Watchdog flags failures to improve Ħal Far, Safi migrant detention centres
Migrant detention monitoring board report was tabled in parliament this week
A watchdog tasked with overseeing conditions at the Ħal Far and Safi migrant detention centres has expressed frustration at the government’s failure to heed its recommendations.
Migrant detention monitoring board chairman Simon Micallef Stafrace said that while improvements in the atmosphere at both centres have been noted, certain measures aimed at improving migrants’ quality of life have yet to be implemented.
Last year, 1,624 people spent time in detention according to the board’s annual report, which was tabled in parliament this week by Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri.
By the end of December 2024, the number of detained persons was down to 143.
The board flagged how a litany of recommendations, ranging from providing migrants with proper winter clothing because of a lack of heating to ensuring proper staffing levels at the centres to prevent staff burnout and turnover, had not been actioned.
“Our annual reports have all been too similar. Recommendations are repeated. And, regrettably, the hopes that our 16th report would be a marked change in this regard have not come to fruition,” Micallef Stafrace wrote in his concluding remarks.
The board acknowledged the difficulty in adopting all its recommendations caused by “lack of sufficient resources” and/or security reasons.
Despite the challenges, the board concluded that, overall, the rights of people detained at the centres were “generally respected”.
The board carried out 41 spot-checks at the centres, during which it interviewed most if not all of the detainees at the centres.
Recommendations are repeated. And, regrettably, the hopes that our 16th report would be a marked change in this regard have not come to fruition- Simon Micallef Stafrace
Apart from one allegation of excessive use of force, which the board said turned out to be false, detainees spoke positively about the treatment they receive.
It said that, during 2024, action was taken to address certain recommendations previously made by the board.
The board said the various operations to carry out “forced” returns of migrants to their home countries were conducted smoothly and in a humane manner.
It said forced returns can be a traumatic experience for most migrants and they become extremely vulnerable throughout the period prior to and during the return.
The board said migrants facing a forced return should preferably be assigned a case or social worker to help them prepare for and cope with the trip.
A total of 14 return operations were monitored by the board, half of which were to Bangladesh.