Watch: No One Deserves To Die Like This, Rita Ellul’s Daughter Pleads During Valletta Vigil
The daughters of murdered Maltese mother Rita Ellul addressed a vigil held today in Valletta, speaking from the heart just a day after police charged a man with their mother’s murder.
“No one deserves to die like this,” daughter Georgina said in front of Parliament, breaking into tears as vigil organisers moved to hug and support her.
“Like my sister said, seek help,” she said. “Now, what we want is for justice to be served, and for the courts to do their job.” Georgina thanked police, who she said had been helpful and supportive of the family so far.
A crowd gathered as other speakers addressed the crowd, include Rita’s cousin Sefora Tabone, another of Rita’s daughters, and the Women’s Rights Foundation’s Lara Dimitrijevic.
@lovinmaltaofficial Extremely emotional scenes this evening in #Valletta during the #vigil for #RitaEllul 🕯️ #fyp #fypmalta #lovinmalta #malta ♬ original sound – Lovin Malta
Rita, aged 49 and from Iklin, is being remembered not just for her courageous personality and as a mother of three, but a grandmother, auntie and friend.
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Aside from the public and scores of people horrified by what is the latest femicide in Malta, a number of politicians, including Opposition leader Bernard Grech and Reforms Minister Owen Bonnici, were on site to pay their respects to the slain mother.
Ghanaian national Lawrence Abina – Rita’s partner of four years – has been charged with her murder. The 30-year-old has pleaded not guilty to the murder, and is currently under police custody.
An autopsy on Rita’s body indicated that she been suffocated while at a home in Għajnsielem, Gozo, after police initially thought she had died naturally.
Ellul was allegedly placed in bed in a “natural” state, and a cup of fresh coffee had even been placed on the nearby cabinet, implying it was a normal morning. Ellul is believed to have died at around 6am Saturday morning – however, police only visited around noon, after Abina himself contacted them.
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