The detention regime applied with irregular migrants in Malta is not in line with international human rights, a UN working group on arbitrary detention has found.

But the Justice Ministry said that from the conclusions it was evident that the working group failed to fully appreciate the scale of the problem that Malta, with its limited resources, limited land mass, and a population of just over 400,000 people was facing with the numbers of illegal immigrants arriving to its shores.

The group has been in Malta at the invitation of the government since Monday and presented their initial report to the media this evening.

Group chairman and rapporteur Manuela Carmena Castrillo of Spain said that during the group’s visits they met an eight-year-old boy who was detained and a Somali suffering from HIV and chicken pox vegetating in a cell when he should have been in hospital.

They pointed out that the boy was released as soon as the government's attention was drawn.

Ms Castrillo criticised Malta’s detention policy and said that the closed centres at Safi and Lyster Barracks were appalling and it was unacceptable that people - who were not criminals, were made to stay there for 18 months. Detention, she said, should not be used as a deterrent or a sanction.

The group also visited the Corradino Correctional Facilities and other places of detention, including the police headquarters and Mount Carmel.

Ms Castrillo expressed concern at long period of time people were detained prior to their trial. She said that it was worrying that the ratio of people awaiting trail as compared to those who were convicted was higher than 50 per cent.

The group criticised the fact that the portfolio of the Justice and Home Affairs Ministry covered a wide range of powers and said that this could lead to a perception of lack of transparency and control within the system of administration of justice.

Ms Castrillo expressed concern that people arrested on suspicion of crime had no access to a defense layer in the 48 hours they were kept in custody.

She said that sometimes they were held for longer than 48 hours and the group heard of a case were a man was held for five days without access to a lawyer.

Ms Castrillo said that the group was proposing the introduction of parole, which was inexistent in Malta and said that the government appeared positive during talks with the group and seemed open to their proposals.

The ministry said that putting matters into perspective on the basis of the country’s population, the 2,775 illegal immigrants that arrived in Malta last year would be equivalent to more than 300,000 arriving in Spain during the same period.

It said that in formulating its policies on illegal migration and detention, the Maltese government sought to achieve a balance between security concerns on the one hand and humanitarian considerations on the other. Moreover, full consideration was taken of the rights of asylum seekers.

The ministry said that although it was true that the maximum detention period for illegal immigrants was 18 months, this did not mean that all the persons currently in detention would remain so for this period.

As a matter of fact, asylum seekers were detained for a maximum of 12 and if their case was not determined within this period, they would be released.

However, most asylum cases were determined well before the elapse of 12 months, and those who were recognised as refugees or beneficiaries of subsidiary protection were released immediately.

Moreover, not all illegal immigrants were subject to the detention requirement. In fact, vulnerable persons had their freedom restricted only until such time as they were given medical clearance, whereupon they were offered accommodation in open centres.

The eight-year old child that was allegedly detained entered Malta less than two weeks ago and was released because he had obtained the required medical clearance – which was mandatory for the release of any illegal immigrant - and not because he was “pointed out” by the group.

The ministry said that illegal immigration in Malta has been de-criminalised. Hence, the immigrants in question were issued with a removal order, in view of their illegal presence in the country. However, once an illegal immigrant applied for asylum the removal order was suspended, pending the result of the asylum application process.

The objective of detention, the ministry said, was to guarantee Malta’s security. Illegal immigrants, it stressed, entered Malta undocumented, so they could not be identified by the authorities.

Moreover, immigrants who were not recognised as refugees or beneficiaries of international protection had no right or entitlement to reside in Malta so efforts were made to have them repatriated to their respective countries.

Unfortunately, this was not always a straightforward or simple process, explaining why a number of illegal immigrants did spend the stipulated maximum of 18 months in detention.

As regards the conditions of detention, efforts were continuously being made to enhance existing facilities and to enlarge capacity; however during 2008 Malta witnessed a record number of arrivals of 2,775, as compared to 1,702 during 2007- an increase of 63 percent. This placed considerable strain on Malta’s detention facilities.

Referring to the Somali suffering from chicken pox and HIV, the ministry said that this immigrant was not denied hospital treatment and was being kept alone (not inside a cell) to avoiding the spread of chicken pox to the other immigrants.

The ministry said that whilst appreciating the group’s comments that illegal immigration was a problem that should be shared, such appeals were already made in the past, to little effect.

As for the introduction of parole in Malta’s penal system, the ministry said publication of a White Paper on Restorative Justice, which would propose the introduction of this concept, was imminent.

Referring to the proportion of inmates at the Corradino Correctional Facility who were still awaiting trial, the ministry said that the out of a total population of 431 currently being held at the CCF, only 131 (30 percent) were being detained while awaiting trial.

The group will present its full report in Geneva in May.