Shadow Minister for home affairs, Beppe Fenech Adami today slammed the government for the unprecedented number of deaths which have taken place under police custody.

“In three and a half months, there have been 5 deaths. This is in no way normal, a coincidence or a freak occurrence,” he said while addressing members of the press.

He blamed the deaths and the “deteriorating” situation at the prison on government mismanagement and poor decision taking.

He added that this flies in the face of pre electoral promises of meritocracy, and that the appalling situation inside the prison was a result of hiring individuals for the wrong reasons. Dr Fenech Adami gave special mention to former Assistant Police Commissioner Ray Zammit, saying that he was responsible for the prison up until recently, as well as being involved in many scandals and controversies.

Dr Fenech Adami said that a series of bad decisions, such as leaving the prison up to the responsibility of Mr Zammit, is why prisons are experiencing “low of cell hygiene.”

In addition to this, he said that “cells meant for one person are being used for two, inmates have to resort to washing their clothes in buckets, prisoners are drinking water which is unsafe, there is poor food quality and an ongoing drug problem within the prisons themselves.”

With reference to the other four deaths, Dr Fenech Adami went through the various responses by Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Abela. He said that in the first two deaths Minister Abela “hid” behind a magisterial inquiry. He then said that with regard to the third death, which took place at the forensics unit at Mount Carmel, Minister Abela refused an independent inquiry, choosing an internal one instead, however did not publish it stating that it was the advice of the Attorney General.

He said that Minister Abela is “not fit for purpose.”

PN Spokesperson Francis Zammit Dimech added that prisoners are highly concerned about the situation, adding that they are entitled to their fundamental human rights just like anyone else.

Photographs by Jonathan Borg