The Government of Malta said this morning that is "takes exception" to the statement issued by the organisation Reporters Without Frontiers under the title “RSF reiterates call for independent probe into Maltese journalist’s murder”.

The statement issued on Wednesday stated that the investigation into the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia was not conducted independently, was not international in nature and is also implying that the Government is giving political cover to persons implicated in the murder.

The government reiterated that there is absolutely no basis for these claims.  Our forces of law and order and those of various countries and also international organisations such as Europol and the FBI made substantial and valuable contributions to the investigation which led to the arraignment of three suspects in Court on 5 December . 

The announcement of the breakthrough in the investigation by the Prime Minister demonstrates the importance which Government gives to this case, rather than diminishing its value as RSF implies, the statement said. The government did not release the names of the suspects and went to great lengths to respect the presumption of innocence.

Furthermore, contrary to what was claimed in the journalists' statement, the Maltese Police stated that the arrest warrants were issued to them by the investigating (inquiring) magistrate in charge of the case.  The investigating (inquiring) Magistrate enjoys the trust of family Caruana Galizia.

All action taken in the course of the investigation were in accordance with the law and respected all procedural guarantees including the rights of defence, the government said.

The government appealed to RSF to adopt a balanced approach in commenting on the investigation and to acknowledge the need to respect the independence of the Maltese judiciary and the right to a fair trial.