EU Commissioner to visit detention centre today
Wants to discover 'all the problems Malta had to face'
EU Justice Commissioner Jacques Barrot will get a hands-on experience of what it feels like to be an illegal immigrant in Malta when he visits a detention facility and an open centre this morning.
Mr Barrot is on a two-day fact-finding mission to understand the impact of illegal immigration on the island.
He is expected to visit the detention facility at the army's Lyster Barracks in Ħal Far and, later, the open centre in Marsa.
Mr Barrot arrived yesterday and has already held talks with Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici on the matter.
Dr Mifsud Bonnici explained Malta's constraints in dealing with the influx of illegal immigrants, indicating the need for assistance from its European partners.
He also emphasised that the provisions of the European Pact on Immigration and Asylum required expeditious implementation, especially the pledge to relocate to other member states beneficiaries of international protection from members subject to disproportionate measures, such as Malta.
On his arrival, Mr Barrot said he wanted to "discover all the problems Malta had to face" and wanted to help the country tackle the issues at stake.
ksansone@timesofmalta.com