So, we have been under the illusion that political satire has been illegal for 70-odd years. It was no surprise at all that following what was announced by Culture Minister Mario de Marco, most politicians were very quick to express how happy they are at the ‘newfound’ sense of legal interpretation.

Why are they not honest with themselves and with us, the general public? The law as it was interpreted before Dr de Marco’s announcement suited them fine. Maltese politicians are vain and hyper sensitive. This is evidenced by the huge number of libel cases, some of them criminal, in the Maltese courts.

It is about time that Maltese people stood up to be counted and start to question our laws. One wonders just how many laws are applied that are completely out of date or inexistent, having seen the satire issue unfold.

This comes hot on the heels of a court judgment which threw out an appeal filed by the Attorney General’s Office against an author and the editor of a university magazine. We claim to be a modern European democracy, but it is amply clear, we are still stuck in the past. The government should set up a task force to go through Maltese legislation and find out what, exactly, is relevant and what is not. I am sure that they will find a multitude of laws that should be thrown out of the window.

One wonders what next year’s Carnival will bring in terms of political satire. No doubt, being Maltese, we will probably overstep the limits, but will again settle down and wonder what all the hullabaloo was about.

■ Edward Fenech

Lija