Anti-xenophobia and anti-discrimination laws of Malta are rarely enforced, with senior government officials publicly fuelling the misconception that migrants are criminals, diseased and taking away jobs belonging to the Maltese, according to a United Nations human rights expert.

UN Special Rapporteur François Crépeau.

Following his December visit to Malta, UN Special Rapporteur François Crépeau drafted a report highlighting a number of concerns and making recommendations.

Detention centres should not be managed by military staff on military bases, his report says. And migrants should only be detained when there is a reasonable basis to believe that they present a danger to themselves or others or would abscond from future proceedings.

Although irregular migration is not criminalised legally, the practice of mandatory detention has the “unfortunate” result of portraying the migrants as dangerous criminals who should be locked up immediately upon arrival for the safety of the wider public.

Mr Crépeau found no evidence that any of the migrants who came to Malta over the years have ever constituted a general public security risk.

He urges the government to develop comprehensive human rights training programmes for all staff working in reception centres, which would also enable them to identify detainees with mental health issues or in need of protection as victims of crime.

The Ħal Safi detention centre lacks personal space and privacy for migrants as well as adequate and decent food and adequate access to healthcare. Detainees, the report says, are allowed outside only for one hour a day, despite the fact that there is an outdoor fenced space, so they do not do enough physical activity.

According to the report, there is a general concern among irregular migrants in detention and open centres that some nationalities are favoured over others in relation to asylum claims.

They have to pay taxes but do not all share the same rights as citizens

The system by which migrants are awarded refugee status or some other subsidiary protection is not perceived as transparent and leaves migrants frustrated and mistrustful of government officials.

Mr Crépeau urges the government to take the necessary measures to ensure transparency and to provide substantive grounds when awarding protection or rejecting claims. The length of time it takes to acquire protection should be made clear.

The rapporteur found that migrants requiring psychiatric treatment are being placed in the same institution as prisoners and drug users. They are handcuffed to their beds or locked in a room and rarely allowed to shower. Neither do they receive regular medical visits.

“Of even greater concern are reports that doctors also question the extent to which their professional responsibility extends towards irregular migrants,” Mr Crépeau notes.

Meanwhile, Maltese employers are exploiting migrants, who refrain from protesting due to their fear of being detected, detained and deported.

They are made to work long hours and paid below the minimum wage, often in the construction, tourism and care-giving industries.

“They have to pay taxes but do not all share the same rights as citizens. For example, employers give migrants low wages and do not provide them with safety equipment or insurance.”

Asylum seekers and beneficiaries of subsidiary protection have access to free national education and healthcare. However, for many beneficiaries of international protection, pursuing further education is impossible without additional financial assistance.

Mr Crépeau urges the government to offer a loan scheme to beneficiaries pursuing further education. Extra targeted language support would be useful for the children of asylum seekers.

An initiative linking the amount of money offered to the date at which migrants accept to be part of an assisted voluntary returnprogramme – the longer they wait, the smaller the amount – has not been an effective incentive for migrants to use such programmes soon after their arrival.

This trial initiative should be abolished and a standard amount for assisted voluntary return should be restored, Mr Crépeau recommends.

Migrants who participate should have a business plan in order to benefit from the funds offered. However, there is no effective or consistent monitoring system for these programmes.