Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl's public meetings are
occasions of special importance. They mark significant moments
of development and publiccontact
that reveal the organisation's dynamic str ucture and its tackling
of real problems and situations. Through these occasions Mid-Dlam
ghad-Dawl has established itself firmly as the organisation
in Malta that defends the interests of prisoners and their families.
All addresses given by Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl
on these occasions before the distiguished guests were prepared
together with the prisoners themselves during Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl's
weekly meetings at the prisons.
February
23, 1996
Meeting with the Hon. Dr Edward Fenech
Adami Prime Minister of Malta
Eden Beach Hotel, St George's
You may realise that this public
meeting was held just a few months after the establishment of
Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl, a meeting that crowned the pioneering work
done at the beginning of our experience. This meeting, in fact,
marks the end of the "honey-moon period", so to say,
of the organisation's experience. And to this effect it had all
the right ingredients. A truly"magical moment", we might
say succinctly.
First of all, the place - the
brilliantly-lit large hall of the Eden Beach Hotel at St George's
Bay - magnanimously offered to us by the owners, Ian and Kevin
Decesare, was grandly laid out, complete with a silver-service
touch. To this, the meeting had the added glamour of a "star-studded"
participation: the Prim Minister, Dr Edward Fenech Adami, and
his wife; the Leader of the Opposition, Dr Alfred Sant; H.G. the
Archbishop, Mons. Joseph Mercieca; the Minister of Home Affairs,
Dr Tonio Borg, and his wife; the Shadow-Minister for Home Affairs,
Dr Gavin Gulia, and his wife; the prison Director, Emmanuel Cassar;
the whole compliment of the Prison Board, headed by Chairman Dr
Mario Felice; the Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs, Louis
Cilia; and many more. Finally, the enthusiastic attendance of
a large number of prisoners' relatives, ex-prisoners, volunteers
of Daritama, a good number of journalists, and the general public.
The special occasion was made
more so by the singular fact that the politicians were invited
not to address speeches, but to listen to what
the relatives of prisoners, and the ex-prisoners present, had
to say. And say they did indeed.
Subsequently, the press gave excellent
coverage. Most news editions - on television, radio and print
- gave outstanding prominence to the occasion. The Sunday
Times even had the meeting placed as its front-page header
on Sunday 25.
March
7, 1997
Meeting with the Hon. Dr Alfred Sant Prime Minister of Malta and Minister of Home Affairs
Eden Beach Hotel, St George's
When this meeting was held, roughly
a year after the first one, Dr Edward Fenech Adami and Dr Alfred
Sant exchanged their official position. The former became Leader
of the Opposition, and the latter Prim Minister. The meeting was
held at the same venue, and organised upon the same lines, of
the first meeting. With a difference, however. This time the new
Prim Minister was invited to address the meeting. Dr Sant, in
fact, read a policy speech on prison matters.
Again, as in the previous year,
the Leader of the Opposition, H.G. the Archbishop, the acting
prison Director (newly installed Peter Cordina), the Permanent
Secretary for Home Affairs, the Shadow-Minister (Dr Tonio Borg),
and members of the Prison Board were also present. A large number
of relatives of families, and also ex-prisoners, participated
in the meeting.
The high-light of this meeting
was the Prim-Minister's speech. The participants were all ears
to discover the prison policies projected by the new man in office
since the previous October, and none seemed to be disappointed.
May
8, 1998
Meeting on Victims and Crime
Preluna Hotel, Sliema
In collaboration with Guzè
Ellul Mercer (G.E.M.) Foundation
This join effort between Mid-Dlam
ghad-Dawl and the Guzè Ellul Mercer Foundation was a huge
success, particularly due to the large attendence of the general
public. The meeting was built around the viewing of the film Weeds,
which was shown to those present at the opening of the meeting.
Afterwards, speeches were held, and a lively discussion followed.
The general theme chosen for the meeting was: Society and
Prisoners: Who is the victim of whom?
Those invited to talk at the meeting
were Dr Mark Montebello on behalf of Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl; Roberta
Calleja (the wife of the prisoner Meinrad Calleja); the Assistant
Commissioner of Police, John Rizzo; and the father of a murdered
person, Emmanuel Segona. The discussion was under the direction
of Fr Pierre Grech Marguerat S.J.
June
12, 1998
Meeting with the Hon. Dr Alfred Sant Prime Minister of Malta and Minister of Home Affairs
Grands Hotel Les Lapins, Tax-Xbiex
This was the second public meeting
with Dr Sant in his capacity as Prim Minister of Malta and the
Minister responsible for Home Affairs. Politically, it was a very
turbulent time for Dr Sant, since his government was on the brink
of collapse due to serious internal factions. Notwithstanding,
the meeting was well-attended and successful. The venue was changed
due to the fact that the Eden Beach Hotel, where the first two
public meetings with the Prim Ministers were held, was being demolished
for renovation. Again, the Prim Minister was invited to address
the meeting, which was broadcasted direct on the national station
Radio Malta One.
