Back in the age of dinosaurs, when people used to read books and form their own ideas instead of asking computers to do all the heavy lifting, I had read a book about what makes a country a democracy. The name of it escapes me now but this book illustrated the pillars of a representative form of governance.

One of the most important things outlined in this book was the rule of law. I remember reading that people who do not see justice done and who start doubting that their justice system can deliver said justice inevitably begin taking matters into their own hands. After this, chaos ensues.

I have written before about court delays, about how it took Sion Grech 18 years to get no justice, and how Lassana Cisse’s and Chantelle Chetcuti’s cases are still ongoing while their alleged murderers are still out on bail (the former was murdered six years ago and the latter five, in case anyone was wondering).

But, today, I want to address a case that flew a little under the radar thanks to the various other circus acts going on in our islands over the last week or so.

The case involves allegations that a 24-year-old man defiled a 12-year-old boy. From what I have read, the accused allegedly used a PlayStation to lure the minor to his home and then made sexual advances on him. The alleged perpetrator is not only accused of defiling the 12-year-old boy but he is also being tried for harassing him and producing and possessing indecent material containing minors.

Of course, all of this would be horrific enough if it were not for the little paragraph found buried halfway down the article, which reads: “While the accused was still presumed innocent, it was not the first time he had been accused of similar sexual offences, with this the third time he had appeared in court.”

I need you to let this sink in for a minute. This man is only 24 years old, and this is the third time he has appeared in court on similar sexual offences.

Even if we did presume innocence, can you imagine being this child’s parents and learning of this? Can you imagine sitting in a courtroom and wondering if both you and your child could have been spared the trauma and the pain that inevitably comes when horrific things like this happen?

After reading about yet another suspended sentence being handed down a few months ago over a rape, I howled at my lawyer friend about the injustice of it all. His answer was a simple one: judges can only act within the confines of the law, and if there are no law reforms, they have to dole out punishment based on existing law.

So, Malta, when are the reforms coming? When is bail not going to be an extended holiday? When are court cases not going to take decades to be resolved, exhausting and exasperating everyone in the process?

When is rape going to be taken seriously? How can anyone believe in a system that gives so much room for repeat offenders and heartbreak?

Is it really going to take someone losing their mind and taking justice into their hands for any effective change to take place?

This is not a democracy; it’s a dystopia.