading to the violation of the party's right to freedom of expression as safeguarded by the Constitution and the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Freedoms.

The court was asked to rule that the BA and PBS had failed in its obligation to guarantee equitable impartiality on subjects of political or industrial contention, ensure the fair allocation of broadcasting time among political parties and guarantee accuracy when broadcasting news of national importance.

Additionally, the court was asked to declare the BA at fault for not providing the party with an effective remedy after its decision to uphold the complaint against PBS, effectively subjecting the party to discrimination, Piccinino said in the sworn application.

Piccinino requested the court to award compensation for the damages incurred by the party as a result of the alleged violations.

Lawyers Paul Borg Olivier and Francis Zammit Dimech signed the sworn application.