Nationalist MP Jason Azzopardi criticised the government and the AFM  today for having transferred a woman major to serve at Safi migrants detention camp where there were 140 male detainees, and no women.

He said in parliament that this was cruelty against this woman, with 21 years of army experience. Even at the prisons, he said, men were not deployed in the women's section, and vice versa.

Dr Azzopardi said that such was the state of the AFM that the major's husband, a colonel, was himself also transferred to the Detention Service, the reward he got for leading an AFM mission in Somalia. He was transferred to Hal Far.

Dr Azzopardi noted that another colonel, Colonel Bondin, had recently submitted his resignation after also being deployed to the Detention Service from HQ.

Dr Azzopardi hit out at the way promotions were being carried out in the AFM, with a large number of majors and lt colonels having been passed over. He insisted that proper procedures, including the recommendation of the commanding brigadier, had not been followed.

This country, Dr Azzopardi said, should not have an army within an army as was the case when Malta had the Task Force which emerged from the regular AFM.