The monthly gathering held in Valletta to mark the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia is taking on a different dimension this month, with civil society organisations moving from a vigil to a mass protest following the acquittal of Yorgen Fenech.

For almost nine years, the 16th of each month has been associated with a vigil commemorating Caruana Galizia, who was killed in a car bomb attack on 16 October 2017. The vigils have served as a regular reminder of her assassination and of the demand for justice.

No such gatherings were held during the past two months while Fenech's trial was under way but, with the trial now concluded, Repubblika has called a demonstration in Valletta for Wednesday, 16 September, at 7pm, with a number of civil society organisations announcing that they will take part.

Among those supporting the protest are the Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation, Moviment Graffitti, aditus, PEN Malta, the National Youth Council (KNŻ), Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar (FAA), the University Students' Council (KSU), the Malta Entertainment Industry and Arts Association (MEIA), SOS Malta and Friends of the Earth Malta. Independent media, including The Malta Independent, are also backing the initiative. Their involvement gives the gathering a broader character than the monthly vigils, with the organisations presenting it as a protest not only over the acquittal but also over what they regard as continuing failures in Malta's political and institutional system.

Endorsing the protest, Moviment Graffitti said nine years had passed since Caruana Galizia was assassinated and Malta was "still without justice". It said the significance of Fenech's acquittal went beyond the outcome of the trial, arguing that the proceedings had highlighted what it described as deep-rooted problems within Malta's political and institutional system. It also linked those concerns to its wider campaigns, including workers' rights, the privatisation of public land, development and decisions by public authorities which it believes favour a small number of powerful interests at the expense of the common good.

Graffitti referred specifically to the findings of the public inquiry into Caruana Galizia's assassination, published in 2021. The inquiry concluded that the Maltese State had created an atmosphere in which the assassination became possible and highlighted inappropriate links between business interests, politicians and State institutions. Graffitti said the government's failure to implement what it described as the most important recommendations of the inquiry was among the reasons it was joining the demonstration.

The September 16 protest comes after one of the most closely watched criminal trials in Malta's recent history. Fenech was acquitted by a jury earlier this month, with jurors returning an 8-1 not guilty verdict on both charges he faced in connection with Caruana Galizia's murder. He had been accused of complicity in the assassination and of membership of a criminal organisation allegedly formed to carry out the murder. Fenech has consistently denied the charges.

The verdict ended the trial but left several strands of the wider case unresolved. The Attorney General is expected to pursue the legal avenues available to challenge the acquittal, while material arising during the proceedings has also been referred to ongoing magisterial inquiries and to the police for further investigation.

The government's response to the wider institutional questions is a central issue to be raised by protesters. The administration has repeatedly pointed to reforms introduced since the assassination and the publication of the public inquiry, including changes to the appointment of judges and magistrates. Under the revised system, candidates apply through calls for applications rather than being selected under the previous procedure.

The reform is one of the measures the government points to when defending its record, but critics argue that it represents only one part of a much wider programme recommended by the public inquiry.

The disagreement came to the fore again in Parliament last week when Opposition Leader Alex Borg presented a motion calling for the inquiry's recommendations to be implemented by the end of October. The government did not accept the Opposition's request for an immediate debate and vote, with the motion instead entering the normal parliamentary process.

The dispute reflects the wider divide over how much of the inquiry's work has been acted upon. The government maintains that significant reforms have been implemented and that further changes have been made or are under way. The Opposition and civil society organisations argue that the recommendations have not been implemented in full and that the government has been reluctant to engage with them as a package.

That argument has gained renewed relevance after the Fenech verdict because the public inquiry was concerned with precisely the institutional environment surrounding Caruana Galizia's assassination. Its purpose was not to determine criminal responsibility, which was left to the courts, but to establish how the State had failed and what changes were required to prevent similar failures from happening again.

The trial has also enforced the idea that Abela called a general election a year ahead of schedule because of the trial. He denies it, saying that the timing was dictated by the international situation. But the evidence produced during the trial, as well as its aftermath, are not ideal for a government heading towards an election, and Abela anticipated that.

The political consequences would have been markedly different had the election been held after the trial. Instead of campaigning before the proceedings began, the government would be facing voters in the wake of an 8-1 acquittal in the country's most politically charged murder case. Labour can therefore consider itself fortunate, politically speaking, that the electoral contest was settled before the trial was held.

The government's relationship with the wider Daphne Caruana Galizia case has remained a source of political controversy, particularly because of the links between Fenech and individuals who occupied influential positions during the previous Labour administration.

The government now has to address a debate in which there is no straightforward political resolution. It cannot control the jury's verdict, nor can it determine the outcome of any future legal proceedings. What it can control is its response to the institutional recommendations that followed the assassination.

This is where the September demonstration is likely to be significant. Concerns are broader than the trial and its outcome. They encompass the public inquiry, the independence and effectiveness of institutions, and what is described as a continuing culture in which powerful individuals can exercise disproportionate influence.

The decision to hold a protest rather than a vigil reflects that wider agenda. After two months of quiet, society is returning to the streets, with several organisations joining together and presenting the gathering as a demand for political and institutional action.

The September 16 demonstration will be the first major collective response from civil society following the conclusion of the trial. The decision by organisations with different areas of concern to join the same protest indicates that the case is being seen increasingly as an issue extending beyond the trial itself.

Nine years after Caruana Galizia's assassination, the debate has therefore moved into another phase. The court has delivered its verdict, but questions about institutional responsibility, the implementation of the public inquiry's recommendations and the State's response remain firmly on the political agenda.

On September 16, those questions will be taken from the courtroom and Parliament to the streets of Valletta.