Between rehabilitation and revulsion, Evans presents us with moral conundrum

When news of Hibernians football club’s interest in acquiring Welsh footballer Ched Evans swept the internet, controversy raged as to whether the 23-year-old – convicted for raping a teenager – should be allowed to play football in Malta.

The matter was soon settled when the British Ministry for Justice declared that Evans, due to his conviction, could not play overseas.

But just like in the UK, the discussion continued on whether a convicted rapist should be allowed to return to his ‘normal life’ as part of his rehabilitation or whether he should be barred for life from taking part in spectator sports where he is treated like a ‘star’. 

A petition against signing Evans to Oldham Athletic attracted a signature per second; the former Sheffield United striker walked out of prison after serving half of his five-year prison term and continues to protest his innocence. 

On Monday, both the Malta Confederation for Women’s Organisations (MCWO) and Men against Violence expressed their disagreement with Hibs’s interest in Evans, arguing that signing Evans would have been tantamount to an acceptance of rape: “Women in Malta rightly expect the solidarity of all Maltese males to publicly demonstrate their abhorrence to all forms of violence against women at both the institutional and the individual level.”

But those defending Evans’s right to return to his professional football career argue that it would also be a form of rehabilitation which would also serve as a good example to others.

“Evans has served his sentence and he now wants to return to his job. Are we handing him a life sentence or do we truly believe in the rehabilitation of offenders? I would have been very pleased if Hibs were to sign Evans on because we would truly be practising what we preach,” George Busuttil, director of prisoners’ NGO Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl, told MaltaToday.

Conceding that Evans’s conviction for rape was grievous and should in no way be treated frivolously, Busuttil said the footballer was not a serial rapist and it was society’s duty “to help him find his feet” instead of prohibiting him from doing the one thing he knows how to do.

“We could have used him as a ‘role model’... an example of a person who has paid for one’s crime and moved forward. How can we talk about rehabilitation if we are the first to stop them from rejoining society?”

Busuttil also criticised Malta’s use of a police conduct, which he said served only to eliminate a prisoner’s chances of being employed: “The moment they are asked for their conduct is the moment they realise they will never find a job.”

He went on to argue that the Evans case on its own was sending a message to all prisoners that there would be no life for them beyond the prison walls. “A person who has been punished and served his term can’t be condemned for life. It’s a mark which they will carry forever but what sort of rehabilitation are we giving them? It’s all about striking a balance,” he said, adding that it would have been a “different” matter if it were a convicted paedophile seeking a job with children.

Lawyer Lara Dimitrijevic and founder of Women Rights Foundation however argued that Evans never showed remorse over what happened: “On the contrary, he mocked the truth and played the victim.”

Explaining that rape is a very heinous crime and horrific act of violence against women, she said rapists should be convicted and rehabilitated. 

Rehabilitation, she said, does not mean that conviction is not possible, but that it was meant to ensure that the offender does not repeat the crime and fully understands the repercussions and consequences of his actions.

“Nor does rehabilitation mean that the offender has been forgiven for his acts. Ched Evans was found guilty, served time and is now placed under parole, thus he has to follow orders of his probation officer. Breach of probation orders would mean that the offender would be sent back to jail.

“Lance Armstrong, a world-known sportsman, lost seven tours de France titles and all sponsors after news broke out that he took performance enhancing drugs. Tiger Woods lost most sponsors and today holds a small portfolio for cheating on his wife. Ched Evans has been convicted of rape. Furthermore, he never once apologised or even acknowledged what he did. On the contrary, he mocked the truth and played the victim.”

Dimitrijevic said that everyone had a right to work, convicted rapists included. But being a footballer, his sport is widely followed by many and has a large number of football fans, ranging from the young to the old. 

“As a local football club (or any international football club for that matter), pushing him as a ‘star’ in your team would be implying that you have no qualms with rape. It would be sending the message to many, especially fans, that it is ok to be a ‘star’ as you would get away with murder,” she said.

“By way of example, a teacher that was found guilty of pedophilia would not be allowed to teach young children, if a judge, minister or any other high public figure where to be found guilty of an offence he would be removed from his position and banned from serving in public office. The same should apply to Ched Evans, who is a role model to many.”

The controversial move by Hibernians also provoked reactions by the political class: Justice Minister Owen Bonnici said Evans should be given a second chance, while Prime Minister Joseph Muscat warned that the decision would “define the club and to an extent Malta.”

PN MP Jason Azzopardi, shadow home affairs minister and honorary president of the Hibs club, also argued that Evans should be given a second chance.

In comments to MaltaToday, PN leader Simon Busuttil said the “case is closed”, since Evans is not able to travel for work outside the United Kingdom.

British media that followed the Evans trial reported that CCTV footage showed Evans’s victim was so drunk the night he raped her that she was stumbling into his friend as she walked. She woke up dazed and naked, her clothes scattered on a hotel room floor.

“The complainant was 19 years of age and was extremely intoxicated... As the jury have found, she was in no condition to have sexual intercourse,” the judge told Evans during the trial. “When you arrived at the hotel, you must have realised that.”

The 19-year-old victim cannot be named for legal reasons but she has been repeatedly identified by internet hounds. The jury found that she had been raped by Evans after she bumped into Evans’s friend, Clayton McDonald, also a footballer, at 4am in a kebab shop in Rhyl.

According to a report by The Guardian, in the taxi to the Premier Inn, which Evans had booked for his and McDonald’s night out, McDonald texted him: “I’ve got a bird.” Once inside the hotel room, McDonald was having sex with the girl when Evans arrived.

The court heard that the girl was asked if Evans could “join in”. He claimed that she consented, but the jury rejected that. Evans did “join in”. His brother and friend were outside the room laughing, trying to film what was happening on their phones. While Evans was having sex with the girl, McDonald left the room. Evans left later, by the fire escape.

The Guardian reported that they then walked back to Evans’ family home in Rhyl. The teenage girl woke up at 11am, on her own in the room. She said she did not know what had happened, even how she had ended up there, and went to the police that night. The two men were prosecuted for rape, on the ground that the victim was too drunk to have been capable of consenting to sex.

The jury which heard the evidence acquitted McDonald but convicted Evans, who served half of a five-year sentence for rape before being released in October.