It is becoming increasingly evident that the positive changes the Ministry for Home Affairs has implemented over the past few months have left the opposition’s spokesperson on the subject with a few things to criticise and now his pet subject has become all things prison.
Indeed, it is an exciting subject for the media but, in reality, a complex one, especially for those living it day in, day out. Let’s get things straight, running a prison has never been an easy task and never will be. More so nowadays when the facility is hosting a record number of prisoners.
As I have shown on many occasions, I am open to dialogue and suggestions regarding every subject falling under my remit. However, for the discussion to be fruitful it must be based on facts, coming from a genuine place and, above all, a credible one.
Beppe Fenech Adami’s article in Times of Malta (December 2) has none of these components. In his article, he stated that the authorities have no idea about some prisoners’ cause of death and that some deaths could have been avoided. He even tried to attribute his comments to a statement I made publicly.
So, allow me to set the record straight. The fact is that whenever a death occurs at the Corradino Correctional Facility a magisterial inquiry is appointed. I have asked for all magisterial inquiries that took place since 2013. After having evaluated them, it emerged that the absolute majority of deaths for which the magisterial inquiry has been concluded were the result of natural causes.
In other cases, the cause of death was, unfortunately, suicide.
As a minister, the responsible thing to do is to wait for the conclusions of magisterial inquiries before expressing myself on the matter. When Fenech Adami spoke without having all the facts in hand it showed just how reckless with the truth he can be. A few weeks after taking office, a prisoner died and Fenech Adami demanded I shoulder political responsibility. Eventually, the inquiry established that the person died because of a condition he was suffering from.
The indications are that others were also from natural causes. Having said all this, no matter the circumstances, every death brings with it sorrow and must be treated with sensitivity.
Fenech Adami is not the least bit interested in the truth because, if he were, he would not try to spin the simple truth. Had he been genuinely interested in the well-being of prisoners he would applaud the fact that, since 2013, the number of professionals working at CCF increased by 75 per cent. This includes three full-time doctors, eight nurses, psychologists and social workers.
If Fenech Adami wanted to be credible, he should have praised the fact that prison has been transformed from a rampant drug hub to one that is practically drug-free. Let’s call a spade a spade.
Running a prison is no walk in the park- Byron Camilleri
Eliminating the use of drugs in prison means fewer fights and, ergo, more order within the prison walls. In some circumstances, it has also alleviated the pressure on some families who were forced into prostitution and other hardships to sustain the drug habit of their loved one in jail.
This is not something I am saying but it was stated by the court itself. In 2011, the court noted how it was impossible for the authorities not to know what was going on in prison, particularly when the situation had devolved so much that prisoners where abusing of drugs in their cells and the smell spread to the corridors, which were supposedly guarded by correctional officers.
This leads me to the point about rehabilitation. There can be no real rehabilitation in a prison in which flagrant drug use is the order of the day. Therefore, by instilling a sense of discipline and eliminating drugs, the prison authorities are in a position to focus on rehabilitation.
And we have many exciting projects in the pipeline that we have been working on with various NGOs. All the details will be unveiled in the coming days. However, the target is to tackle the needs of both prisoners and their families.
Running a prison is no walk in the park. The workers know it first-hand and can also speak about the difference in how they are treated today as opposed to how they were treated a few years ago. In fact, it often baffles me as to how absent they are from the political discourse.
As I said before, despite the challenges that come with running a prison, we will do everything in our power to succeed. By succeeding, we mean two things.
The first is to deliver meaningful justice to society and to the victims of crime.
The second is to increase rehabilitation initiatives for those who really seek to change.
This is a debate that I am willing to engage in. We might disagree on how to go about the objective, however, as a ministry we are open to dialogue.
Are we perfect? Definitely not and I can say with some certainty that we never will be but that is what sets us apart from the opposition.
This is an opposition whose interest lies in politicising and attacking individuals rather than ideals. After all, how can it be credible when its track record on prison speaks for itself.
Byron Camilleri is Minister for Home Affairs.