Eight prisoners currently serving time were allowed to spend a few hours at home with their families on Christmas Day, as authorities seek to improve the rehabilitative aspect of prison sentences.
The eight prisoners are all classified as low-risk inmates and were electronically tagged and monitored by officials at Corradino Correctional Facility throughout the time they were out of the facility.
Home Affairs Minister Michael Farrugia said that the pilot project was part of the government’s commitment to rehabilitate prisoners and help them reintegrate back into society once released.
The test also tallies with a Budget 2020 measure announced last October, to extend electronic tagging to a wider range of inmates.
Dr Farrugia said that the project would continue to be tested further in the near future.