Weekly News highlights

MALTA'S immigration crisis reached record proportions last Sunday when a boatload of 181 illegal immigrants brought the number of people detained at Safi to over 1,400.

The new arrivals, along with the 26 who landed yesterday week, had to be put up in hurriedly erected tents as there was a lack of space inside the detention centre.

The first boat, a 60-foot fishing vessel, had been spotted by a Maltese fishing party some 20 miles off Filfla. It had developed serious mechanical problems.

A criminal investigation into human trafficking will be carried out in connection with last Sunday's influx, especially since the boat carrying the 181 immigrants appeared to have had a master mariner, Home Affairs Tonio Borg said on Monday.

He added that clearly there was a criminal organisation behind the transport of migrants - probably based in the countries of their origin. This was confirmed by the way the migrants turned up off Malta, he said. While last Sunday's arrival was an exception, most migrants arrived in groups of between 26-29 on boats with the same type of engine.

An illegal immigrant was in a critical condition after he almost drowned while trying to land in Marsaxlokk along with 29 others early on Tuesday morning. He was rescued by a soldier who jumped into the water after a boat with 30 exhausted immigrants on board capsized.

About another 150 illegal immigrants, probably from Africa, landed in Cirkewwa on Friday aboard a 10-metre fishing boat. A 17-year-old immigrant told The Times they left from Libya, had been at sea for seven days and were heading for Italy.

The number of migrants in detention centres is now close to 1,700. Over 300 will be housed in tents because the Safi facilities are full to capacity.

Motorcyclist's death

A CANADIAN living in Birkirkara died last Sunday in a motorcycle accident, the police said.

Thirty-one-year-old Ryan Chattaway was riding in the direction of the Hemsija bypass, limits of Rabat, towards Zebbug, when he lost control of his Kawasaki Z9 and crashed into an electricity pole. He died on the spot from serious head injuries.

Malta writes off Iraq debt

MALTA has written off the $8 million (Lm2.8 million) owed by Iraq in a show of solidarity with the Iraqi people. The agreement was signed in Washington between Parliamentary Secretary Tonio Fenech and Iraqi Finance Minister Ali Allawi.

Man charged with causing overdose death

JOHAN MIFSUD, 30, of Cospicua, on Monday was charged with the manslaughter of his cousin, who allegedly died of a drug overdose yesterday week. Mifsud pleaded not guilty to involuntarily causing the death of 32-year-old David Spiteri, with whom he lived, and trafficking in heroin within 100 metres from a school or youth centre.

A request for bail was turned down by the magistrate.

Man critically injured

MARIO BUSUTTIL, 39, of Zabbar, was critically injured on Monday afternoon after he was hit in the face by pieces of an oil tank in an accident at the Freeport. The police said a group of workers were unloading oil tanks from a container when one of the tanks burst, with pieces hitting Mr Busuttil's face.

100 cars fail emissions test

A TOTAL OF 219 vehicles have been tested in response to the Malta Transport Authority's SMS emissions alert initiative - and almost half have failed. The ADT said that in just over a month it received 15,000 reports of vehicles belching smoke.

Testing on vehicles began on September 2 with the tests being carried out three times a week by a purposely set-up team of enforcement officers and police.

A hundred, or 45 per cent, of the vehicles tested were found to have emissions over the stipulated limit. The number to call is 5061-1899.

Sailor evacuated from tanker after bad fall

MAUK PHYO, a 24-year-old sailor from Myanmar (formerly Burma), who was on board the Maersk Bering about 20 nautical miles northeast of Malta, had to be evacuated from the oil tanker on Tuesday afternoon after falling from a height of over three metres.

The alarm was raised by the Rome rescue co-ordination centre, which informed the AFM's operation centre about the incident at 12.15 p.m.

About an hour later, by which time the vessel was about 10 miles closer to Malta, L/Bdr Neville Cilia was winched aboard the tanker to stabilise Mr Phyo, who was suspected to be suffering from spinal injuries and severe back bruising.

The sailor was winched onto an Alouette rescue helicopter and flown to St Luke's Hospital.

Malta, Italy to hold high-level meeting on illegal immigration

A HIGH-LEVEL meeting between Malta and Italy to address illegal immigration will be held in Rome this month, the foreign ministers of both countries announced on Wednesday.

The meeting was requested by Dr Michael Frendo during talks he had on Wednesday morning with his Italian counterpart Gianfranco Fini, who accepted immediately and suggested chairing the meeting himself. The Italian and Maltese ministers responsible for home affairs and defence will also take part in the meeting.

During his eight-hour visit, Mr Fini also addressed the annual international congress of the Società Dante Alighieri.

