Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1546198
6 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 16 AUGUST 2026 OPINION Andrew Azzopardi Prison cell size matters Academic and prisoner rights advocate HOW a society treats those who have broken the law tells us a lot about its commitment to justice, human dignity and the rule of law. Imprisonment is supposed to take away a person's liberty, not their humanity or as an ex-in- mate recently said 'their dignity'. That principle is at the very heart of modern international human rights law and should continue to guide Malta's correctional policy, which most of us agree needs a dire revision. We really need to invest a lot of effort into the development of our correctional services, with a greater focus on rehabilitation and reintegration. We need good leadership in this sector not con- sultants and political appointees. We need proper experts to lead this next wave of reform because so much is at stake. Let me just focus on one issue from many that need to be ad- dressed—cell footprint. Do our prison accommodation standards fully reflect contemporary human rights law, scientific evidence and international best practice? It's more than just a question of whether prison cells are secure or clean, painted black or blue. The real question is whether they offer adequate personal living space, ventilation, tolerable tem- peratures, natural light, privacy and sanitation to maintain dig- nity and lead towards rehabilita- tion. These are not matters of com- fort or privilege; they are legal re- quirements with a direct impact on health, institutional safety, the effectiveness of correctional poli- cy but above all the pillar of effec- tive rehabilitation. The United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treat- ment of Prisoners, known as the Nelson Mandela Rules, mandate that prison facilities should be healthy. They should also have sufficient floor space, ventilation, lighting and sanitation. The rules do not specify minimum cell siz- es, but the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) has filled the gap by rec- ommending a minimum space for single-occupancy cells and liv- ing space per prisoner in shared accommodation (excluding san- itary facilities). CPT insists that these are minimum protections, not aspirational goals. The European Court of Human Rights reiterated these princi- ples in its judgment of the Grand Chamber in Muršić vs Croatia. The Court made clear that per- sonal living space is only one of the factors to be taken into ac- count in the assessment under Article 3 of the European Con- vention on Human Rights. All these have to be considered to- gether: ventilation, temperature, natural light, hygiene, opportu- nities for exercise, time spent outside the cell, and the overall appropriateness of the detention environment. Compliance, there- fore, cannot be measured with an inch tape alone. This holistic approach is par- ticularly relevant for the increas- ingly intense summers Malta is experiencing. Scientific evidence shows that prolonged exposure to extreme heat leads to dehy- dration, cardiovascular stress, sleep disruption, elevated cortisol and reduced executive function- ing. Heat also reduces attention, working memory, decision-mak- ing and emotional regulation and increases irritability, impulsivity and aggression. These effects are particularly relevant in prisons, where many people already live with chronic diseases, mental health issues or are taking med- ication that interferes with ther- moregulation. The implications are far more than physical dis- comfort. Rehabilitation depends on the individual's capacity to concen- trate, to learn, to self-regulate emotions and to participate meaningfully in psychological in- terventions, education and voca- tional training. Excessive heat and poor en- vironmental conditions are the enemy of those very capacities. Rather than encouraging reflec- tion and personal growth, they may inadvertently create condi- tions that encourage the escala- tion of behavioural instability and institutional tensions. These are also legally interesting observa- tions. International standards should offer not only persuasive guid- ance, but practical yardsticks against which prison accommo- dation can be assessed. Malta's Prisons Regulations reg- ulate healthcare, discipline, visits and welfare, but do not set out objective statutory standards for minimum personal living space, limits on occupancy, acceptable temperatures in the environment or ventilation requirements. This means that there are no clear le- gal standards against which com- pliance can be consistently meas- ured. This is why I recommend that Malta needs to commission an independent review of prison accommodation, headed by the Commissioner for Welfare and Development of Prisoners in conjunction with the Superinten- dent of Public Health and other relevant experts. Such a review should objectively measure each occupied cell, not only in terms of floor space but also in terms of ventilation, indoor temperatures throughout the year, humidity, air circulation, natural light, san- itary facilities, occupancy levels and opportunities for meaningful out-of-cell activity. These factors should be con- sidered collectively, in accord- ance with the approach taken by the European Court of Human Rights and the CPT. Where weaknesses are identi- fied, they should be addressed through evidence-based policy, targeted investment and legisla- tive reform. Accordingly, prison regulations should be amended to set minimum standards of ac- commodation so that prison ad- ministrators, inspectors and pol- icymakers have clear, measurable legal benchmarks against which to design, operate and evaluate correctional facilities. Some may say that prison- ers should not be given better accommodation when many law-abiding citizens are suffer- ing from housing problems and schools and public offices are not properly ventilated. Such concerns are understand- able but overlook a fundamental constitutional principle. Human rights are not rewards for good behaviour; they are limits to the exercise of state power. The pro- hibition of inhuman or degrad- ing treatment protects everyone because it sets out the minimum standards that are expected of a democratic society under the rule of law. Improved prison accom- modation is not about being soft. Study after study shows that humane prisons result in better mental health, less institutional violence, safer working condi- tions for correctional officers and better rehabilitation. Most prisoners will return, at some point, to society. Condi- tions that promote successful reintegration ultimately promote public safety. Shortcomings have become systemic problems but Malta has the chance to modernise its cor- rectional framework. A review of the legislative reform would show that the country is not only com- mitted to meeting its interna- tional obligations but also to lead through transparency, accounta- bility and evidence-based policy. A justice system is not meas- ured by how harshly it punishes wrongdoers, but by how faithfully it honours the dignity and rights of those in its custody.