International Affairs

Annual Report 2013

Ministry for Home Affairs and National Security

OFFICE OF THE PERMANENT SECRETARY

DIRECTORATE GENERAL (STRATEGY AND SUPPORT)

The Directorate General (Strategy and Support) manages and provides central corporate support services to the Permanent Secretary and to the various directorates, departments, entities and organisations within the Ministry on corporate issues such as financial planning and management, public procurement, human resources, operations and office management. The Directorate ensures the timely and accurate preparation and production of all control and management information and the provision of the full range of support services to the Permanent Secretary and operational management.

The Directorate also coordinates and ensures uniformity and compliance in implementation of the policies and guidelines laid down by the Office of the Prime Minister (including the Public Administration Human Resources Offices) and Ministry of Finance (particularly the Budget Office and the Department of Contracts). It also strives to provide the required resources to the various Directorates making up the Office of the Permanent Secretary so as to ensure their effective and efficient functioning, and contributes to the collective management of the Ministry for Home Affairs and National Security.

FINANCE AND OFFICE MANAGEMENT

The Directorate General Strategy and Support handles all financial and procurement matters related to the Minister’s Secretariat, the Office of the Permanent Secretary, EU Affairs Directorate, Programme Implementation Directorate, Policy Development Directorate, Manager Airport Security, Detention Services Unit, Office of the Commissioner for Refugees, the Third Country Nationals Unit, Central Visa Unit and the Directorate of Citizenship and Expatriate Affairs. The Directorate General is also responsible for effecting payment in tranches to the Public Broadcasting Services Ltd, Agency for Welfare of Asylum Seekers, Emigrants Commission, Identity Malta Agency, Malta Film Commission and Malta Broadcasting Authority.

Monthly Revised Estimates were drawn up for the Ministry’s vote, its Cost Centres, and Responsibility Centres, whilst the monthly financial returns of the other departments which form part of this Ministry were also evaluated and monitored prior to onward transmission to the Ministry of Finance. Drafting and consolidation of the 2013 Financial Estimates in respect of the departments which fall under the Ministry for Home Affairs and National Security, were also carried out. It was ensured that any excess expenditure was offset under other items of expenditure within the Ministry’s Votes.

The Finance and Administration Section performed the following functions during the year under review:

 drawing up the relative payrolls of personnel deployed at the various cost centres and units falling under the Ministry, after taking into account adjustments, increases, allowances and overtime;  receiving requisitions for works and services, drawing up the necessary purchase orders, carrying out purchase and then processing requests for payment by creditors;

 taking care of transport - recording and issuing of fuel requisitions to government owned vehicles while keeping a proper records of vehicle maintenance through the Fleet Management System;  approving advance payments made by the various departments falling under the Ministry;  keeping of inventory records of all fixed assets procured by this Office and making the necessary information available to the departments in order to update their respective assets records;  drawing up of quarterly returns of suppliers who do not provide the Office with a fiscal receipt;  processing a number of payments in respect of EU related projects mainly: European Refugee Funds, European Border Funds, European Return Funds, European Migration Network and EUREMA.  keeping records of bank accounts related to the above projects and reconciling these with the relevant bank statements. These are reported annually to the Treasury Department.  compiling and monitoring of financial returns as requested by the Ministry of Finance;  drawing up on a quarterly basis the accrual accounting financial statements;  compiling and consolidating information related to replies to parliamentary questions. compiling and consolidating the Ministry’s and line departments’ annual returns regarding: bank accounts, cash losses & stores written off and arrears of revenue;  preparing the necessary documentation and closing of advances related to delegations proceeding abroad on official duties.

During the year under review, the Finance and Administration section processed 146 advances made to officers proceeding abroad on official duties and other Ministerial missions. Claims were submitted to the Ministry of Finance for reimbursement of expenditure incurred in connection with travel related to attendance during EU Commission and Council meetings.

The Directorate was also involved in a number of public procurement activities, both to service the Permanent Secretariat and the Ministry, and to assist various Departments and Entities in their respective procurement activities. Of particular note was the support given to various organisations who were procuring goods, services and works that were co-financed through EU Emergency Funds. The Directorate also carried out the monitoring role on departmental tenders as defined by the Public Procurement Regulations, and the Departmental Contracts Committee met twenty-seven times during the year and discussed 114 recommendations for clarifications, cancellation, or awards.

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

The role of the Human Resources is twofold:  Development – responsibilities of learning, training, coaching, mentoring, team building, motivation, employee engagement and benefits management.  Administration – responsibilities like collective bargaining, discipline management, dispute management, grievance handling, severance management & compliance management.

During the year under review, the Human Resource Management (HRM) provided general direction and support related to but not limited to HR matters to various sections and its line departments/units/agencies, coordinated meetings and liaised with Assistant

Directors for better coordination and smooth running of the various branches. The HRM worked jointly with HR Managers, particularly in the drafting of a good number of various calls for applications as a result of the capacity building exercise for the year 2013. This included verification of the draft calls.

Functions of Human Resource Management

The broad functions of the office can be summarised as follows:

 Attendance

. Performance Management Programmes (PMPs)

. Progressions and promotions:

. Recruitment Portal

. Personal Information Database (Perinfo)

. Other Administrative Work: Staff progressions, confirmation of appointments, Increment Warrants and pension papers. Monitoring the implementation of performance appraisal schemes; Notifying all employees with vacation leave balance to be carried forward to the following year. Issuing Service and Leave Record (GP47) Forms whenever requested.

 Skills Profiling Exercise

Call for Applications

Liaising with HR Line Managers, in order to identify any vacant posts/positions within the line departments, so as to satisfy the requirements of their organisational structures. This exercise also included the creation of new posts/positions to specifically reflect the desired staff complement.

