‘All Children Deserve Protection’: NGO Aditus Condemns Malta’s Detention Of Child Migrants
Local human rights NGO aditus has warned it is unacceptable for the Maltese government to detain child migrants in detention centres.
“All children deserve protection. Malta is a nation that prides itself on cherishing families, especially children,” the NGO said.
“It steps in when children are suffering because it believes that all children should be able to play, smile, learn and enjoy life to the full. Children are protected not only because they are the future, but because the present is so important to them.”
“So why is it that when immigration detention centres are visited, children are often found inside? Why has Malta decided that it is acceptable to deny some children smiles and replace them with fear, anxiety and uncertainty?”
Aditus pointed out how the Council of Europe’s anti-torture committee noted just last week that the children they had met in Malta’s detention centres were only allowed into an exercise yard for around one or two hours a day.
They stressed that the detention centres “are not designed to care for children and not only are they inadequate in terms of material conditions, they also completely lack an adequate regime and any specific care provision to cater to the best interests of the child.”
Aditus also pointed out that it recently mounted a successful case against the Maltese government before the European Court of Human Rights over the detention of five boys for over 180 days.
“They were detained in appalling centres: some bathrooms had no doors, drains were often blocked and flooded, there was no access to a yard or open space and no activities whatsoever,” they said.
“When government experts assessed them, they noted ‘significantly elevated’ or ‘extremely high’ levels of anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), acute stress and three also had suicidal thoughts. They had also been harassed, threatened, and tricked by the very people responsible for their care.”
This video and the detention work are supported by PRO ASYL.
The Court confirmed that Malta had violated the boys’ human rights, ruling that their detention was illegal.
It also underlined that states may only detain children as a means of last resort when no alternative is available.
Aditus director Neil Falzon said Malta already has alternative places to accommodate migrant children that can cater for their educational, leisure and psycho-social needs.
“What is lacking is the commitment to continue saying: all children deserve protection,” he said.
aditus foundation is a non-governmental organisation established to monitor, report and act on access to fundamental human rights for all persons in Malta. It advocates for stronger legal and administrative frameworks for human rights protection. It also offers free legal services.
aditus’ lawyers visit Malta’s detention centres on a regular basis. They provide information and support and intervene when clients are being illegally detained. The organisation believes that no child should ever be detained and will continue to fight against Malta’s detention of children.
You can support efforts to end child detention by donating here.
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