Earlier this week, I submitted my formal reply to the Office of the Information and Data Protection Commissioner in response to a complaint filed against me by Mr. John Caruana, Head of the Monetary Policy and Operations and Eurosystem Relations Department at the Central Bank of Malta.
Mr. Caruana accused me of breaching his data protection rights by publishing photographs and video footage of him placing candles at the Great Siege Monument in Valletta on 1 May. I categorically rejected his claims and made it clear that this complaint is both legally unfounded and politically motivated.
The footage in question was captured in a public space — in broad daylight — as Mr. Caruana, a senior public official, engaged in conduct that clearly carried political and symbolic weight. His actions were not private. They were public, deliberate, and visible to all, including government employees and passersby.
As I made clear in my reply, there is strong legal precedent under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Maltese Data Protection Act: images and recordings taken in public spaces, especially involving public figures, do not in themselves constitute data breaches. Furthermore, I published the content strictly in the context of public interest commentary — a right protected under freedom of expression laws and firmly grounded in journalistic scrutiny.
Rather than address the legitimate concerns I raised — namely, the use of a national monument as a partisan shrine — Mr. Caruana chose to file a complaint in what I believe is a clear attempt to intimidate and censor. He is not protecting privacy — he is trying to silence criticism.
In my formal response, I set out the following facts:
- The content was recorded in a public space.
- Mr. Caruana was acting openly and knowingly in full view.
- No sensitive or private data was revealed.
- The publication served a public interest purpose.
- Therefore, the action does not amount to unlawful data processing.
I concluded by requesting that the complaint be dismissed as manifestly unfounded.
This is not just about one complaint. It is about a disturbing pattern in this country, where individuals in positions of power attempt to weaponize data protection laws to muzzle independent reporting and silence critics. I will not be intimidated — and I will continue to expose hypocrisy, no matter how high up the ladder it sits.
Attached my reply 👇