Also present at the meeting were
the Shadow-Minister for Home Affairs, Dr Tonio Borg; the Permanent
Secretary for Home Affairs, Louis Cilia; the acting prison Director,
Peter Cordina; the chairperson of the Prison Board, Dr Mario Felice;
and other distinguished persons. A large number of relatives of
prisoners attended, and also ex-prisoners.
On the part of Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl,
the main speech was read by Rosette Spiteri, and the meeting was
directed by Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl's Secretary, George Busuttil.
After the meeting, a wine and
pizza treat was offered to those present.
The press gave good and satisfactory
coverage of the whole occasion.
December
18, 1998
Meeting on Equality and Justice
Workers' Memorial Building, Valletta
In collaboration with the
Malta John XXIII Peace Lab
This meeting was held to commemorate
the 40th anniversary of Pope John XXIII's historical visit to
the Regina Coeli prisons of Rome on December 26, 1958,
a couple of weeks after his ascension to the papal thrown. The
theme chosen for the meeting, together with co-organisers Peace
Lab John XXIII, was: Are the Low and the High equal before
the Law?
Those present were invited to
discuss a working document distributed and explained to them all.
The idea was to decide on a final version of the document, and
issue a common position-statement. The idea was accepted and liked
very much.
To help in the editing of the
working document, Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl and the Peace Lab invited
two lawyers, Dr Anna Mallia and Dr Tony Abela, and one journalist,
Pamela Hansen, to address the meeting. The document had been sent
to them before-hand. The discussion that ensued was a most lively
one. The meeting was jointly directed by the Director of the Peace
Lab, Fr Dionysus Mintoff OFM, and Dr Mark Montebello for Mid-Dlam
ghad-Dawl.
At the end of the meeting, after
all the emandments to the working document were made, those present
approved the final version and ordered its publication. The position-statement,
eventually, was sent to the press, and thereby given considerable
attention.
For the final document issued from this meeting
click here.
May
21, 1999
Meeting with the Hon. Dr Tonio Borg Minister of Home Affairs On the Conditions
of the Arrested
Dar it-Tama, Cospicua
For this meeting, Mid-Dlam had
invited the Prime Minister, Dr Edward Fenech Adami. However, the
PM preferred that the meeting should take place with the Minister
of Home Affairs, Dr Tonio Borg, since the prisons were under his
direct responsibility.
The public meeting, incidentally,
was very different from any other organised by Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl.
The main hall of Dar it-Tama, Cospicua, the centre from where
Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl co-ordinates all its work, was transformed
into a large studio under the direction of the technicians of
the national station Radio Malta Two. The meetings, in fact, in
its entirity, was broadcasted live on this station and also on
Radju Kottoner, the community radio station of Daritama.
The theme of the meeting was The
Calvary of the Arrested. This very provocative and interesting
subject was led by lawyer Dr Joseph Giglio on behalf of Mid-Dlam
ghad-Dawl. The other participants were the Minister for Home Affairs,
Dr Tonio Borg; the Shadow Minister for Home Affairs, Dr Angelo
Farrugia; and the Shadow Minister for Justice, Dr Gavin Gulia.
Though invited, the Minister for Justice, Dr Austin Gatt, could
not attend. The discussion was directed by Dr Mark Montebello
of Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl. The public attended numerously, and participated
enthusiastically.
The meeting was a great success.
Its form, a new experience for Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl, was originally
suggested by Albano Grima, an ex-prisoner quite active in the
organisation. Following the end of the broadcast, all participants
were invited for a reception at Dar it-Tama itself.
The press followed and reported
the occasion very generously. The Malta Independent even
published it as a front-page leader.
In preparation for the occasion,
the Tuesday before the meeting, that is on May 8, Dr Giglio personally
met the prisoners during the weekly meeting of Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl
at the prisons. In such manner, Dr Giglio was well prepared both
accademically and with suggestions and comments from the prisoners
themselves.
October
20, 2000
Meeting with H.E. Prof. Guido de Marco President of the Republic
Metropole Hotel, Sliema
This meeting was somewhat disappointing.
Unfortunately, though thoroughly prepared and organised, H.E.
the President of the Republic was late in coming to the venue
and early in leaving. Incidentally, the President left rather
apruptly due to the fact that he strongly objected to some comments
made by Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl and from the floor.