Occupational Health and Safety Courses

During 2013, the HRM continued to encourage more employees to attend courses in connection with health and safety as offered on regular basis by OHSA. The Health and Safety Representative of the Ministry assisted this Office on OHS issues.

Shared Networking System

The Shared Networking System has been updated during the year under review to facilitate smooth operation of the system. 2013 saw the introduction of electronic calculation of vacation leave entitlement of employees on regular working hours, on reduced hours or on unpaid leave for part of the calendar year, in order to reduce manual errors.

Other Tasks

The staff of the Human Resource Sections within the Departments falling under the Ministry’s remit continued to receive the necessary training on the compilation of Performance Management Reports. Such reports in respect of the General Service Grades were also drawn up on quarterly, six monthly and annual basis. The unit has also handled various requests from officers to perform tele-working in line with the recently introduced government policy.

JOHN SANT Director General (Strategy and Support)

POLICY DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION DIRECTORATE

International Affairs

Bilateral Relations

The Policy Development Directorate contributed to negotiations conducted with the authorities of Burkina Faso, which led to the conclusion of a Memorandum of Understanding on Migration Matters between the Government of Malta and the Government of Burkina Faso. The MOU was signed on 27th February 2013.

The Directorate also contributed to the drafting of the Agreement and Protocol between Malta and Kosovo on the Readmission of Persons residing without Authorisation, which came into force on 1st April 2013.

It participated in discussions relating to a readmission MOU with a Ghanaian delegation which visited Malta on 7-9th May 2013.

The Policy Development Directorate also participated in discussions relating to a readmission MOU with a Gambian delegation which visited Malta on 10-12th June 2013.

The Directorate participated in the Malta-Libya Joint Working Group on Security and Illegal Migration which convened in Malta on 12-13th November 2013. During this meeting agreement was reached on the delivery of Police training to the Libyan authorities.

Council of Europe

The Policy Development Directorate drafted the response by the Maltese authorities to the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) report. The response by the Maltese authorities was sent by the Maltese Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe on 20th March 2013.

United Nations

The Policy Development Directorate prepared documentation in relation to the Universal Periodic Review of Malta held on 28th October- 1st November.

Conference of the Ministers of the Interior of the Western Mediterranean States

The Director (Policy Development) attended the CIMO Ministerial Conference held in Algiers on 8-9th April 2013 with the Director General (Operations). The Policy Development Directorate also prepared the required Briefing and Speaking Note for this meeting.

Human Trafficking

The Human Trafficking Monitoring Committee convened on 21st January and discussed the Action Plan covering the period 2013-2014 and the Final Report on the implementation of the First Action Plan. Revised versions of both documents were sent to the members after the meeting to finalise the approval process.

The Stakeholder Task Force convened on 5th February, when it held further discussions in relation to the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). The Stakeholder Task Force also

5 convened on 4th March, when it reached agreement on the text of the Standard Operating Procedures. A third meeting of the Stakeholder Task Force was held on 16th May, when two outstanding issues relating to the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) were discussed. The participants agreed that the SOPs could be referred to the Human Trafficking Monitoring Committee

Malta’s second Action Plan on Combating Trafficking in Persons and the report on the implementation of Malta’s first Action Plan on Combating Trafficking in Persons were published on the Ministry for Home Affairs website on 7th February.

The Human Trafficking Indicators for the Maltese Scenario were approved and communicated to the stakeholders concerned on 21st February.

The TV spot produced pursuant to the contract between the Ministry and IOM, to which the Policy Development Directorate contributed, starting being screened as from late June 2013.

A Bill amending the Human Trafficking provisions of the Criminal Code was published on 27th September 2013. The Bill provided for an increase in penalties, a penalty for aiding/abetting a human trafficking offence, the criminalisation of the use of services provided by trafficked persons, and provision of compensation to trafficked persons.

Migration

An official from the Directorate participated in the EU Readmission Contact Committee.

A call for expression of interest for Legal Aid Officers in the context of asylum applications was issued on 1st October 2013. The selection process was concluded in December 2013 and the number of Legal Aid Officers was increased to 14 from the previous 7.

The Director, Policy Development, along with the Director, EU Affairs, attended the EU Annual Relocation Forum hosted by Commissioner Malmstrom on 25th September 2013.

The Director, Policy Development participated in the Forum for the Mediterranean meeting held on 24th October. The Director General, Development and Policy Implementation, along with the Director, EU Affairs, participated in the second meeting of the Forum held on 20th November. The Task Force agreed on actions to be brought to the attention of the JHA Council prior to formal endorsement by the European Council.

Weapons

The Policy Development Directorate contributed to the drafting of legislation pursuant to proposals received from the Weapons Board. The legislation in question, namely the Arms Licensing (Amendment) Regulations, 2013 and the Arms Act (Amendment of Schedules) Regulations, 2013, were published on 26th February 2013.

JOSEPH ST JOHN Director General (Development and Policy Implementation)

THIRD COUNTRY NATIONALS UNIT

Resettlement/Relocation

During 2013, several initiatives continued in collaboration with other EU Member States for the relocation of persons granted protection in Malta. In this regard the relocation of 6 persons to Poland took place within the EU co-financed EUREMA II project while another 10 persons were relocated to Ireland as part of a bilateral exercise.

Assistance was provided in the review of the EUREMA Pilot Project undertaken by the EASO as was to the European Commission’s monitoring of the project including thorough meetings held in Malta both in the context of a final conference organised by TCNU for participating Member States and EASO meetings on the subject.

Similar exercises being held with the authorities of other countries was also facilitated through regular contact with counterparts. In total 14 persons departed to other countries during 2013 while the outcome of other persons interviewed was yet to be concluded.

