Brussels (Belgium): The European Union’s executive arm yesterday said that it wants to see the EU adopt a law to protect journalists and civil rights activists from lawsuits aimed at censoring them.

The proposed law would allow courts to dismiss cases early in the proceedings and puts the burden of proof on the parties bringing lawsuits “to prove that the case is not manifestly unfounded,” the  European Commission said.

The Commission proposed safeguards to curb SLAPPS, or strategic lawsuits against public participation. It described such litigation as a “serious threat to democracy and fundamental rights, such as freedom of expression and information.”

Daphne Caruana Galizia, a Maltese investigative journalist who was killed in a 2017 car bombing, faced more than 40 lawsuits when she was killed, the Commission said.

The European Union (EU) is a political and economic union of 27 European countries. EU policies aim to ensure the free movement of people, goods, services and capital within the internal market; enact legislation in justice and home affairs; and maintain common policies on trade, agriculture, fisheries and regional development.