The theme discussed was Are
the Priosners Human too? H.G. the Bishop of Gozo, Mons. Nicholas
Cauchi, attended and addressed the meeting together with the President
of the Republic. Public attendence, amongst whom numerous families
of prisoners, was extremely good.
In its address, Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl
highlighted aspects from the administration of justice at the
local courts, the work leave and family leave proposals for prisoners,
and the problems of prisoners' families. The speech was prepared
by Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl together with the prisoners during their
weekly meetings in the prisons.
Unfortunately, however, the President
objected strongly for doubts expressed in relation to the clean
administration of justice, where it was said that money talk more
than lawyers. Explaining that he had to leave early, the President
abruptly walked out of the hall to the great astonishment, and
disappointment, of all those present.
It must be said that, a couple
of years later, when a magistrate and the Chief Justice himself
were accused of corruption, Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl was proved absolutely
right in its comments that day. This did not go unnoticed by the
President of the Republic himself.
April
21, 2001
Meeting on the Families of Prisoners
Workers' Memorial Building, Valletta
All the other public meetings
were organised in the evening. This meeting was the only one held
in the morning, and on a Saturday. This was intended to entice
the general public to attend the meeting, which it did indeed.
For that numerous attendence, Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl was assisted
by Guzè Ellul Mercer Foundation, which informed its members
of the activity.
The theme, Families of Prisoners:
A past without a future?, was chosen as part of the campaign
Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl had been putting up during that year. The idea
of the meeting was to highlight the problems prisoners' families
meet due to their relatives' incarceration.
The meeting was initally addressed
lawyer Dr Lynn Zahra, journalist Ms Pamela Hansen, and Dr Mark
Montebello on behalf of Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl. The discussion was
directed by the then Director of Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl, Ivan Cauchi.
The discussion that ensued was
very lively with the full and enthusiastic participation of the
public in attendence.
November
2, 2001
Meeting on Home Leave
St James Chavalier, Valletta
"Home Leave" was a proposal
Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl made to the government for regular familial
visits of prisoners to their families. The public meeting concentrated
on this proposal.
For active participation at the
meeting, Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl had invited the Minister of Home Affairs,
Dr Tonio Borg; the prison Director, Emmanuel Cassar; and the Shadow
Minister for Home Affairs, Dr Gavin Gulia. However, to our great
disappointment, not anyone of them appeared for the occasion.
The meeting was unfortunately also poorly attended by the public.
Those who attended and participated
actively were Gillian Bartolo, a journalist of The Malta Independent
on Sunday; and Mario Mallia, the Vice-President of Malta's
thirt party, Alternattiva Demokratika. Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl
was represented by Ivan Cauchi, the then Director of the organisation.
Though the public attended poorly,
the members of the press were numerous. These subsequently gave
a most satisfactory report of the occasion.
The discussion was very lively,
with active participation from the floor, and from various local
groups, both private and governmental.
November
21, 2003
Meeting with the Hon. Dr Tonio Borg Minister of Justice and
Home Affairs on the theme 'Prison ... wasted
time?'
St James Chavalier, Valletta
This year's public meeting was
a special one in many respects. To begin with, it was accompanied
with a wonderful exhibition of works created by the prisoners
themselves, in collaboration with the prison authorities. The
exhibition, inaugurated by the Hon. Minister of Justice and Home
Affairs, Dr Tonio Borg, in the presence of Prison Director, Mr
Sandro Gatt, remained open up till the 30th of November.
The well-attended public meeting
was held immediately before the inauguration of the exhibition.
Apart from the Hon. Minister and the Prison Director, other special
guests addressed the meeting. These included: Mr Joseph Giordmaina,
from the Faculty of Education of the University of Malta, who
is the Co-ordinator of the Educational Programme at the prisons;
Mr Desmond Zammit Marmarà, the Co-ordinator of the prison
school; Mr Eucharist Grech, the Co-ordinator of sports at the
prison; Mr Jack Grech, the Official responsible for social assistence
at the prisons; and Mr Joseph Spiteri, the main psychiatrist at
the prisons. The meeting was also addressed by an ex-prison inmate.
After assisting to the wealth
of experience that these speakers brought to the meeting, a discussion
was held, led by a penal composed of: Dr Mark Montebello, Director
of Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl; Mr Mario Vella, Deputy Chairperson of the
political party Alternattiva Demokratika; the Hon. Dr
Gavin Gulia, the main speaker for the Opposition on Home Affairs;
and the Hon. Minister of Justice and Home Affairs, Dr Tonio Borg.
The public present, which participated in the discussion most
heartily, included many relatives of prisoners and various journalists.
