Malta commemorates Freedom Day

Mar 31, 2026

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Earlier today at the Freedom Day monument in Birgu, the President of Malta laid a wreath to commemorate the 47th annual anniversary of Freedom Day, marking the closure of the British base in Malta. The feast symbolises Malta’s economic transition from a military and base economy to a civilian economy with a neutral status.

Malta’s economy was primarily dependent on British defence spending for more than a century before the country began multiple processes of political emancipation and economic development. These formed part of the social, political, and economic struggles following the Second World War, which led to Malta’s decolonisation, independence, the establishment of a republic, and ultimately the closure of the British military base and the achievement of economic independence.

The President of Malta was accompanied by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Ian Borg and Opposition MP Robert Cutajar.