Three migrant children and three adults have been released from detention at Safi where they had been held illegally for 58 days, the Aditus Foundation, which instituted a court case about the matter, said on Monday.

The foundation said the Magistrates' Court, on the basis of a procedural issue, had rejected the application for the release and had not examined the legality of the detention. Yet a few minutes after the court casem, the government entities present in court ordered the release of the six, a complete volte-face from their previous position that they were not in fact detaining them.

"Although we remain baffled at this twist of events and astounded by the lack of clarity as to which authority was responsible for detaining our clients without any legal basis, we cannot hide the immense joy we felt when three children and three young men left the court free," Aditus said.

"It was a particularly rewarding experience since three of the released persons are children. They can now receive the care and support all children need and deserve, irrespectively of their immigration or other status. We just hope they are not permanently scarred by the trauma of being locked up for 58 days in appalling conditions in Safi Barracks, with adults unrelated to them.”

Teenager held at Safi 'because of contagious illness'

A petition to court by another teenager, an asylum seeker, was rejected on the basis of a claim by the Superintendent of Public Health that the applicant suffered from a contagious illness.

In a reaction, Adititus pointed out that  Maltese nationals are not locked up in Safi Barracks in order to receive medication and health care once they have been diagnosed with a contagious illness.

Whilst the Superintendent of Public Health may restrict their movements, she is not permitted to detain any person without requesting a court to do so, a procedure not followed in this case.

Furthermore, no medical evidence was brought in support of the claim that the teenager's illness was actually contagious.

"In Safi Barracks this young man is not in medical isolation but lives amongst other men. He met with his lawyers a number of times without them ever being advised that he had a contagious disease and at no point was the court alerted to any public health danger posed by his presence in court," the foundation said.

Furthermore, it was incongruent to hear that this teenager was not being detained when everything about his situation pointed towards detention: his present address was Safi Barracks, unequivocally described by Maltese law as “a place of detention for the purposes of the Immigration Act” and a public entity called ‘Detention Services’ was responsible for every logistical aspect of his life, including meals, medical services, clothing, communications, and transportation. 

Finally, the court failed to even consider the fact that the applicant is a teenager seeking asylum in Malta and, therefore, as a young person and an asylum seeker he is entitled to a higher level of protection from the State, the foundation argued.