The whole meeting was chaired
by Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl's Co-ordinator, Mr Ivan Cauchi, who addressed
those present at the very beginning of the meeting, and also introduced
an experty-made video presentation on the meeting's theme: Prison
... wasted time?
The meeting was a success all
around, a perfect example of good team-effort. During its address,
Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl expanded on the theme of the management system
at the Corradino Prisons. It also made two proposals to the Hon.
Minister: first, to set up a multi-disciplinary commission, headed
by the Prison Director, to work on a managerial reform within
the Corradino Prisons; and to commission a study on the managerial
situation at the prisons, and make proposals in this regard. Mid-Dlam
ghad-Dawl pledged its full cooperation for the fulfillment of
this proposal.
November
11, 2004
Working Seminar on the theme 'Victims of Crime
in Malta'
Paola Local Council, Paola, Malta
This year's meeting was not open
to the general public. It was rather a working seminar on the
state of victim services in Malta amongst chosen delegates. The
seminar, was intended as a "stock-taking" exercise,
was a first in Malta. Never has there been in the past a seminar
dealing with such a theme. The seminar registered the current
situation in Malta as regards services to victims of crime, a
brain-storming operation, and also a step forward in the direction
of the establishment of Victim
Support Malta. All interested organisations and institutions
were invited to attend and address the seminar. The guest speaker
at the event was Dame Helen Reeves, Chairperson of Victim Support
UK, and Victim Support Europe (VSE; formerly the European Forum
for Victim Services). The seminar was also addressed by Dr Tonio
Borg, Minister for Justice and Home Affairs.
February
4 , 2005
Conference on the theme 'Victims of Crime:
Towards a better future'
Robert Samut Hall, Floriana, Malta
This conference was addressed
by some of the local heavy-weights in criminal justice, such as
Dr Vincent Chief Justice De Gaetano, President Emeritus, Prof.
Guido Demarco, and others. The participation of the publice was
good, and media coverage was extensive. The other speakers were
Dr Anton Felice (Director of the Malta Insurance Association),
Dr David Zammit (Association for Human Rights), Dr Edward
Saliba (specialist on victims' rights), Dr Jacqueline Azzopardi
(Institute for Forensic Studies of the University of
Malta), and Dr Mark Montebello (Victim Support Malta).
The conference was chaired by Ivan Cauchi, Coordintor of Mid-Dlam
ghad-Dawl, and introduced by Rachel Agius, Coordinator of Victim
Support Malta. George Busuttil, secretary of Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl,
was secretary to the conference. The occasion was a follow-up
of the national seminar organised in November 2004 (see above).
It dealt with the position of victims of crime within the criminal
justice system. The conference was sponsored by CasanMamo Insurance.
March
1, 2006
Public Seminar on the theme 'Parole: Its
time has come?'
Millennium Chapel Complex, Paceville, Malta
In collaboration with the
Foundation Mikiel Anton Vassalli
The aim of this seminar was to
continue the public discussion about the introduction of the parole
system in Malta. The meeting was addressed by Dr José Herrera,
Labour MP; Ms. Violete Calleja, a mother of a prisoner sentenced
to life imprisonment; Dr Jason Azzopardi, Nationalist MP; Dr Gavin
Gulia, Shadow Minister for Internal Affairs; Dr Tonio Borg, Minister
for Justice and Home Affairs; and Dr Mark Montebello on behalf
of Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl. Public attendence was quite good, and even
press coverage. Click here
for Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl's concrete proposals for the introduction
of parole in Malta.
April
10, 2008
Public Conference on the theme 'Ex-Prisoners:
Branded for ever!?'
St. James Cavalier, Valletta, Malta
What real prospects do prisoners
face after leaving the prisons? This is something so many talk
about but very few work upon. The future of most ex-prisoners
is blight. The conference, organised on the occasion of MDD's
13th anniversary of its establishment, was addressed by various
experts in the field, including Prison Director Sandro Gatt, Rehabilitative
Centre Head Charles Miceli, ETC Advisor Antoinette Camilleri,
Shelter Coordinator Charles Mifsud, Magistrate Consuelo Scerri
Herrera, Ex-Prisoners Care Worker Matthew Agius, and the Minister
for Social Policy John Dalli. During the conference MDD launched
the results of a research study made with prison inmates in January
2008 on their future hopes and prospectives. The conference was
very well attended, and also attracted good press coverage.
April
23, 2009
Public Conference on themes covered by Government's
2009 White Paper
Venue: to be announced
A long-awaited White Paper on
improvements to the criminal justice system is expected to be
issued by government in January 2009. The conference will deal
with themes contained in the White Paper that particularly relate
to prisoners.
