Today ADPD-The Green Party Chairperson Sandra Gauci, together with Secretary General Ralph Cassar and PRO Brian Decelis, placed flowers at the Daphne Caruana Galizia memorial at the Great Siege Monument opposite the Law Courts in Valletta.

Sandra Gauci said: "Eight years have passed since the macabre assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, and the situation in the country has not only not improved but has gone from bad to worse.  It is enough to see what the government is doing with the proposals concerning the planning reform bills.  Instead of strengthening the checks and balances and accountability amongst authorities, the government is trying to remove any obstacles that developers encounter.

These proposals are a threat to the rule of law, a rule of law that Daphne took very seriously.  Instead of strengthening democracy and citizens' rights, the government is passing laws that will steamroller the public so that whoever is in power will rule in a way which will quash public concern.

The people have already shown their anger through the large protest that filled the streets of Valletta a week ago, with people who understood that the few tools that they have at their disposal to fight this abuse will now be taken away. Instead of seeinginstitutions changing their ways after Daphne's death, that impunity has festered and grown, so much so that it has become the modus operandi of this government.

This is a government which has been hijacked by developers.  They have become stronger and have become, in Labour's own words, our modern-day 'barons'.  It has become the norm for many people to have the government buy votes by sending cheques a few weeks before the election; they have become used to having people breaking the law and then simply paying a fine instead of facing the law.  Everything has a price, but nothing is considered of value.  It is no longer a case of knowing good from evil.  In fact, if you attempt to show what is wrong, you will be slandered, or in extreme cases, as in Daphne's case, have you murdered.

This assassination reminds us of the two choices we have: we either speak up when we see wrongdoing and we pay the price, or we ignore it and let our country sink, ADPD said.