Malta faces ongoing risks of "repeated instances of high-level corruption" unless it strengthens its legal system and protects journalists, according to Shami Chakrabarti, a British Labour peer and former director of the human rights group Liberty. Chakrabarti has been appointed as the special rapporteur for a Council of Europe investigation into the aftermath of the 2017 assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia, a prominent Maltese journalist known for exposing corruption. The inquiry follows the acquittal of Yorgen Fenech, a wealthy and politically influential businessman, who was charged with involvement in her murder. Fenech denies paying a middleman €150,000 to kill her. At the inquiry’s first hearing, Chakrabarti described the verdict as having "staggered many throughout Maltese society and beyond," noting that nearly nine years had passed since the assassination, yet no mastermind had been held accountable. The first witnesses at the hearing were Matthew Caruana Galizia, Daphne’s eldest son, and her sister Corinne Vella, both of whom questioned the verdict. The jury dismissed both charges against Fenech by an 8-1 majority, despite the public having seen all the evidence against him. Matthew stated that the Maltese public believed Fenech was complicit in the murder, leading to widespread disbelief at the jury's decision. Malta’s state prosecutor is reportedly preparing an appeal to secure a retrial. The Council of Europe, established in 1949 after World War II, created the European Convention on Human Rights and is composed of representatives from the parliaments of its 46 member states. Attendees at the hearing expressed shock and concern, urging the European Parliament and the European Commission to take action. Iulian Bulai, a Romanian centre-right politician, suggested the European Union could withhold funds from Malta using the rule of law conditionality mechanism, a process first used in 2022 against Hungary. He argued that if there were significant issues with the rule of law and the functioning of Maltese institutions, the EU should apply similar pressure to push for reform. Malta, the EU’s smallest member state with a population of 600,000, is a net recipient of EU money. Analysis suggests that since joining the EU 22 years ago, the island has received €2.4 billion more in subsidies than it has paid in. Chakrabarti said she would examine why Malta had failed to implement many of the recommendations from a public inquiry held after the murder. She emphasized that the targeted assassination of a journalist investigating high-level corruption had sent a chill down the spine of those who care about democratic values. Many claim that legal and policy changes needed to protect journalists and ensure the independent functioning of justice have not been carried out. Chakrabarti expressed concern about the absence of reforms in critical areas that make Malta vulnerable to repeated instances of high-level corruption and limit press freedom. The public inquiry found that while there was no evidence of the Maltese state’s direct involvement in the murder, it bore responsibility for creating a climate of impunity. It recommended Italian-style anti-mafia laws and making the hindrance of police investigations and abuse of office a crime for public officials. These measures have yet to be implemented. Vella stated that the fear that serious crimes could go unpunished had increased since the verdict, adding that journalists who continue to investigate corruption involving former government members now feel uneasy in their daily lives.