The Unit liaises and collaborates with the International Organisation for Migration and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees on an ongoing basis in relation to the United States Refugee Admissions Programme. A total of 398 persons enjoying protection in Malta were transferred to the USA during 2013.

In total 428 immigrants were resettled/relocated in 2013.

Legal Aid to Asylum Seekers

The Unit is responsible for the administration of legal aid provision to asylum appellants. In the execution of this task, the Office liaises continuously with the Refugee Appeals Board, the Office of the Refugee Commissioner, the appellant, the Accommodation Centres, Immigration authorities and relevant NGOs.

During 2013, the Office continued to progress in the management of new legal aid requests and the backlog of pending cases. Efforts, with the support of Ministerial direction, were also undertaken to increase the legal aid pool, from 7 active legal aids to 14 lawyers providing such service. In this respect, preparations were underway for a more timely service in 2014. Lawyers were also provided with information supplied by the office of the UNHCR in Malta on particular countries and thus continuing to improve the standard of legal representation to appellants.

Assisted Voluntary Return and Re-integration

The Unit liaised with the IMO on assisted voluntary return for third country nationals in Malta, mainly through the Restart III and IV projects, funded under the European Return Fund. During 2013, a total of 55 persons were assisted to varying degrees to voluntarily return to their country of origin, including for the first time persons returning to Djibouti.

Several initiatives were undertaken in this respect, namely with assisting IOM with the production of promotional material as well as preparations for the submission of a project proposal for the fifth Restart project. Information sessions for staff working at centres were also organised in collaboration with the Detention Services.

European Migration Network

The Maltese National Contact Point operates on a national level to fulfil the European Migration Network’s (EMU) aims in terms of information dissemination to the European Institutions, authorities from other Member States and institutions on migration and asylum by providing updated, objective, solid and comparable data on asylum and migration. These in turn assist in the European Union’s policy-making in the respective areas. Officials from the Third Country Nationals Unit continued to participate in EMN Contact Point meetings in Brussels aimed at coordinating the work conducted by the various contact points found in EU Member States. High-level officials from within the Ministry attended for meetings of the EMN Steering Board in Brussels.

During this year the Contact Point initiated work on several studies: ‘Attracting highly qualified and qualified TCN’s’; ‘Organisation of reception facilities for asylum seekers in different Member States’; ‘Identification and treatment of trafficking victims in asylum, migration and return procedures’; and ‘EU MS Policies and Practice related to Social Security services for Migrants’. The EMN report on Asylum and Migration Policy in 2013 (annual policy report) which also tracks developments related in the field was prepared in collaboration with the Policy Development Directorate.

Other Initiatives/EU Projects

‘Reintegr-Action’ was a project in which MHAS participated together with IOM as the implementing agency, Germany, The Netherlands, and Ghana, as project partners. The project was co-financed under the European Return Fund 2010 Community Actions. The project aimed to enhance cooperation between participating EUMS and Ghana, a Sub- Saharan African country with high migratory pressures towards Europe. This objective is implemented by developing and testing common reintegration strategies aimed at ensuring a standardised and sustainable reintegration of voluntary returns to Ghana. During 2013 the project provided for returnees to Ghana and the dissemination of information materials in the 3 Member States. The project also involved a visit to Ghana by an official from the unit.

Travel Documentation

The Ministry is responsible for approving or otherwise applications made by persons with protection for travel documents, essentially Aliens’ passports. Throughout 2013, this Unit processed thousands of such applications with 2,008 being approved.

Statistics

The administration of asylum and immigration is dependent on information. To this end this Office has provided support and information on a regular and continuous basis to various Government offices towards policy-making and diplomatic discussions. Several queries made by researchers both local and foreign were also addressed. Improvement of statistical gathering and presentation were on-going. The Unit co-ordinates on a regular basis with the relevant stakeholders to produce a monthly summary of asylum and immigration statistics that support the policy making process in the area of migration and asylum and related aspects.

JULIAN MICALLEF Assistant Director (Third Country Nationals) 8

EU AFFAIRS DIRECTORATE

The work of the EU Affairs Directorate retained its intensity during 2013. The Directorate ensured Malta’s regular participation in discussions of proposals for new legislation put forward by the EU, which required Malta’s constant input thereon, as well as other instruments that were not legislative in nature. Particular emphasis was made on following very closely, through active participation of experts from Malta and that of the technical attachés from Brussels, for discussions related to asylum and immigration, and this by ensuring, as far as possible, that Malta’s representatives were in possession of the necessary instruction notes as a basis for such participation.

To mention but a few, during 2013, the dossier on the Proposal for a Regulation establishing the European Border Surveillance System (EUROSUR) was concluded. Other important dossiers subject of discussions at Council level and closely followed by the EU Affairs Directorate included the Joint Proposal for a Council Decision on the arrangements for the implementation of the Solidarity Clause, the Proposal for a Regulation establishing rules for the surveillance of the external sea borders within the context of FRONTEX joint operations, the Smart Borders package (mainly the entry-exit system and the registered travellers’ programme), the Proposal for a Regulation on Europol, the Data Protection and Law Enforcement Directive, the Negotiations for the conclusion of an EU-Russia Agreement amending the Agreement between the European Community and the Russian Federation on the facilitation of the issuance of visas to the citizens of the European Union and the Russian Federation and Russia’s sudden announcement that as of December 2013, it would start requesting Passenger Name Record (PNR) data from EU Member States, despite the fact that there is currently no EU-Russia PNR system in place and, therefore, no legal basis for such an arrangement. Russia has since climbed down from its original position and is requesting only Advanced Passenger Information (API) data for direct flights. However the collection of data for overflights is supposed to start in July 2014.

