Story in The Times of March 31.As the Malian man shot by police on March 30 recuperates in Mount Carmel Hospital under police guard, details have emerged about how such a vulnerable person was able to fall through the cracks of society.
He does not seem to fully comprehend why the police came to Għar Ħasan and why he was shot
The Home Affairs Ministry has confirmed to The Sunday Times that since Suleiman Samake, 26, arrived in Malta in 2008, he had been admitted to Mt Carmel mental health hospital “on several occasions”.
Yet, despite his obvious mental health problems, which several acquaintances claim started during his mandatory detention period in Malta, he was able to ‘voluntarily’ leave Ħal-Far open centre and live in a cave at Għar Ħasan. He was shot by the police in an incident after they were called in to investigate claims that a man was living rough.
A magisterial enquiry is trying to establish what happened, but the officers involved claim Mr Samake was shot after he threatened them with a knife.
According to the Home Affairs Ministry, Mr Samake officially left the open centre – run by the Agency for the Welfare of Asylum Seekers (AWAS) – on August 5.
Fellow Malian Ali Konate believes Mr Samake was visiting Ħal-Far daily for food and may have even been staying there part-time. Mr Konate visited Mr Samake at Mt Carmel on Tuesday and said he asked to be returned to Ħal-Far.
But if he was staying there, it was without the knowledge of AWAS. Open centre residents are encouraged to move into the community and receive notification when their service agreement is coming to an end, by which time they are expected to move out.
When asked if a system existed to prevent people with mental health problems moving out of open centres, or to monitor their wellbeing if they do leave, a Home Affairs spokesman said: “Naturally, AWAS is not in a position to stop anyone who had freely sought its services from freely moving out.”
Although AWAS centres – which house both beneficiaries of international protection and rejected asylum seekers – are staffed by a social worker, Roberta Buhagiar of global refugee agency UNHCR believes a specific support programme is needed for those experiencing mental health problems. Citing a 2010 report by the Jesuit Refugee Service, which found 80 per cent of detainees said their mental health had deteriorated in detention, Dr Buhagiar said: “The psychological pressures people go through in detention can have an effect even when they are released into the community, and stay with them for a long time.
“For some individuals it can be very difficult to recover and this in turn affects integration.”
As a rejected asylum-seeker with ‘tolerated stay’, Mr Samake was not entitled to any social benefits, though he was permitted to work if he found an employer willing to apply for a work permit in their own name.
However, since by all accounts Mr Samake was suffering from a psychiatric disorder, his chances of employment were remote. Without a job, he did not have the means to pay for his medication and Mr Konate said he had not taken any for a long time.
In the absence of family or close friends to support him, Mr Samake fell off the radar until six gunshots placed him onto the front pages.
Mr Konate said Mr Samake has recovered well from his injuries but he is currently having treatment for his psychological condition.
He does not seem to fully comprehend why the police came to Għar Ħasan and why he was shot, Mr Konate added.