Immigrant charged with trying to strangle soldier

A SUDANESE immigrant, Ahmed Satar, 26, on Wednesday was charged with trying to strangle Gunner Owen Formosa at the Hal Far detention centre the day before.

Satar, who pleaded not guilty, was denied bail.

Husband charged with murdering wife in hospital

DORIS SCHEMBRI, 61, of St Venera, was stabbed to death in a room at St Luke's Hospital's Medical Ward 4 on Thursday afternoon; her husband, Anthony, also 61, was charged with the murder on Friday.

The police said the man gave himself up at the Hamrun police station soon after the stabbing. The couple were estranged.

Mr Schembri, who resided in a Sliema hotel, pleaded not guilty. Defence lawyers Anglu Farrugia and Edward Gatt explained that their client had a history of mental health problems and, until Thursday, he was an outpatient at Mount Carmel Hospital.

He had also undergone criminal proceedings in 1992 after he had attacked his wife with a pair of scissors.

Magistrate Lawrence Quintano ordered that Mr Schembri be detained at Mount Carmel Hospital.

Huge fire causes Lm2.5 million damage

DAMAGES to two factories involved in the fire, which broke out on Thursday morning in San Gwann industrial estate, totalled around Lm2.5 million.

The fire broke out at about 8.30 a.m. and took the best part of the day to put out. Schools in and around the area were also evacuated and residents were told to stay indoors as much as possible as a huge plume of toxic smoke from a burning paint factory rose high in the sky.

The fire broke out in one of Trimite Ltd's stores and after gutting the whole factory extended to the store of an adjacent silk-screen printing press, Perfect Screen Ltd.

Luckily, nobody was in the Trimite's chemicals store when a small explosion took place.

A factory worker injured his arm after he jumped from a container, but nobody else was hurt.

After three hours, the fire at Trimite was quelled, however the flames by then had extended to Perfect Screen's adjacent stores, also containing flammable materials and a stock of T-shirts.

How Trimite's store caught fire is still a mystery and is now the subject of a magisterial inquiry.

Jail term reduced by two years

SANDRO MIFSUD, who had been jailed for seven years for trafficking in drugs, had his term reduced by two years after an appeal.

Mifsud had been jailed and fined Lm4,000 when in August 1996 he was found guilty of the possession of heroin, trafficking in the drug, possession of heroin and cannabis with the intent to sell, the simple possession of cannabis, conspiring to deal in drugs and relapsing.

Mr Justice Joseph Galea Debono, in the Court of Appeal, reduced the jail term to five years and the fine to Lm3,000 after ruling that some of the charges were absorbed in others.

New student grants system

A NEW SYSTEM of grants applicable to students joining post-secondary and tertiary institutions this month was launched on Thursday by Education Minister Louis Galea.

Dr Galea said the government was putting off the possibility of introducing tuition fees for undergraduate courses for the time being, adding that the new grant schemes would be revised in five years' times.

Students in all post-secondary institutions and those following vocational courses, including Giovanni Curmi higher secondary, Sixth Forms, Junior College and MCAST, would continue to receive Lm40 a month and a yearly grant of Lm100. Those students who satisfy a means test will be eligible to Lm60 a month.

University students starting their second year will benefit from Lm60 monthly and a yearly grant of Lm200. These students had also received a Lm400 one-time grant at the beginning of their course last year.

Students from low-income families who satisfy a means test will be eligible to Lm120 a month instead.

Students joining University for the first time will enter the new scheme that distinguishes between standard grants and special grants.

Students entitled to a normal grant would receive a monthly stipend of Lm40 - Lm20 below the amount students received under the old stipends regime. The Lm200 yearly grant would remain but the one-time grant at the beginning of the course will be cut from Lm400 to Lm200.

Students from families who satisfy a means test would qualify for a Lm120 stipend instead of Lm40. The yearly grant and the one-time grant at the beginning of their course would be Lm250 instead of Lm200.

Accused of defiling two teenage girls

AMADEO PACE, 20, of Floriana, on Friday was charged with defiling two girls, aged 13 and 14, one of whom has a mental health problem and of violently assaulting the 14-year-old on Wednesday and Thursday. He pleaded not guilty.

New US Embassy planned at Ta' Qali

THE US government will build an embassy compound at Ta' Qali on a government-owned site it has bought for $18.5 million.

A preliminary agreement for the sale of the site was signed on Friday, the government said.

Both parties will now be discussing the terms of the final contract that would be submitted to Parliament for approval.

Lm5.5 million refurbishment for Madliena Village

BRITISH ACCOUNTANT Andrew Cross is investing Lm5.5 million in a four-year building and refurbishment programme for Madliena Village, a residential complex formerly known as Busietta Gardens, it was announced on Friday.