The Home Affairs Ministry has condemned the violent attack filmed in Paceville earlier this week, saying that having a licence to work as a security guard is not a carte blanche to commit violence.

A spokesperson for the ministry was replying to questions sent by Times of Malta, shortly after news of the attack went public, about reform the government had promised after a similar attack in 2019.

On Tuesday, footage first published by Lovin Malta showed around five bouncers savagely beating a man lying motionless on the ground, cradling his head as he was kicked repeatedly and hit with what appeared to be a retractable baton.

In 2019, after CCTV video captured an unlicensed bouncer kicking a man in the head, Michael Farrugia, who was home affairs minister at the time, had said that the government was in talks to revamp the law regulating bouncers.

This came amid complaints that employers were finding it difficult to hire licensed bouncers at the time.

Having a security licence does not give you a licence to commit acts of violence

Asked whether plans for the reform were still in the pipeline after the incident, the spokesperson said that violence on the streets was not a matter up for reform but a matter of “basics”.

“Having a security licence does not give you a licence to commit acts of violence. The appalling act of violence that happened in Paceville is not a question of reform but a question of basics, violence is simply not on,” the spokesperson said.

He added that, in recent years, the Malta Police Force has allocated more resources to operate “intelligence-led policing” in Paceville.

This has resulted in a “significant drop” in bodily-harm crime in St Julian’s, which registered its third-lowest crime rate in 25 years, according to the last annual crime report. Lower rates of bodily-harm crime were only registered in 2020 and 2021, during which COVID-19 pandemic restrictions were in place.

The government is always open to more reform and investment, the spokesperson added, with more projects in the pipeline to improve security in Paceville.

As announced in the budget plans for 2024, LESA will be investing in a technology project that includes cameras connected to both the agency’s control room as well as the police headquarters to serve as a deterrent against crime.