Prime Minister pledges to expedite review process of detention policy

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has pledged to expedite the review process of the national detention policy arguing that asylum seekers reaching Maltese shores “cannot be treated like animals”.

Addressing a public consultation meeting in Siggiewi, Muscat said political responsibility had to be shouldered in view of the conclusions of the Kamara inquiry.

32-year-old Mamadou Kamara died in 2012 at the hands of detention services officers who beat him to death. An inquiry conducted by retired judge Geoffrey Valenzia into the case revealed that former minister Carm Mifsud Bonnici had stopped disciplinary action from being taken against officers involved in the death of a second migrant, just a year before.

Mifsud Bonnici is contesting this and has told MaltaToday that he “found it strange” that Lieutenant Colonel Brian Gatt – former head of the detention services – had said as much.

“There is political responsibility that must be shouldered: by those who stopped disciplinary action from being taken and by those who decided that the report should not be made public,” Muscat said.

He also confirmed that newly appointed minister Carmelo Abela was analysing how the review of the detention policy can be more expedite.

“This inquiry sheds light on a number of issues. While agreeing that those reaching our shores should be placed in detention, the conditions of the detention places and the time spent must change,” Muscat said. 

Migrants applying for asylum spend at least 18 months in detention. Muscat said that the current application detention was being counterproductive.

“Keeping them in those conditions for such a long time is counterproductive. We can’t be proud of saving people from the seas but then treat them like animals,” he said, adding that those two migrants may have died because of the system.

The Prime Minister said that while the European Union washed its hands off the crisis, Italy and Malta joined forces. While Malta was using its army assets at full capacity, Italy had much more resources. The decrease in numbers reaching Maltese shores was not the result of fewer crossings but because Italy was taking them in.

Muscat emphasized that the “strategic collaboration” between Italy and Malta was crucial for Malta.

He also said that Malta will retain its neutral position as a manner to bring divergent forces in Libya around the same tabled. Muscat argued that the presence of ISIS in Libya meant that there was a problem, not a crisis, on Malta’s doorstep.

On Enemalta, Muscat said the government not only managed to attract €320 million foreign direct investment but these were injected in a company on the verge of bankruptcy. The sale of 33% shares in Enemalta to Shanghai Electric Power also means that the Chinese-state owned company is the new owner of the Delimara 3 plant – the BWSC plant.

“What we achieved this week cannot be underestimated. We managed to turnaround Enemalta from a failed company to one with new opportunities,” he said.

The Prime Minister said Enemalta’s high debts, guaranteed by the government, also meant that banks were at risk. “The biggest threat I faced was would happen to the banks if Enemalta were to collapse? These banks, your savings, were endangered,” he told the audience.

Following the Chinese deal, Enemalta’s debts will now be halved. The first €250 million from this deal are expected to be deposited by end of year. Muscat said the government has retained the majority control in the energy generation company.

He argued, that with the planned pipeline, government would also be in a position to buy gas at more competitive prices while the interconnector was “our fallback position”.

“At the present prices, it is not worthwhile buying electricity from abroad but it’s better to generate it ourselves. But we didn’t want to exclude it because we wanted to ensure a security of supply while keeping in mind that a supply mix would benefit consumers.”

The prime minister also announced that a government delegation will be heading to Azerbaijan this afternoon for meetings with the country's leadership. The trip is intended on securing a gas supply for the new power station in Delimara.

Muscat praised the previous administration’s efforts in succeeding in the mainstreaming of education and the integration of persons with disability. He however said that this integration ended once these students finished secondary school.

“It will be an important legacy of this government to see the integration of persons with disability at the work place and their success,” he said.

During Budget 2015, the government announced the opening up of 10 homes in the community for persons with disability. The first home will be opened in Siggiewi. It also announced that persons with disability will no longer pay taxes on their inheritance which is placed in a trust.

Muscat acknowledged that people always expect better from politicians and the Sheehan shooting inquiry flagged a tradition of political parties saying one thing in opposition but act differently once in government: “We have broken that tradition and as difficult as that decision was, we have now raised the bar. We understand that people expect better from us.”

The Prime Minister was this week forced to sack former home affairs minister Manuel Mallia after the latter refused to resign, arguing that he never did anything wrong.

“When I talk to people in general they tell me that, on a political and economical level, the government is doing well. They do also say that we at times we may appear arrogant. And if it is the people that say this, then it means that they are feeling it too. We humbly receive this message because we want to correct our wrongdoings,” he added.