The Directorate closely followed the developments centering around the revelation that the US PRISM surveillance programme was accessing and processing the personal data of Europeans on a large scale. Further revelations indicated that the NSA network had also targeted EU offices in Brussels, New York and Washington. This extremely sensitive issue was discussed regularly in meetings of the JHA Counsellors as well as at COREPER and at JHA Councils and the Directorate liaised closely with several MHAS departments as well as with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Embassy of Malta in Washington. It was eventually decided that, among other actions, a high level EU-US ad hoc working group on data protection would be set up. There have been three meetings of the working group to date.

The Directorate continued to monitor and encourage the participation of police officers in the various ESDP (European Security and Defence Policy) missions in third countries. One police officer was selected for secondment to the EU Police Mission in Kosovo during 2013.

This Directorate followed developments in the discussions relating to the new funds from 2014 to 2020, namely the Asylum and Immigration Fund, the Internal Security Fund (Police Cooperation) and the Internal Security Fund (External Borders and Visa). The Directorate asked for feedback from the relevant departments and sent this feedback as well as its own feedback to the Funds Division at the Ministry for European Affairs and Implementation of the Electoral Manifesto.

This Directorate was heavily involved in the discussions of the Task Force for the Mediterranean, which held two meetings in October and November, as well as by providing 9 written comments. This Task Force was set up in the wake of migrant tragedies off Lampedusa and Malta, and was mandated to prevent loss of life at sea and was guided by the principle of solidarity and fair sharing of responsibility. The Task Force proposed measures which need to be taken to stem the migration tide and avoid a repeat of those tragedies. Among Malta's proposals were concrete assistance to third countries such as Libya where most of the migrants leave from, the fight against organised crime, particular emphasis on return and coordination of FRONTEX repatriation flights and closer cooperation with third countries particularly the countries of origin and transit. During 2013, the Directorate continued to coordinate the attendance of officials from various departments falling within the Ministry’s remit at Council and Commission working group meetings and kept records of those meetings in which Malta participated both through its technical attachés, as well as through the technical experts from the line departments. The Ministry for Home Affairs and National Security was represented at working groups very regularly and a number of the meetings were attended by the staff of the Directorate itself including the Relocation Forum, the informal meeting of the Strategic Committee on Immigration, Frontiers and Asylum and a preparatory meeting of the EU Africa Core Group in view of the EU-Africa Summit of April 2014. The Directorate ensured that reports of meetings were drawn up by the attendees and followed up by the Directorate or any other entities that needed to follow them up. The Directorate kept the EU secretariat at MEAIM regularly informed about this participation in meetings.

The Directorate worked in constant liaison with the technical attachés in Brussels and ensured a constant flow of information and coordination between both sides. The EU Affairs Director attended the Justice and Home Affairs Council meetings on a regular basis.

The Directorate was instrumental in the drawing up of explanatory memoranda (which are submitted to the Inter-Ministerial Committee, Cabinet and the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives) and a good number of instruction notes for use at the working groups in Brussels, especially those relating to the most sensitive issues for Malta. The Directorate also prepared instruction notes for each item that fell within its responsibility and that was discussed at the Committee of Permanent Representatives on a weekly basis, as well as briefing notes for the Minister when attending the Justice and Home Affairs meetings. The Directorate also contributed to briefing notes for any bilateral meetings held by the Minister with his counterparts which had EU content, especially those held in the margins of the Justice and Home Affairs Council.

Furthermore, when required, the Directorate provided input to the Malta position, briefing notes and talking points for the Prime Minister when attending the European Council or when holding bilateral meetings, as well as in preparation for meetings held by the Permanent Representative. The Directorate coordinated the replies to questionnaires and written information provided by Malta on various subjects, as well as the transmission of such replies and information to the EU institutions with the EU Secretariat at the Office of the Prime Minister. The Directorate also ensured that any necessary nominations and any notifications of implementation were duly sent to the EU Secretariat at MEAIM for due transmission to the Commission and Council.

The EU Affairs Directorate regularly carried out work in relation to the transposition of the acquis into Maltese legislation. In this regard, work was carried out in relation to the transposition of the amendments to the Long Term Residents’ Directive, amendments necessary to the Regulations under the Immigration Act relating to the return of illegally staying third country nationals and on the transposition of the Single Permit Directive by means of Regulations under the Immigration Act. The Directorate also participated in meetings and discussed the transposition of the Qualification Directive and the Procedures Directive during meetings held with the Policy Development Directorate and the Refugeee Commissioner’s office.

The EU Affairs Director also handled matters relating to current infringements as well as other Pilots signalling the forthcoming infringement proceedings. Where possible, the Director ensured that necessary action is taken to inform the Commission on steps taken, and this with the intention of allaying such infringements. Thus amendments to the Long Term Residents Regulations (under the Immigration Act) were prepared to address infringements. Work was carried out on the revocation of three sets of Regulations dealing with cinema projectionists, parcel porters and shoeblacks under the Code of Police Laws in order to bring Maltese legislation in line with the provisions of the Services Directive. Amendments were also prepared to address infringement proceedings related to the transposition of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive.

During the year under review, the Directorate took the first preparatory steps for Malta’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2017 in close liaison with MEAIM. Discussions with representatives from other entities have taken place, mainly concerning the Council working groups which they will be chairing or participating in during the Presidency.

JOSETTE ZERAFA Director (EU Affairs)

OFFICE OF THE CIO

Introduction

The Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) has the responsibility to provide vision and leadership for the development and implementation of Information Technology Initiatives that align with the policies and strategies of the Ministry’s mission. The CIO leads the Office of the Chief Information Officer within the Ministry for Home Affairs and National Security (MHAS).

The CIO has a leadership role in re-engineering MHAS business processes and underpinning ICT infrastructures to increase the productive, efficient and valuable use of information.

