Rosianne Cutajar proposes domestic violence registry

Labour MP Rosianne Cutajar said Malta should consider introducing a system where police could disclose information to people about their partner’s domestic abuse history.

Speaking in parliament on Wednesday, the MP referenced statistics tabled in parliament on Tuesday, which showed 538 domestic violence reports filed in first four months of 2022.

From the 538 reports between 1 January and 30 April 2022, St Paul’s Bay had the highest number of reports with 29, followed by Zabbar with 24 and Zejtun with 23. Dingli, Iklin and Mqabba only had one report each filed with the police this year.

She said authorities should consider having a register of people who have a domestic violence and abuse history.

“People have the right to know if their partner has a history of abuse,” Cutajar told the House.

She said government should consider adopting legislation similar to that in the United Kingdom. The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS), also known as “Clare’s Law” enables the police to disclose information to a victim or potential victim of domestic abuse about their partner’s or ex-partner’s previous abusive or violent offending.

She also referenced a recent Times of Malta report on a man who had banged his partner’s head against the floor, but did not receive any punishment. He had walked away without any consequence, despite admitting to his actions.

“No wonder there are people who don’t take this step if they’ve lost trust in our courts,” she said.