FOREIGN INTERFERENCE ACT

FOREIGN INTERFERENCE

CHAPTER 300

FOREIGN INTERFERENCE ACT

To regulate the limitations on the political activities of aliens, and this

in accordance with Article 16 of the Convention of Rome (1950) for the

Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.

(1st September, 1982) *

ACT XI of 1982 , as amended by Acts XVII of 1982 , XIII of 1983 and

I of 1987 † ; and Legal Notice 423 of 2007 .

The shirt title of this Act is the Foreign Interference Act.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires -

"alien" where it refers to an individual means a person who is not

a citizen of Malta; where it refers to a body of persons, in whatever

manner constituted juridically, means any such body of persons

directly or indirectly controlled by persons who are not citizens of

Malta, and includes any State or Government; and where it refers to

a broadcast means any such broadcast transmitted from a station or

installation situate outside the territory of Malta and which is not

authorised by the Broadcasting Authority;

"broadcast" means broadcast by wireless telegraphy or wire or

both, and includes both sound and television broadcast;

"Broadcasting Authority" means the Broadcasting Authority

established by article 118 of the Constitution;

"intermediary agent" means any person or group of persons who,

irrespective of the proclaimed objectives, is involved in political

activity, and includes any citizen of Malta resident outside Malta

who so acts;

"Malta" has the meaning assigned to it in article 124 of the

Constitution;

"Monitoring Committee" means the Committee established under

this Act;

"Minister" means the Minister responsible for foreign affairs;

"person" includes any political party, and any political or other

organisation, institution or body whatsoever;

"political" where it does not refer to a party, person, club or

similar institution is restricted in meaning to matters connected

with the elections in Malta, or which may be reasonably deemed to

influence such elections, and matters connected with the internal or

foreign affairs of Malta;

"programme" includes an advertisement.

*See article 1(2) as originally enacted, which subarticle has been omitted under the

Statute Law Revision Act, 1980 and Government Notice No. 461 of 1st September,

†See article 9 of Act I of 1987.

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(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, it shall not be

lawful for an alien to perform, do, hold, take part in, aid or abet, or

allow, any restricted activity in Malta.

(2)

For the purposes of this Act, "a restricted activity" means -

(a) any activity, or participation in any activity, of a

political nature or having a political purpose at any

time during the period commencing nine months prior

to the date on which Parliament would, unless sooner

dissolved, stand dissolved by virtue of article 76(2) of

the Constitution and the date of the publication of the

results of an election, or at any time between the

dissolution of Parliament according to article 76(1) of

the Constitution and the date of the publication of the

results of an election;

(b) the provision at any time to or for the benefit of a

political party, person, club or similar institution,

whether directly or through an intermediary agent, of

any money, equipment or other material, by way of gift

or otherwise not against equivalent valuable

consideration, excluding books and other publications

intended for sale or distribution not exclusively or

mainly for Malta, unless such provision is authorised

by the Monitoring Committee in accordance with this

Act

Provided that nothing in this subarticle shall be deemed

to include anything which, taking into account the

value and any other circumstances, may be reasonably

considered as a bona fide gift of no political

significance.

(3) An activity as defined in subarticle (2)(a) shall not be a

restricted activity at any time other than that mentioned in the same

paragraph, provided that the person intending to hold or organising

such an activity notifies in writing five days in advance the

Secretary of the Monitoring Committee established under this Act,

but the Secretary may in urgent cases accept, in his discretion,

notification at a shorter notice.

(4) Nothing in this article shall be construed as affecting

normal diplomatic activities.

(5) Nothing in this article shall apply to any activity organised

by an international organisation of which the State of Malta is a

member, subject however to the condition that if it is a political

activity, this is not organised by a particular political group within

any such organisation.

(1) Where an alien programme of a political nature

broadcast from any place outside Malta is received in Malta and, by

reason of the language used or of the contents of the programme,

such broadcast may reasonably be deemed to be intended to be

received primarily in Malta, it shall not be lawful for any person

who is a citizen of Malta or who is ordinarily resident in Malta,

whether in his own behalf or in behalf or for account of any other

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person, to participate in any such broadcast or in any manner to aid

or abet the making of such broadcast, or to do anything which may

directly or indirectly be of assistance or encouragement to such

broadcast or to its reception in Malta, and in particular, but without

prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, to publish the times or

other details of any such broadcast.

