A Tunisian man was given a suspended sentence today after admitting to beating up his wife who accused him of being lazy. 

The man, 31, changed his plea to guilty when he appeared before Magistrate Doreen Clarke. He was sentenced to an 18 month jail term suspended for four years. He was also placed under a four-year supervision order. 

The incident happened at 6.30am on May 25 at the couple's house in St Paul's Bay in front of their four-year-old daughter.

The man is not being named, to protect the identity of the woman, whose cheekbone was fractured during the incident. 

Lawyer Franco Galea, appearing parte civile for the woman, told the court in a previous sitting that this incident was not the first, adding that other, less serious incidents had happened in the past, both in Malta and in Tunisia. The two have now separated.

Apart from the suspended sentence, Magistrate Clarke also placed the accused under a four-year supervision order during which he will be required to attend counselling sessions.

Moreover, she ordered the man not to speak to his wife or any of her relatives for three years, unless it is over matters concerning their young daughter. In court, the man also consented to psychological help for the daughter in view of what she had experienced when she witnessed the incident. 

Police Inspector Godwin Scerri prosecuted. Lawyer Stefano Filletti appeared for the man.