Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/392875
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 5 OCTOBER 2014 News 7 MIRIAM DALLI THE findings of an independent in- quiry into the running of the Deten- tion Services have not yet been made public, two years after the Office of the Prime Minister had ordered the inquiry in 2012. It is unclear whether the inquiry has in fact been concluded, with Prime Minister Joseph Muscat con- firming with MaltaToday that he "would have to check the status of the report". Mamadou Kamara, 32, died in the summer of 2012 while in the custody of Detention Services and Armed Forces of Malta personnel. On the orders of then Prime Min- ister Lawrence Gonzi, an inquiry headed by retired judge Geoffrey Valenzia was appointed to establish whether there had been negligence, non-observance of procedures or abuse of power by any detention service officials involved in the case. Human rights NGOs had called on Gonzi to ensure a truly independ- ent and effective inquiry, including a comprehensive and inclusive review of Malta's policy of mandatory de- tention. "I have absolutely no problem with this information being released to the public," Muscat said. Admitting that he had never seen the Valenzia report, the Prime Min- ister said he would have to check the status of the report. "It is not in my nature to inter- fere with investigations and reports. However, I never find a problem with information being made public at the right time," Muscat added. In further comments to MaltaTo- day, the Prime Minister "welcomed" comments by the High Commission- er for Refugees, Antonio Guterres who recognised improvements in the conditions for migrants which Malta has made. "Violence is never tolerated or jus- tified and while Malta, together with Italy, will continue saving lives, we will also ensure that the respect for human life and dignity are always safeguarded. However, we cannot do this on our own and the rest of the countries must join in," he said. Muscat also welcomed the "tact" of European Commissioner-designate for migration Dimitris Avramopou- los: "His approach seems to be differ- ent from that of his predecessor. We now hope that his words transform into concrete action." Human rights NGO aditus Founda- tion has also written to Muscat ask- ing for the publication of the report. The Valenzia inquiry was expected to conclude its investigation as soon as possible. "Two years down the line is defi- nitely not 'as soon as possible'. In view of this requirement, aditus look forward to hear from the Prime Minister on the finalisation of the inquiry and the publication of the results," aditus director Neil Falzon told MaltaToday. Three detention services officers were charged with the murder of Kamara, believed to have been beat- en to death during his interception by the officers in Safi after attempt- ing to escape from the detention centre there. He was captured by DS officers, who took him to Paola polyclinic in the early hours of Saturday, June 30, and was found to be dead on arrival, having sustained various injuries to his groin and lower back, presum- ably as a result of being severely beaten. Only a year earlier, another Nige- rian national, Ifeanye Nwokoye, had died while also in the custody of de- tention officials. An inquiry report into his death was never made pub- lic, with the government only pub- lishing a summary of the findings. Migrants arriving irregularly and without documentation in Malta are detained for 12 months before being released, a policy that has been condemned internationally. Asylum seekers whose claims for protection are turned down before the 12-month detention period can spend up to 18 months in detention, a policy which the European Court of Human Rights considers illegal. Inquiry into Mamadou Kamara death remains under wraps NO-COST OPPORTUNITY FOR EMPLOYERS Operational Programme II - Cohesion Policy 2007-2013 Empowering People for More Jobs and a Better Quality of Life The Project is part-nanced by the European Union European Social Fund (ESF) Co-nancing rate: 85% EU Funds; 15% National Funds Investing in your future As part of the Youth Guarantee Programme, Government plans to provide up to 300 young, prospective first-time workers, who recently left secondary school, with a Work Exposure experience for a period of 12 working weeks, each of a duration of 20 hours. The benefits to volunteering, participating employers will be: 1. Added work-value from the young workers who will themselves be remunerated directly by Government for their hours of work over the Work Exposure period of 12 weeks; 2. The choice, at the end of the 12 weeks' Work Exposure, of retaining one or more of the trainees against European Social Funding of their salaries during a further Traineeship period of up to six months; and 3. A tax deduction of €600 in respect of every youth offered a full 6 months Traineeship by the particular employer. We can't think of a reason why an employer would pass this opportunity by and we expect to have to respond on a first-come first-served basis. We invite you to visit the ETC website www.etc.gov.mt, where we have uploaded expected questions with our answers, then call us for any clarifications and apply online before you lose out. For further information you may call on 2598 2280/2. Mamadou Kamara