One must begin reading this leading article with the understanding that media in Malta are bound not to publish anything which is related to the content of the local council elections which are to be held tomorrow.

Strictly speaking, we have breached that ‘law’ simply by what is stated in our introduction. We will, of course, refrain from publishing any material which could ‘influence’ you, our readers, before the vote. Last year, we had said that in this modern world, this ‘law’ is, “about as useful as a chocolate teapot”. Many agreed with us. This year, we again make the appeal – get rid of this useless and stupid regulation, it is about 20 years out of date.

We ask the question… What on earth are we supposed to be reflecting about anyway? The last time we had a vote, it was about whether or not divorce should be introduced in Malta. This is a heavy topic and the nation was transfixed by the campaign, yet still, we argued that even in this case, the day of reflection was redundant.

How can we stop to reflect, when new media allows readers and viewers to go back over past content with just the click of a button? Have we not yet learned our lesson of how politicians will blatantly lie (and eventually be summoned to court for libel), on the last day of a campaign, knowing that opponents will have no chance to rebut allegations because of this silly, ridiculous rule.

And it brings us back to the point of discussion. What are we supposed to reflect about? These are local council elections. We are not being asked about EU treaties, referendum questions or who is to lead the national government.

This is about who is going to be the liaison officer for rubbish collection in Safi or Qrendi… Oh, lots of thinking and reflecting to do there. Local councils are an important tool of local governance, however, the fact that we are going to elect local representatives does not warrant a day of silence by all media, new, print, television and radio.

The country recently discovered that it was abiding by a law that didn’t exist for 70-odd years. In the meantime, writers and editors have been hauled in front of the courts because someone squeamish decided that certain writings in Realtà were not ‘decent’. At the same time, journalists and editors are at the mercy of the courts when criminal (yes, in 2012, criminal) libel proceedings are pressed, at the request of complainants.

We have to decide. Are we the modern shining beacon of economic hope in the Mediterranean, or are we just a backwater Inquisition playground? We can’t do both. Yet, at the same time, we have done for the past 40 years.