NGOs have shed light on the “precarious situation” of women and other vulnerable persons in closed detention centres, claiming that the current practice of housing women together with single men in camps such as the Lyster Detention Centre in Hal Far is “not acceptable”.
Detention Services commander Colonel Brian Gatt yesterday confirmed there are currently 125 women, most of whom are unaccompanied, in detention at the Lyster Centre. According to agencies such as the Jesuit Refugee Services (JRS) and the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), many of these women have to share their living space – including bathrooms – with men.
There are no locks on toilet doors, nor any shower curtains to provide even a modicum of individual privacy. Sleeping quarters are often mixed, and there are no locks (in some cases, no doors) for the protection of vulnerable persons.
As a result of all this, both JRS and UNHCR believe that women in detention are exposed to the constant threat of serious physical and psychological harm, and that they are occasionally victims of physical, and possibly also sexual, violence.
These are among the details supplied by JRS lawyer Dr Katrine Camilleri, and confirmed separately by UNHCR’s Malta representative, Mr Neil Falzon.
However, Col. Gatt has emphatically denied these allegations, claiming that single women are housed separately from men, that the toilet doors all have locks, and that “there have been no reports of any women hurt during violent incidents in detention centres.”
It is the second case of utterly conflicting reports by official authorities and aid agencies regarding detention practices, after an allegation of children in detention was similarly rebutted, this time by the Department of Information, in June 2006.
Dr Katrine Camilleri stands by her view that single women are exposed to domestic violence during detention. “There have been occasions where women claim to have been hurt during violent incidents,” she confirms. “I have never been present for any of these incidents, but I see the bruises afterwards. As a rule, reported cases tend to be only the tip of the iceberg.”
Such violent incidents have long been known to occur in detention centres, most often as a result of the stress and tension brought about by the confluence of a number of factors: depression, uncertainty, overcrowding, and also the sheer duration of detention, which can last a maximum of 18 months.
And while there is no concrete evidence of sexual abuse on women in detention centres, Dr Camilleri believes this to be a “distinct possibility”, given the often grim conditions in which they find themselves.
“So far there have not been any reports of rape, but the threat of abuse under such circumstances cannot be ignored. After all, it happens in all societies in all parts of the world. Can we be certain it doesn’t happen in detention? I would say ‘No’.”
Dr Camilleri also points out it is difficult for women to report rape cases at the best of times. In detention, these difficulties are greatly exacerbated: both by the prevalent conditions, as well as by cultural differences in the way these women tend to perceive themselves and their attitudes towards traditional gender roles.
What is certain is that a number of women have emerged pregnant from detention centres; although it is hard to say if such pregnancies are the result of rape, or of relationships which developed spontaneously in detention.
“Under these kind of circumstances it is difficult to talk about any form of ‘consent’”, Camilleri points out. “How ‘consenting’ can you be, when you are forced to share everything, including showers, with men?”
Again, Col. Brian Gatt’s version of events is somewhat different. He claims that these pregnancies were limited either to married couples, or to persons who were already in stable relationships when detained.
But Neil Falzon points out that police records confirm that women who were originally identified as “single” also emerged pregnant from detention.
In January 2005, the Government of Malta published a policy document on immigration which clearly laid out guidelines for the protection of vulnerable immigrants. Entitled “Irregular Immigrants, Refugees and Integration”, this document clearly states that: “Single women asylum seekers and those not travelling in the company of their spouse should be accommodated separately from male asylum seekers. Where possible, female staff should be deployed with irregular immigrant women.”
Almost three years after its publication, no efforts have yet been made to implement this policy. “At one point we were assured that a new block would be utilised specifically for women,” Neil Falzon told MaltaToday. “So far, we haven’t seen this happening. The block which had been earmarked for this purpose is now being used to accommodate men.”
Likewise, female staff are limited to only a handful among the majority of male AFM soldiers… although here, Dr Katrine Camilleri concedes that there are logistical difficulties, namely the general unavailability of female wardens.
On a more positive note, both Falzon and Camilleri separately acknowledge that while unaccompanied minors are still routinely detained upon arrival, the release procedure for children has been speeded up in recent months. Also, both praise individual AFM members for the standards of the service they provide, despite the paucity of resources at their disposal.

rvassallo@mediatoday.com.mt