Civil Society Network calls for Jason Micallef’s resignation over post mocking Daphne Caruana Galizia

The group said Micallef’s disparaging remarks on social media about the murdered journalist showed a divisive and insensitive attitude not worthy of a state official heading the European capital of culture

The Civil Society Network (CSN) has called for the resignation of V18 chairman Jason Micallef over a Facebook post mocking assassinated journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.

On Sunday Micallef uploaded photos from Saturday’s St Patrick’s day celebrations with an accompanying post reading: “St Patricks Day in Malta. The situation is desperate. There is happy people everywhere you look”.

Micallef's Facebook post
Micallef's Facebook post

The post was a reference to Caruana Galizia’s now-famous last blog post, and was one of a series of outbursts by the V18 chairman about the slain journalist and the civil society movement calling for justice.

A day earlier Micallef said Caruana Galizia was “divisive in her life and worse in her death” in reaction to activists erecting a banner demanding justice for Caruana Galizia. The V18 chairman has also publicly called for the removal of a makeshift memorial to the murdered journalist at the foot of the Great Siege monument in front of the law courts.

“Civil Society Network is calling for the resignation of Jason Micallef from head of V18 following his disparaging remarks on social media about murdered journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia,” read a statement by CSN.

The group added that Micallef had also attacked activists’ freedom of speech by suggesting their actions of protest should be stopped.

“This weekend Jason Micallef made fun of Caruana Galizia’s ‘situation is desperate’ statement that she made just a few hours before she was blown up. His divisive and insensitive attitude is not worthy of the state official heading the European Capital City of Culture. Jason Micallef should therefore resign.”

Similar posts were also uploaded by OPM staffer Neville Gafa, and Alex Saliba - head of the EU secretariat at the Ministry of European Affairs.

Reacting to Micallef’s statement, Caruana Galizia’s son Andrew said Micallef enlisting an unwitting St Patrick’s Day crowd to support his argument proved how right she was all along.

Micallef has since taken to Facebook to complain about being targeted by hatred and having his freedom of expression stifled.