   FOREIGN INTERFERENCE [ CAP. 300.        1
CHAPTER 300 
FOREIGN INTERFERENCE ACT
Substituted by: 
I. 1987.2.
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) *
Enacted by ACT XI of 1982, as amended by Acts: XVII of 1982, XIII of
1983 and I of 1987 † .
Short title.
Interpretation. 
Substituted by: 
I. 1987.3.
2. 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 section 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 section 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* See  subsection (2) of section 1 of the Act as originally enacted, which subsection has
been omitted under the Statute Law Revision Act, 1980 and Government Notice No.
461 of 1st September, 1982
† See  section 9 of Act I of 1987.
  2      CAP. 300. ]                FOREIGN INTERFERENCE
Restricted 
activities. 
Amended by: 
XVII.1982.2. 
Substituted by: 
I.1987.4.
3. (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 subsection (2)
of section 76 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
subsection (1) of section 76 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 subsection 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 paragraph   ( a ) of subsection (2) of
this section 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 section shall be construed as affecting
normal diplomatic activities.
(5) Nothing in this section 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.
Broadcasting 
received in Malta.  
Amended by: 
I. 1987.5.
4. (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
   FOREIGN INTERFERENCE [ CAP. 300.        3
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 section 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 section but without prejudice to the
generality of subsection (1) of this section, 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 subsection (1) of this
section, shall be deemed to have participated in such broadcast.
(4) The provisions of this section 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.
Penalties. 
Amended by: 
XIII. 1983.5; 
I. 1987.6.
5. (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
sections of this Act, 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 one thousand liri, upon a second conviction
to a fine ( multa ) of not less than one thousand liri and not
exceeding five thousand liri and upon a third or subsequent
conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months
and to a fine ( multa ) not exceeding five thousand liri, and, in the
case of a continuing offence upon any conviction, to an additional
fine ( multa ) not exceeding one hundred liri 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
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 section 56 of the Constitution "foreign
interference" means any offence against any of the foregoing
  4      CAP. 300. ]                FOREIGN INTERFERENCE
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.
Monitoring 
Committee. 
Amended by: 
XIII. 1983.4,5. 
Substituted by:
I. 1987.7.
6. (1) For the purposes of section 3 of this Act, 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 section 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.
Power to make 
regulations.  
Amended by: 
I. 1987.8.
7. 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
provisions of this Act or for any other matter
incidental or supplementary thereto.
