Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has insisted that established procedure was followed on Thursday 28 November, when journalists were temporarily blocked from leaving Castille after an early morning press conference.
The Malta Institute of Journalists, however, said the PM’s reply confirms the serious problems journalists are facing.
Paul Caruana Galizia, the IGM and a number of journalists had filed a judicial protest the day after the press conference, claiming that their rights had been breached when they were “illegally” stopped from leaving. The judicial protest was filed against the Prime Minister and the Attorney General.
The press conference was held after a lengthy Cabinet meeting during which it was decided that Yorgen Fenech’s second presidential pardon request should be rejected. The doors were temporarily blocked by unknown individuals posing as security officials at the end.
In his reply, the PM said the procedure followed, where the Cabinet members exited the room before the members of the media, did not constitute any illegal action or breach of rights. He argued that anyone organising an event has every right to establish procedures. This procedure is always followed in public events, in order to avoid people crowding at the doors, which can pose a security risk. This does not constitute an ‘illegal arrest’ or a breach of rights, he argued.
Reacting, the IGM said the journalists present for the press conference were not informed about such an agreement. It said no such procedure had ever been adopted in past events attended by the Prime Minister. This protocol, if it even exists, has never been followed before, the institute said.
The IGM said the PM’s comments about crowd control were an “insult” to journalists because members of the press had never caused any security risks. On the other hand, journalists are the ones who often end up at risk during the course of their duties.
The PM has also failed to comment on the unidentified ‘security’ personnel, the IGM said. It asked whether these individuals are government employees, and who had asked them to attend the press conference. “Why was the need felt to engage these individuals when all the journalists present had identified themselves and are journalists of good faith?”
The IGM said these individuals were brought in only to hinder journalists and stop them from asking questions.
If the PM feels that journalists should be described as a “crowd” and that he needed “security officials” to manage them then the authorities truly have no respect towards the members of the press, it said, once again condemning what happened during that press conference and the PM’s reply to the judicial protest.