(2) For the purposes of this article a person whose actions or

voice appear or are reproduced on any programme broadcast as

aforesaid, except where such person is merely a spectator, shall be

deemed to have participated therein unless he proves that the

programme was recorded without his knowledge or that the

programme was recorded or broadcast against his express

instructions.

(3) For the purposes of this article but without prejudice to the

generality of subarticle (1), a person who advertises, or invites or

encourages others to advertise any goods, service or other matter

on a broadcasting station from which programmes are broadcast in

contravention of subarticle (1), shall be deemed to have

participated in such broadcast.

(4) The provisions of this article shall not apply if the

broadcast is made with the written permission or concurrence of the

Broadcasting Authority, given in observance of its functions under

the Constitution as if such broadcasting originated in Malta, and in

strict compliance with any condition, limitation or restriction to

which such permission or concurrence may have been subjected.

(1) Any alien, and any other person who aids or abets any

such alien, and any intermediary agent, acting in contravention of,

or failing to comply with, any of the provisions of the foregoing

articles, or who does anything which is not lawful thereunder shall

be guilty of an offence against this Act and for each such offence

shall be liable, upon a first conviction, to a fine (multa) not

exceeding two thousand and three hundred and twenty-nine euro

and thirty-seven cents (2,329.37), upon a second conviction to a

fine (multa) of not less than two thousand and three hundred and

twenty-nine euro and thirty-seven cents (2,329.37) and not

exceeding eleven thousand and six hundred and forty-six euro and

eighty-seven cents (11,646.87) and upon a third or subsequent

conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months

and to a fine (multa) not exceeding eleven thousand and six

hundred and forty-six euro and eighty-seven cents (11,646.87), and,

in the case of a continuing offence upon any conviction, to an

additional fine (multa) not exceeding two hundred and thirty-two

euro and ninety-four cents (232.94) for each day during which the

offence has continued.

(2) Without prejudice to the provisions of any other law

relating to forfeiture, any funds, equipment or other movable thing

whatsoever, whether of the same kind or not, kept or used for or in

connection with any restricted activity or broadcast held in

contravention of any of the provisions of this Act, shall be forfeited

in favour of the Government, and such forfeiture shall be ordered

by the court in any case and whether or not such funds, equipment

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or other thing are the property of, or are kept or used by, the person

convicted or are the property or are used or kept by any other

person whatsoever.

(3) For the purposes of article 56 of the Constitution "foreign

interference" means any offence against any of the foregoing

provisions of this Act

Provided that in the case of an alien broadcast, no such

foreign interference shall be deemed to subsist if the person or the

political party, in whose favour or to whose benefit such a

broadcast is made or intended to be made, proves that he, or the

political party, as the case may be, did not make such broadcast or

in any way aid or abet prior to, during, or after the transmission,

any person in such broadcast.

(1) For the purposes of article 3, there shall be a

Committee, to be known as the "Monitoring Committee", which

shall consist of the Minister, and two members who shall be

members of Parliament and of whom one shall be designated by the

Prime Minister and the other by the Leader of the Opposition.

(2) Such designated members shall remain members of the

Committee notwithstanding that Parliament may stand dissolved,

and this until new members are appointed in their stead.

(3) The Clerk of the House of Representatives shall be the

Secretary of the Committee.

(4) The Committee shall have the functions assigned to it by

this Act.

(5) The Committee shall not authorise the receipt of any

money, equipment or other material by any political party unless it

is appropriately balanced by similar or equivalent contribution to

the other political parties, taking into account the size of their

representation in Parliament, and the decision shall be taken by a

unanimous vote.

(6) The Committee may act notwithstanding any vacancy in its

membership, but shall not act unless there are at least two members

in office and at least two members are present at the meeting at

which the decision is taken.

(7) Subject to the foregoing provisions of this article the

Committee may regulate its own procedure.

(8) The Minister shall by not later than the first sitting of

Parliament after the 15th January of each year lay on the Table of

the House a report showing every authorisation given by the

Monitoring Committee in accordance with the provisions of this

Act during the preceding year.

The Minister may make regulations -

(a) to prescribe the form to be used for the purposes of

this Act and any other matter that may be prescribed

under this Act;

(b) generally for the better carrying out of any of the

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provisions of this Act or for any other matter

incidental or supplementary thereto.