The Guardian has reported the murder of the Maltese anti-corruption blogger Daphne Caruana Galuzia, saying:
The journalist who led the Panama Papers investigation into corruption in Malta was killed on Monday in a car bomb near her home.
Daphne Caruana Galizia died on Monday afternoon when her car, a Peugeot 108, was destroyed by a powerful explosive device which blew the vehicle into several pieces and threw the debris into a nearby field.
A blogger whose posts often attracted more readers than the combined circulation of the country's newspapers, Caruana Galizia was recently described by the Politico website as a “one-woman WikiLeaks”. Her blogs were a thorn in the side of both the establishment and underworld figures that hold sway in Europe's smallest member state.
I suggest reading the whole report.
I admit to being shocked, and to be being slightly in shock. I also make clear I did not know Daphne Caruana Galizia, so the loss is not personal. But this is a murder of a type that I always presumed was possible one day. The chance that those with money might eventually fight back physically against those who named and shamed the corruption that they undertook, and undertake, through tax havens was always, and is now all too obviously, real. And now it has happened, targeting a journalist and blogger for doing what journalists have done so well throughout the whole history of the tax justice and anti-corruption movements, by bringing the systemic risks of corruption to people's attention by highlighting individual cases where the risk appears to have been significant.
I share the sentiments of fellow Tax Justice Network founder Sven Giegold MEP, speaking to the Guardian:
Responding to news of the attack, the German MEP Sven Giegold, a leading figure in the parliament's Panama Papers inquiry, said he was “shocked and saddened”.
“It is too early to know the cause of the explosion but we expect to see a thorough investigation,” said Giegold. “Such incidents bring to mind Putin's Russia, not the European Union. There can be absolutely no tolerance for violence against the press and violations of the freedom of expression in the European Union.”
And I strongly suspect that this is correct:
The [Maltese] Nationalist party leader, Adrian Delia — himself the subject of negative stories by Caruana Galizia — claimed the killing was linked to her reporting. “A political murder took place today,” Delia said in a statement. “What happened today is not an ordinary killing. It is a consequence of the total collapse of the rule of law which has been going on for the past four years.”
Tax havens, and those who promote them do seek to undermine democracy, and they have always sought to undermine the rule of law. Daphne Caruana Galizia was killed for defending both.
Caruana Galizia was 53 and leaves a husband and three sons. I extend my condolences and symathies to them and hope that they can believe that she did not die in vain.
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“….said Giegold. “Such incidents bring to mind Putin’s Russia,….)
I’m not comfortable with that. It also brings to mind similar incidents in the ‘Land of the Free’
It is probably no coincidence that ALL the US presidents assassinated to date were challenging the stranglehold of big money institutions, individuals and organised crime on the overall economy.
To point the finger at an individual high profile ‘villain’ at a particular time in history is to miss the point entirely.
Daphne Caruana Galizia RIP. ‘So it goes’ As Kurt Vonnegut would have said. (In context that is not a shrug of the shoulders. It is a secular blessing.)
How does one make nominations for a Nobel Peace Prize? I suspect ‘one’ doesn’t.
I remember seeing this on the news and I can tell you that cars do not just blow up like that.
This act was meant to get rid of an irritant to the killer or their associates but also no doubt to send out a message to others. It was a terrible end for a mother, wife and public interest journalist to meet.
Never mind BREXIT and Spain – what will the EU do about this?
The FBI has been asked in
Which is a little surprising
Never!
This may have a USA connection then because surely Interpol would be involved? It might have something to do with a well known criminal org’ that begins with ‘m’.
A tragedy. Some turbulent voices can only be stilled by death. I was reminded immediately of the American anti-establishment journalist Michael Hastings, killed when his car blew up. More here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zakBULPETo This sort of thing appears to be already happening in America, one has to wonder when it will be resorted to here. I don’t think we have any one individual who could be seen as a rabble-rouser or cheerleader who might attract that kind of action at the moment though.
Supping with the Americans may be dangerous. Michael Hastings may have been one, Karen Silkwood another example of trending away from accepted elite tenets.
Those with power (& without morals) will always resport to violence when their position or money are threatened.
The problem in Malta (& many (all?) EU states is an elective aristocracy (& no term limits). This breeds the corruption which Mrs Galizia exposed.
Example of elective aristocracy: Gierek – Edward Gierek ex Communist PM of Poland – son now an MEP. One can point to numerous politicos like that both at EU level and national level.
No term limits also breeds corruption – you can see that in the Tory party where MPs collect directorships like stamps & would get elected even if they were a chimp – provided they wear a blue rossette at election time.
I have mentioned the book “Against Elections” in a previous post. If some of its suggestions were implemented these would go some way to mitigating the corruption which appears to be part & parcel of our “bodies politic”.
I do not think that the lady died in vain – her murder investigation should shine a light on corruption in Malta & one hopes that, for example, a team of EC auditors from Olaf is dispatched to continue her good work.
She died unnecessarily
I hope not in vain