I’m publishing this piece by Annika Palome with reservations. Guest posts do not necessarily reflect my views but only of the guests. And I find myself in disagreement with some aspects of this particular post. But we’re living in strange times and stuck at home for days on end I too may have a warped [...]

Photo: Reuters/Darrin Zammit Lupi Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter has revealed that Yorgen Fenech, who has been at the centre of the 17 Black money laundering scandal, is the owner of a gaming company operating in the Swedish market.  The company, L&L Europe Limited, which is registered in Malta, was granted a Swedish license to [...]

The European Parliament's Special Committee on Financial Crimes, Tax Evasion and Tax Avoidance (TAX3), summoned the Maltese Justice Minister Owen Bonnici to answer questions on Malta’s failure to investigate alleged money laundering in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, exposed by the Panama Papers.  The Panama Papers, back in 2016, revealed that Malta Prime [...]

The first part of Annika Palome’s review of the aftermath of the Panama Papers was posted yesterday. Prime Minister Joseph Muscat aspires for Malta to be known as a modern hub of financial services, cryptocurrencies and “the fastest growing economy in Europe”. However, Panama Papers revelations about his Chief of Staff and a government Minister [...]

This is the first of two parts of Annika Palome's review of the aftermath of the Panama Papers. Part 2 will be posted tomorrow. The Court of Appeals has blocked a magisterial inquiry into possible money laundering allegedly committed by members of Joseph Muscat’s Cabinet and exposed by the Panama Papers. The inquiry was requested [...]

This is the concluding part of a series that started two days ago. In recent years, Malta has been basking in an economic growth that rivals many bigger European countries. However accusations of widespread corruption, a murdered journalist and criticism by EU institutions has cast a shadow on Malta’s glow. The European Parliament raised serious concerns about democracy and the rule of law in Malta in 2017 [...]

Part 1 of this series was posted yesterday. In recent years Malta has been rocked with a number of revelations of widespread corruption, erosion of free speech, and degradation of rule of law which tarnished its presidency of the European Union. Malta’s Prime Minister Muscat has brushed of these accusations as ”a coordinated attack on Malta by jealous countries”, but in reality, [...]

The author, Annika Palome, is a freelance journalist and a Master in International Law, currently doing a post-graduate degree in International Cooperation and Development Sciences. This is the first in a three-part series. When Western Europeans talk of an authoritarian regime, they would usually refer to communist or fascist states such as North Korea, China or Cuba.  But the road from democracy to authoritarianism is much more conceivable than we would think; it does not require an overthrow of the government, revolution, or coup d’état. All [...]