The OCIO has embarked on various important ICT initiatives during 2013. March general elections provided a test for this office whereby we were commissioned with the setting up of end to end requirements for two Ministries, MHAS and Ministry of European Affairs and Electoral Manifesto (MEAIM); namely four private secretariats and two permanent secretaries. The main focus of this office was aimed at the launching of the new Ministry’s Website as per MITA Branding guidelines together with various sub-sites pertaining to various Departments. Significant work and investment was directed to setup and upgrade new network and telephony infrastructures, enhancing systems and business processes at the Land and Public Registry, Identity Management Office (IDMO), Malta Police Force, Corradino Correctional Facilities (CCF) and the Civil Protection Department (CPD). This office is also embarking on various other initiatives to improve the deployment of Information Technology across all other departments within this Ministry particularly Aviation Security, the Refugee Commission and Agency for the Welfare of Asylum Seekers (AWAS)

The New MHAS Portal and other Websites

Immediately after the general elections scoping and preparations were made so that the new Ministry Portal was launched using the standard platform adopted throughout the Government. Contents and images were uploaded according to MITA branding guidelines, whilst enhancements and content update to fine tune the Ministry portal are ongoing.

Apart from the main portal, other sub-sites have been redeveloped to remove any dependencies we had on other Ministry portals, such as Land and Public Registry, Passports, CSIRTMalta Portal and further more the development of the Justice Reform Commission Website which was designed and launched in record time.

In the meantime the Civil Protection Department and the Aviation Security Websites have been scoped and designed, and are in an advanced implementation phase.

The Police Force

Asylum Seekers Database. The National Identity Management System (NIDMS) e-ID cards and the e-Residence systems will be replacing the current ID card system and enable the Government to register and issue e-ID Cards for Maltese citizens and e-Residence permits for residents respectively. NIDMS shall not be issuing any documents for Asylum Seekers and Failed Asylum Seekers.

In this respect the above system was designed and provisioned for Police to register Asylum Seekers and Failed Asylum Seekers, so as to export personal data and address details to the CDB, within a defined framework.

The system has been successfully implemented, fully operational and provision of training to end users supplied too.

Weapons System. In previous years a scoping study for the potential replacement of the legacy Weapons Systems was commissioned.

Following research and consultation by MITA with key users and members of the Malta Police Force (MPF), a number of different business options were identified especially for the process of new applications for sporting/hunting licences and licence renewal.

The business case for the procurement or development of the new Weapons System has been submitted for MITA’s consideration through the annual CapEx process and finally a Project Description has been signed with MITA thereby entailing MITA to assist and develop the bespoke solution to reflect the reengineering process and proper revenue generation. e-Forms As a continuation to the e-Form project led by MITA as part of the exS4all EU funded project, design and implementation of various e-Forms pertaining to Land and Public Registry, Courts and Civil Protection Department were finalised.

Detention Services

As part of a study, commissioned by the Ministry through MEU in 2012, on the operational aspects of Detention Services, it became evident that the unit lacks proper system for secure inventory management and control. The OCIO embarked on a scoping study to evaluate and identify a suitable system to deal with this important operational aspect. Evaluations of different feasible solutions are currently underway.

Networks

WAN Extension at Lyster Barracks. The Ministry for Health had the intention to set up an X-Ray machine and ancillary equipment at a dedicated container unit at Lyster Barracks alongside the ex-D Coy premises for medical screening of newly arriving migrants at Ħal Far. A considerable high network bandwidth was required to send X-Ray imagery and other medical information over the network to Mater Dei Hospital. Therefore a fibre optic connection was identified as the best medium to cater for such demand. OCIO facilitated the implementation and completion of this network connection.

NEW LAN/WAN implementations. Complete LAN design to cater for data and telephony requirements, issuance of RFQ, evaluations and award notifications. The following sites have been implemented:

IDMO – New LAN and VOIP setup at EVANS building 2nd floor Refugee Commission – LAN and Telephony setup at offices in Rue D’Argens, Msida. Permanent Secretary Annex (Strait Street) – Completely new LAN and Telephony setup, whereby we commissioned contractors to perform installation of structured cabling, wall port installations, cabinet installation. A new MITA magnet connectivity was setup at this site. AFM Luqa Barracks – LAN Extensions, Fibre Optic Link between 3 Regt Server and DS C Block is being implemented.

DCEA – Complete LAN and Telephony setup (part of a Turnkey project) at EVANS Building ground floor. This site has been completely refurbished to cater for the DCEA offices, including new fibre connections, installation of firewalls as per MITA GMICT standards and policies and Biometric Capture Workstations setup.

Telephony Systems

A full blown PCX system has been installed within the Data Room at Evans building to cater for all the Offices falling under Land and Public Registry, IDMO and ancillary sites. Other off- sites have been connected through remote shelves, namely Casa Bolino and Searches Unit, so internal calls are not chargeable. A mini PCX has also been installed within the Annex at Strait Street to cater for the limited amount of users at such site.

A scoping study is under way whereby we are evaluating whether it would be easier and cheaper to communicate all MHAS sites through remote shelves with the above mentioned PCX and making use of a secondary server, mirroring the primary PCX for redundancy issues.

AFM

A scoping study and eventual business requirements for an AFM Data Centre to be set up in Luqa Barracks were commissioned during this year, thereby detailing the eventual consolidation of AFM Communications and Information Systems (CIS). Another important project which is in the initial study phase and which is currently being highly considered and whereby AFM has requested the assistance of MITA and OCIO is the possibility of installing new Microwave Network Links.

Systems and Applications

Pubreg Replacement Plans to replace this twenty year old system are finally underway and various project review board meetings have taken place. Progress on the scoping and definition of project objectives and requirements were in an advanced stage, in fact the Project Description (PD) has been signed with MITA and funds were made available for the Project Initiation Document (PID) to be drafted.

