Embassy officials being investigated over visa-related bribery allegations at Malta’s consulate in Tripoli continue to process entry permits, the government has confirmed.
This bribery didn’t start yesterday
Libyan nationals have alleged that officials were demanding significant kickbacks to issue Schengen visas, with one-month visas costing up to 1,100 Libyan dinars (€673) rather than the official 120 dinars (€75) fee.
Malta is one of just three EU countries issuing Schengen visas in Libya. The Foreign Ministry has opted not to suspend or transfer any of the individuals under investigation. A ministry spokesman said the new ambassador, Victor Camilleri, “is introducing a number of new internal procedures to further ensure transparency”. The spokesman would not elaborate.
Questions sent to the police remain unanswered.
“They should be ashamed of themselves,” said a Libyan man who claimed his brother had been asked to pay a bribe to obtain a visa. “Everyone knows who’s responsible. Everyone knows whose hands are dirty,” he said. It is not known whether the Libyan police have been alerted to the allegations.
While the man, who wished to remain anonymous, said that he had spoken directly to the Libyan Ambassador, Saadun Suayeh, and told him of the allegations, the Foreign Ministry spokesman said that Dr Suayeh had never raised the issue with them.
Dr Suayeh could not be reached for comment yesterday.
The Maltese consul in Tripoli, Nader Salem Rizzo, and his 10 locally-engaged staff members processed an average of 25 visas a day over the past two months.
Mr Salem Rizzo declined to comment on the allegations and directed questions to the ministry.
Multiple allegations of impropriety at the Tripoli consulate have also surfaced on Facebook, with several users mentioning a consulate official by name.
Under the 1961 Vienna Convention, diplomats are protected from criminal prosecution and not obliged to give evidence in a court of law within receiving states.
However, diplomats are not immune from the jurisdiction of their sending state and international law allows states to prosecute nationals for crimes committedabroad. This means that any Maltese diplomats found to have been involved in corruption would be liable for prosecution in Malta.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry did not reply when asked whether it would waive the diplomatic immunity of any diplomats found to have been involved in soliciting bribes.
The government’s apparent unwillingness to shift consular responsibilities away from individuals under investigation rankled the person who made the allegations.
“This bribery didn’t start yesterday. It’s been going on for a long time. If the Maltese government wants to build a positive relationship with the new Libyan government, it should get rid of all the embassy officials who worked during Gaddafi’s time,” he said.