The family of slain journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia said it hoped that the world will become safer for journalists after a court sent two men found guilty on charges related to her murder to life in prison.

The criminal court in Malta today has sentenced car bomb suppliers Robert Agius and Jamie Vella to life imprisonment and other penalties for their role in Daphne's murder on 16 October 2017.

"In their pre-sentencing submission to the court this morning, our lawyers asked for the penalties to reflect the 8-1 verdict (which showed that the jury was morally convinced beyond reasonable doubt of the accused's guilt), and for the court to consider the devastating impact of Daphne's brutal murder both on our family and on society," the family said in a statement.

The car bomb attack that killed Daphne sent shock waves through Maltese society that reverberated around the world.

"Her assassination created a sense in society that the people behind her murder were sure of their impunity and that the institutions that are duty-bound to protect her and society had failed. To us, Daphne's death is the loss of an irreplaceable member of our family, but to wider society, Daphne's murder was the killing of a journalist," the family said.

"We want justice for Daphne's murder, not revenge, which is why we believe that calls for the reintroduction of capital punishment are mistaken. Daphne herself did not support capital punishment, and we share her view.

"We hope that today's sentences will be a step towards a safer world for journalists by signalling to potential killers that there are heavy penalties to pay when a journalist is murdered."