Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/257374
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 9 FEBRUARY 2014 13 reflect that. But it also applies to ways of circumventing the law itself…" In America, he goes on, party fi- nancing laws do not cover voluntary foundations. "So political parties simply set up foundations and the donations go to those instead of di- rectly to the party. There will always be some way to circumvent the sys- tem. It's like theft. Theft is a crime but it doesn't mean that people don't steal. It's the same with making illicit party donations." Paradoxically, he argues that it is even in the interests of 'donors in bad faith' to have a functional party financing law in place. "It is in eve- rybody's interest to have more trans- parency. That includes the parties themselves, who have an interest in addressing popular perceptions of corruption. It obviously includes the bona fide donors who want to see their party grow and improve. Even those who donate in bad faith… for example, on the understanding that they will get something in return… have an interest in knowing the ac- tual financial state of the parties, and to have some kind of guarantee as to what use the money will be put to." All things told, then, Franco Debo- no has no complaints regarding de- velopments on the party financing front. But the same cannot be said for other causes he has championed. One such issue was the right of le- gal assistance during police interro- gations. Debono argued in favour of this right for years, and also success- fully overturned a number of crimi- nal convictions on the basis that his clients were not legally represented while under arrest. Maltese law now does provide for the right to basic representation, but under scrutiny the new system leaves much to be desired. "As a member of parliament I had issued a press release five years ago about the lack of legal assistance to arrested persons and the inadequate system of legal aid. As a lawyer I was the first to file Constitutional cases about the right to legal assistance for arrested persons, which I won. And everyone knows the enormous con- sequences of those judgments…" Despite having secured the right to legal representation, Debono com- plains that the entire structure which provides that assistance to those most in need – i.e., people who can't afford the services of a private lawyer – has remained unchanged. "Do you know how much a legal aid lawyer makes?" he asks me. I shake my head. "It works out at around €200 a month. With that sort of remuneration I must congratulate Malta's legal aid lawyers for doing a sterling job. But how can anyone consider that an adequate legal sys- tem?" Nor is this the only problem. Such lawyers are selected by roster, and must handle civil, commercial and criminal cases regardless of their own area of specialisation. So even if there are lawyers on the legal aid programme who would be better suited to represent a particular case – for instance one which requires in- depth knowledge of civil law – it will be a random lawyer to take the case, not for any professional reasons but simply because his or her turn was up on the roster. And in trials by jury, only one legal aid lawyer is made available. But perhaps the most bizarre anomaly concerns the source of these lawyers' meagre remunera- tion: the office of the Attorney Gen- eral, which also represents the pub- lic prosecution. "Having legal aid lawyers paid from the budget of the Attorney General, who is public prosecutor and thus in general an adversary to the same legal aid lawyers, is also of great concern. As is the discretion given to the AG to decide whether a case is heard in the lower or upper courts…" Reforms of these and other legal issues are supposedly in the pipe- line owing to the ongoing Justice Reform Commission, which – as Debono once again reminds me – modelled its report on his own past recommendations. But Debono hints that further de- lays may result in additional judg- ments against Malta in the interna- tional courts. "In my opinion legal aid is not only inadequate but it also fails to fulfil the criteria and spirit of the Consti- tutional and European convention's requirements. In fact I have just filed a recourse in the Constitution- al Court over this very issue." So I guess we haven't heard the end of it yet… Lawyer and former thorn in the Gonzi administration's side Franco Debono argues that the important thing now is to press ahead with a party financing bill, and leave the fine-tuning for later PHOTOGRAPHY BY RAY ATTARD Let's not get lost in details