11 inmates currently in rehabilitation programme

Home affairs minister Carmelo Abela said that some 11 inmates were currently in the rehabilitation programme being offered at the Sant' Anna rehabilitation centre in Bahar ic-Caghaq.

Abela said that the residents were at the home for between eight to ten months and that the placement was paid for by the Corradino Correctional Facility, with upkeep of every inmate costing some €45 a day.

During a consultation with the residents, Abela and justice minister Owen Bonnici said that the drug law reform had provided inmates with a unique opportunity - the centre offers a rehab programme for those in prison for drug-related crimes.

Bonnici said that inmates were now being given an opportunity to voluntarily seek out the rehabilitation programme for part of their sentence.

Responding to concerns voiced by one of the inmates about the fact that some inmates had to return to prison after the programme due to pending sentences, Bonnici added that those who were truly committed to their reform might be given the opportunity to serve the rest of their sentence in alternate ways like community service, depending to the nature of their crime.

One of the residents present also pointed out how helpful this programme could be, particularly to those serving the last few months of their sentence at the centre, which could serve as a halfway house before they were fully integrated into society.

He added that the residents were also guided on how to rejoin the working world.

Another resident voiced his concern about the fact that drugs were often present within prison itself. "If I return to prison after the programme, I'm concerned about the presence of drugs there," he said.

Abela said that the fight against drugs in prison was ongoing and that the facility would not be forgiving towards traffickers within the walls, but that its doors would be open to users who wished to reform.

He added that the rehabilitation programme was part of the commitment to provide rehabilitation for prisoners and that the re-entry rates for crime related to drug use had dropped significantly.

"The rate of prisoners who had fallen back into the drug crime circles after having served their sentences dropped from 69% in 2010 to 42% in 2014," Abela said.

Bonnici further added that under the new reform, those accused of drug related crimes could appeal to review their cases from criminal ones to social ones, and thatso far, there had been some six cases of the kind.

Bonnici also stressed the importance of society giving these former inmates and addicts a second chance.

"To this end, the new law reform also allows former inmates to clead their police condust once they have stayed clean for a year or over from the day they leave prison," Bonnici said addressing the fears of most of the inmates.