Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1321294
5 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 20 DECEMBER 2020 NEWS Minister for the Inclusion and Social Wellbeing JULIA FARRUGIA PORTELLI MAY YOU HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR A MORE INCLUSIVE SOCIETY NATIONAL YOUTH POLICY SOCIAL WELLBEING PROJECTS in which we will be working on these 3 pillars: 2021 WILL BE THE YEAR legs and feet. They said Alfred Bugeja was strapped to the chair following a disagreement with prison of- ficials over the use of uniforms for inmates. He was placed in the middle of the Central Hall, surrounded by other prisoners, and spent approximately 45 minutes bound to the chair. Bugeja was said to have pro- tested over the mandatory wearing of prison uniforms, which have been designed by the prison's seamstresses. Sum- mer uniforms are light blue cot- ton shorts and t-shirts, replaced with blue jeans in winter. Sources who spoke to Malt- aToday said the need to con- strain prisoners for such a long time was uncalled for, as the prison administration is more than equipped to handle unru- ly inmates. "It goes against any medical procedure. Guards are equipped with pepper spray, and nurses have tranquilizer which sedates individuals immediate- ly," a source with knowledge of prison operations said. Corradino also has a special response group which is well trained in de-escalation tech- niques. While both prison director Alex Dalli and minister Byron Camilleri have said the chair is no longer being used, MaltaTo- day's sources say the chair has not left the prison building and is being stored somewhere away from sight. In the wake of a reply to a par- liamentary question which said the restraint chair had been sued for 15 minutes, Nationalist MP Beppe Fenech Adami went back to Byron Camilleri asking for more information on the case. Limited to six parliamentary questions, Fenech Adami asked which prison official gave the order, how the prisoner was re- strained, the date and time of the incident, the room where the incident took place, the age of the prisoner and whether a doctor was present. All questions went unan- swered by the minister, who simply referred the MP to his original reply, which didn't an- swer any of the questions asked. Interviewed on L-Erbgħa fost Il-Ġimgħa, the prison director had also sidestepped question- ing on the chair, insisting it was never used for punishment purposes. Following a string of denials, he did however say the prison was permitted by law to use restraints on prisoners. kazzopardi@mediatoday.com.mt Alfred Bugeja was said to have protested over the mandatory wearing of prison uniforms, which have been designed by the prison's seamstresses. Summer uniforms are light blue cotton shorts and t-shirts, replaced with blue jeans in winter