'The mafia exists among us': Repubblika tells MPs to adopt anti-mafia laws

Repubblika, rule of law NGO, has appealed for Malta’s MPs to vote in favour of an anti-mafia Bill put forward by the Opposition.

In a letter sent out on Monday, the NGO said that it is perplexed by the Prime Minister’s comments on the Bill. Robert Abela had said he does not agree with the Bill because it would brand Malta as mafia state.

‘This is an absurd argument that defeats the scope of every penal law. Recognising Malta as a mafia state does not depend on whether we have a law to fight it or not,” Repubblika President Robert Aquilina wrote in the letter.

The anti-mafia Bill is up for discussion in Parliament on Monday with a first reading scheduled at around 4:30pm.

“This Bill, once adopted in Parliament, will fulfill the recommendations of the Daphne Caruana Galizia inquiry that warned of a ‘need to introduce a crime similar to Article 416 of the Italian Criminal Code that recognises crimes of mafia-like nature (di associazione di stampo mafioso)’.”

Repubblika said that the Prime Minister would be wrong to deny a mafia presence in Malta. Even if he wanted to deny such presence, Repubblika said that he should not object to strengthening independent insitutions and grant them the legal tools necessary to fight and destroy mafia-like associations.

“The truth is that the mafia exists and it lives among us. We can see its fingers int he evidence that the prosecution brought against those charged with killing Daphne Caruana Galizia,” the NGO said.

The Bills put forward by the Nationalist Party will introduce several acts targeted towards fighting corruption and mafia-style crimes.

These include introducing a set crime for mafia association and organised crime, a special inquiring magistrate to focus only on corruption investigations, the obstruction of justice, and unexplained wealth orders, among others.

Additionally, the package includes a Bill enshrining a declaration in favour of journalism in the Maltese constitution.

Government initially refused a first reading in parliament, with Labour Whip Glenn Bedingfield saying the motion had “aspects of a money bill” and was therefore precluded by House rules and Constitution.

Instead, the PN split the 12 Bills into two private members’ bill, to bypass the claims by government. The first group contains 11 acts, with no possible reference to a money bill, while the second contains the bill that calls for the appointment of a special inquiring Magistrate to fight organised crime and corruption by public officials.

“Now the government should have no excuse to discuss the Bill and should not keep evading discussions,” PN leader Bernard Grech argued.