The way 14 African migrants were paraded on Valletta’s Republic Street when they were taken to court on Thursday for fleeing a detention camp has been slammed by two human rights NGOs.
“When one considers that hardened criminals, killers and drug barons are quietly ushered through the back door, but these migrants are paraded through Republic Street, it does not take much to question this punitive inhuman spectacle.
“Clearly, not all transgressive behaviour is treated in the same way,” the director of Integra Foundation, Maria Pisani told this newspaper.
Ms Pisani was contacted following criticism by social media users on how a group of migrants who fled the Safi detention centre were first brought in for their arraignment through the main entrance handcuffed in pairs and then sentenced to eight months’ imprisonment. They were driven down Republic Street in a police van, eliciting protests from many who pointed out that several suspects, including those involved in high-profile cases, are normally taken to court from the back of the building.
According to Ms Pisani, the asylum seekers were condemned even before they walked into the courtroom thanks to a warped political process intent on criminalising them.
“Our courts, on the other hand, choose to uphold a policy that violates human rights. We should all be concerned.”
Referring to the way they were offloaded on Republic Street, she said it was clear this was designed to appease the minds of xenophobics and racists, suggesting that the government was doing something against these unwanted “invaders”.
Migrants are portrayed as criminals who deserve to be humiliated
“Apparently, this degrading spectacle is reserved for black asylum seekers and eastern European sex workers, paraded in front of the courts, couched in discourses of national identity and moral panic,” Ms Pisani said, noting this was institutionalised racism and was not acceptable.
Her concerns were echoed by Neil Falzon from Aditus, who said that the NGO was appalled by this manifestation of institution-alised racism.
The organisation called on the Home Affairs Ministry to establish why these procedures were adopted and to ensure they were not repeated.
The NGO was also concerned at the way the criminal proceedings were conducted, as migrants were not in a position to take informed decisions.
Dr Falzon expressed hope that the ongoing reform of the justice system would seek to ensure that access to justice was guaranteed to all people, irrespective of their colour, origin and migration status.
He also urged Prime Minister Joseph Muscat to live up to his promise that 2014 will be Malta’s year of equality, and engage with all public entities to eradicate all forms of racism.
Referring to the procedures adopted by the police, he said from the information available to the NGO, it looked like these were not usually adopted under similar circumstances.
“This treatment of migrants confirms our concerns that the Maltese authorities are intentionally choosing to portray migrants as nothing else than criminals deserving to be humiliated, punished and excluded from the most basic enjoyment of human dignity.”
The search for another five migrants who escaped with them is still going on.