Eureka Replacement

A project mandate by MITA for the replacement of the Eureka System has been prepared. Meetings have been held on a strategic level between MITA and MHAS IMU to define the scope and objectives of the project and to draft the Project Initiation Document (PID). OCIO are insisting that the studies should include a Business Reengineering exercise to redesign the internal process of the department so that the new system is based on an optimal design with quality service delivery as prime objective.

NIDMS

Further system enhancements are required to render this application fully compliant to the ever increasing demands with regards to EU legislation. Meetings with MITA, OCIO, Passports and the Contractor took place defining the scope and objectives of such requirements whereby the contractor has been instructed to come up with a business solution to implement such change. These upgrades mainly consist of:

SAC (Supplement Access Control) - The EU has issued a mandate for the upgrade of the cryptography of the electronic Passport since the present technical security features are due to expire.

SPOC (Single Point of Contact) - An upgrade on the passport system needs to be implemented to cater for the ‘single point of contact’ for automated exchange of the digital certificates between the member states.

DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) - Creation of a ‘buffer zone’ around the NIDMS infrastructure to allow mobile workstations to connect safely to the core databases, including workstations provided by authorised third parties. Evaluation of different solutions that match the business and technical objectives is underway.

CHRISTOPHER BELL Chief Information Officer

ARMED FORCES OF MALTA

General

The Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) continued with the execution of its primary roles, that of maintaining the territorial integrity of the Maltese archipelago and safeguarding national interests, constant surveillance on land, air and out at sea.

In 2013, the AFM continued its development in terms of capabilities, infrastructure, equipment and human resources.

The Roles:

The AFM is tasked to perform two defence roles:  Primary Defence Role: The AFM is responsible for the external security and integrity of the Maltese Islands in peacetime and in crisis.  Secondary Defence Role: The AFM provides military support in specified areas to the Malta Police Force on a regular basis and to other Government Departments when required.

Primary Defence Roles

 Maintain territorial integrity (particularly at the Malta International Airport and other sensitive locations.  Maintain integrity of the Maltese waters (physical and electronic surveillance against smuggling, illegal trafficking of immigrants and law breaking at sea).  Provide for the limited surveillance of the Maltese Airspace.  Provide search and rescue services in Malta and its Search and Rescue Region.  Provide Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) and Improvised Explosive Device Disposal (IEDD) cover.  Contribute towards international peace and stability by participating in overseas crisis management operations.

Secondary Defence Roles  Provide military assistance to Government Departments and the civil community.  Provide civil emergency protection support (explosives, marine pollution, floods and other disasters).  Provide military aid to Malta’s Police Force and the Security Services (Internal Security, anti-narcotic patrols and vehicle checkpoints)  Provide State Ceremonial and other public duties.

Operations

National

Aid to the Civil Power - On a request by Mater Dei Hospital (MDH) an Air Wing King Air deployed on the first ever Armed Forces of Malta Air Ambulance Mission to Palermo whereby a donor lung was available for a compatible Maltese female patient.

The Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) was involved in an Aid to The Civil Power (ATCP) Operation in support of a MEPA direct action. This operation was aimed at demolishing a number of illegally built structures at a site in the vicinity of Ta’ Kandja. The AFM for this operation committed a number of heavy plant equipment and plant operators, an EOD team 16 which was tasked with conducting a security sweep for possible explosives and associated material as well as a C(SD) Company platoon which was on stand by and acted as the reserve for the operation. In addition to the land forces the AFM deployed a King Air Patrol Aircraft to act as a surveillance platform.

Fisheries Protection - During the course of 2013, AFM maritime assets conducted a number of sea and air patrols in support of the Fisheries Department within Malta’s Fisheries Management and Conservation Zone. In addition a number of patrols were conducted in support of the Blue Fin Tuna Joint Deployment Plan in support of EFCA. Of note during 2013 during these patrols three Italian Fishing vessels which were illegally fishing within Malta’s zone were intercepted and apprehended.

Search and Rescue – In 2013 the tempo of Search and Rescue (SAR) Operations continued to increase with a total of 776 cases being handled by Regional Coordination Centre (RCC) Malta. These included the rescue of 2008 irregular migrants at sea, 88 medical evacuations of which 21 cases were conveyances from Gozo Hospital and 21 from Ships. There were also 29 cases in which towing assistance was provided to craft with technical difficulties.

Particular SAR case that stood out in 2013 was the rescue of 150 Syrian irregular migrants by P61 from a boat which capsized off the Italian island of Lampedusa.

Safety at sea inspections during 2013 saw the AFM conducting administrative boardings of numerous pleasure and fishing craft in Malta’s territorial seas. While the vast majority of craft and operators were found to be in full conformity with the relevant regulations, a number of contraventions were detected and reported to the Police for further actions.

Frontex

The Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) participated in Joint Operation AENEAS 2013 with a King Air B200 Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA), deploying out of Brindisi Casale Airport with their Area of Operations (AoO) being the Ionian Sea. The aim was that of conducting surveillance in order to detect irregular migrants and/or contraband and other illicit trafficking. Once detected, they assisted in directing surface deployed assets, to the suspicious targets identified.

The AFM continued its contribution to Frontex coordinated Joint Operation Poseidon Land (JOP) 2013. These deployments focused on a rolling deployment involving 30 members of the AFM, prevailing from C (Special Duties) Coy from 1 Regiment. Five deployments were centred on the Greek-Turkish border region of Evros in Greece, considered to be one of the main illegal migration routes into Europe; whilst the last deployment centred on the Bulgarian-Turkish border in the Ehovo region.

