Incredible how things change and the tables turn. Opposition MP, Mark Anthony Sammut, yesterday, made a speech in parliament in favour of free speech and proposed the removal of the act of insult from the criminal code and the Electronic Communications Act. He is saying what the Labour Party should say and do. The Labour Party is consolidating the criminalisation of insult while providing exceptions for artists.
Mark Anthony Sammut also made a very good point and he is right about it. The provisions that the Labour government will be introducing do not cover the insults made by Matthew Bonnano towards Gordon Manche given that they were not made in any artistic context. The exceptions introduced by Labour are effective only insofar as the artist is doing art in their speech is part of the art, and do not cover explicit insults by artists made in their daily life.
It’s preposterous how the Labour government is making great efforts to legislate for the sake of theatre whilst being extremely cautious it does not give away any power in controlling public speech. And it’s very telling that it is the Nationalist Party that is at the forefront of defending free speech. So much for “progressive social-democrats”.
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