The AFM deployed of a Fast Interceptor RHIB with a total crew of sixteen personnel to Lesvos Island in Greece in support of Frontex JO Poseidon Sea 13 in order to assist Hellenic authorities in controlling the newly-resurgent maritime migration flows induced by the current crisis in Syria. A Fast Interceptor was deployed on this operation for two months and conducted daily patrols along the sea border with Turkey.

Training

Exercises (Local and Overseas)

NATO PASSEX 2013 – PASSEX13 is a NATO exercise aimed to enhance interoperability with NON NATO forces. The Maritime Squadron conducted a joint exercise with NATO

17 vessels whilst an AFM Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD) Team conducted joint training with NATO divers.

Exercise Canale 2013 – Exercise Canale is an annual maritime Live Exercise (LIVEX) organised bilaterally by Malta and Italy for the past eighteen years. This year’s edition was hosted by Malta. The aim of the exercise was to promote co-operation, peace and security in the Mediterranean Region with particular emphasis on further strengthening cooperation between countries lying on both shores of the Western Mediterranean littoral.

The AFM participated in the annual anti-pollution exercise MALTEX 2013, organized by Transport Malta and deployed an air asset, a maritime patrol craft and a liaison officer at Transport Malta.

The AFM participated also in an evacuation exercise on the vessel MV Costa Favolosa. This exercise involved training in conjunction with the CPD, Police and Transport Malta.

Education

The AFM’s Training School carried out a Regimental Map reading qualification course during 2013. A total number of fifty two soldiers from all the AFM units participated in the course.

The AFM is also seriously committed to train its personnel in non-military skills and for this purpose the AFM has been working closely with MCAST in the field of civilian trades and skills. The courses that were made available in the period under review cover a very wide spectrum of training ranging from courses related to the sectors of building and construction engineering, maritime and mechanical engineering especially in the aviation sector. AFM personnel also participated in courses organized by the Institute of Tourism studies, SEDQA, and CDRT.

Trades

During the period under review, a total of six Trade Testing Boards were convened to assess AFM personnel. These Boards were mainly aimed at those soldiers who are relatively new to the force and who were undergoing initial training in their trades (Class III level ) or on the other hand long serving members who were seeking to better their trade qualification (Classes I and II levels).

The six Trade Testing Boards were preceded by trade courses specialising in Key Point Protection, military driving, military clerical work, combat engineering, rescue and defence photography.

In addition, AFM members participated also in Military/Specialist Training, that included amongst others, training in preparation to deploy infantry personnel to Somalia, heavy plant training, abseiling courses, and joint training with the Dutch forces both in Malta and in Holland.

Training Overseas

The ongoing overseas training for Officers and other ranks during 2013 continued to be a priority for the AFM. Courses where held amongst others in the US, UK, Italy, Ireland and Czech Republic and covered a variety of subjects which included Staff Officer training both at the junior and senior level, specialised infantry courses, flight training, engineering and maritime courses.

Furthermore, as per previous years, a number of AFM Officer Cadets attended commissioning courses at the prestigious Royal Military Academy in Sandhurst and the Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth as well as the Irish Infantry School at Curragh Camp in Ireland and for the first time an Officer Cadet commenced his commissioning course at RAF Cranwell.

Maritime Safety and Security Training Centre (MSSTC)

As the primary state actor for maritime safety and security in Malta, the AFM ensures the highest levels of preparedness and standards are maintained through a dedicated Maritime Safety and Security Training Centre (MSSTC). The role of this Centre is to train AFM personnel and International students in the latest operational techniques and essential maritime related subjects.

During 2013, the MSSTC delivered three courses not only to AFM members but also to foreign entities, totaling 39 students.

Financial management

The AFM set up a Financial Branch to incorporate the administration of the Finance office and Pay office, during October 2013, with the mission to provide advice to the Commander AFM regarding Public financial matters, to exercise control over the recurrent and capital expenditure by all units, to finalize payments procedures and to administer and issue personnel salaries, in addition to drawing up the AFM’s budget estimates and distribution of the allocated funds.

International Affairs

EU Common Security and Defence

During the year under review, the AFM strove to carry on with its commitment to participating in overseas crisis management deployments. These deployments are planned and executed by the International Affairs Branch of the AFM. 2 commissioned officers served in the Operation Headquarters of EU NAVFOR Operation Atalanta, with a further one deploying in December. A Special Duties Enhanced Boarding Team made up of 3 officers and 19 soldiers was deployed in theatre aboard HMNLS Johan DeWitt on tactical counter- piracy duties. Another 2 officers were deployed as part of the EU Border-management Assistance Mission in Libya (EUBAM Libya) in the second half of 2013.

2 soldiers were redeployed to Malta from Georgia, also on completion of a 1 year tour with the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia.

NATO/Partnership for Peace (PfP)

During 2013, the AFM continued to engage on a case by case basis with NATO through the Partnership for Peace programme. The AFM also attended the following activities organised by NATO under the PfP umbrella:

 The 27th Euro Atlantic Partnerships Military Committee Meeting at Chiefs of Defence level, held in Brussels, Belgium.  The NATO Defence Planning Symposium in Oberammergau, Germany.

5+5 Defence Initiative

Malta became a member of this Defence Initiative in 2004, providing a framework for dialogue and cooperation in the field of security between member states.

During 2013, a number of AFM Officers participated in Steering Committee meetings and other organised under the umbrella of this Initiative. This participation also included participation in the meeting for Chiefs of Defence of Member States held in Portugal in October, a Chiefs of Navy meeting in Morocco during May and other meetings regarding the Virtual Regional Maritime Traffic Control system, the Operational Coordination and Planning Centre and the 5+5 Defence Initiative website.

Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)

Throughout the year, Malta continued to support the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). 2 officers attended the OSCE Regional Conference on the Code of Conduct on Politico-Military Aspects of Security for the Mediterranean Region. 1 officer also attended the OSCE Conference on Confidence Building Measures, organised in Durres, Albania. The Branch Head of the International Affairs Branch attended the OSCE Meeting for Heads of Verification Centres organised in Vienna, Austria.

Administration and personnel

Enlistment and Discharges During 2013 the AFM enlisted a total of 92 personnel who passed out in May 2013 while another group of 89 recruits were enlisted in Oct 2013 to compensate for the high influx of personnel who are either retiring from the Force due to completion of 25 years of service or will reach the age of 55 years in the coming months. A second recruitment drive was initiated during October 2013 aimed at enlisting Gunner recruits, Bandsmen, Soldier Athletes in conjunction with the KMS scheme, Officer Cadets, including Sea Cadets and Air Pilots were issued in order to commence the next recruitment in 2014.

On another note, this Branch acted as liaison to the independent AFM Complaints Board as appointed by the Ministry of Home Affairs and National Security whereby during the year over 370 complaints were tendered and reviewed by the board.

A statistical breakdown of enlistments, promotions and discharges is as follows:

Enlistments Officers Re-enlisted 1 Officer Cadets 5 Pilot Officer Cadets 1 Seagoing Officer Cadet 1 Gunner Recruits 179 Bandsman Recruits 2 Promotions Other Ranks (Back Dated) 3 Officers 44 Promotions to Acting Rank 1

Discharges Discharged on termination of engagement (55 yrs) 18 Retirement after 25 years of service (Officers) 5 Retirement after 25 years of service (Other Ranks) 24 Discharged in the interest of the service 2 Discharged in the interest of the service (Recruits) 4 Discharge by purchase (Other Ranks) 8 Discharge by purchase (EVRFs) 1 Discharge by purchase (Recruits) 23 Discharge on medical grounds (Other Ranks) 3 Deceased 1 Discharge Free at Option Point (EVRF) 3 Unlikely to become an Efficient Soldier 3

Sports

The AFM also continued to play an active role in the Conseil International du Sport Militaire (CISM). The AFM Football team managed to win the Malta Employees Sports Association (MESA) football tournaments. The AFM Sports Committee which was set up in 2012 continued with its activities throughout the year whereby it continued inter-Regimental Sports Events and continued to further enhance the Sports policy in order to allow Sport to be more widely practiced in the AFM and performances to improve in general.

Ceremonial

During 2013, the Force was once again the main pillar in assisting the National Festivities Committee with the performance of ceremonial parades to commemorate national public holidays and State Ceremonial events to welcome foreign Ambassadors/Heads of States/foreign Naval vessels.

Apart from the routine ceremonial commitments this year’s highlights were the Official Opening for Malta Euro Song held on the 2nd February, The Opening of the 12th Parliament Ceremony which was held on the 12 April, Changing of the Guards which is held regularly outside the Presidential Palace, and the AFM Day Parade.

Throughout the year, the AFM Band was also heavily involved in philanthropic and educational events.

Public Relations

The PI Cell has developed steadily throughout the year from its inception whereby interactive media comments, news and activities were being uploaded within minutes of the activities. This has generated a solid presence on the AFM official Facebook social media page. After just one year the Facebook page managed to register an average of 10,000 daily viewers from Malta and a few thousand from other countries, including around 600 each from Italy and the UK. On the other hand the AFM YouTube Channel registered a phenomenal increase in traffic generating over 27,000 viewers from the previous year. The AFM PI CELL, for the first time, worked on a major Docu-Drama series in collaboration with

21 an MCAST student and is now in the last phase of Post Production. Following the first procurement of a semi professional video camera which could cater for Operational exigencies 24 videos were shot, directed and produced by the AFM.

Logistics

Procurement During the year under review, the Procurement and Logistics branch initiated 144 new overseas demands and repairs of which 111 have been settled. Also during 2013, an AFM vehicle casting board was convened and completed findings that were submitted to the ministry for conclusions.

During 2013, the Tender’s office has established contract signatures in respect of 15 quotations published in the Malta Government Gazette, 13 Departmental Tenders and 2 Contract Tenders.

Projects

EBF 2011 Improving the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) Ground Support Facilities at Air Wing (AW) – Phase 2 A number of projects to improve Ground Support Facilities at Air Wing (AW) were carried out during the first half of 2013 and payments to all contractors amounting to €329,066.14 were affected. Funds approved by the EC were made available under EBF 2011, 75% of the sum were funded by the EU whereas the remaining 25% were allocated from local funds. Works conducted consist of a. Fire Fighting system; Construction of a Generator room; Finishing works of Generator room; Supply and installation of the generator; Non-reflective paint on half of roof of Hangar no 4 and Connecting base with fibre optic and cooper cable.

EBF 2012 - Improving the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) ground support facilities at Air Wing (AW) – Refurbishment of Ex-RAF Hangar and ancillary facilities This project aims at maximizing the space occupied by the hangar whilst respecting its historical context. In addition to increasing the actual work area for servicing and parking of Air wing fleet, the proposal includes an additional floor to both the guard room building and the annex to Hangar 2.

During the period under review, all tenders submitted by prospective bidders to upgrade and refurbish the former RAF Hangar and other ancillary buildings had been adjudicated and the project had been awarded, amounting to € 1,740,080.40 and all works are to be terminated by 30 Jun 2014.

It is to be noted that € 2,360,000.00 had been allocated under EBF 2012 from which, 75% and 25% will co-funded from EU and central government funds respectively.

EBF2012 Improving the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) ground support facilities at Maritime Squadron (MS) – Fuel Tanks project

A tender document has been complied so that an area next to the slipway will pave the way to construct four fuel tanks. Said fuel tanks are to be concealed in chambers which had already been catered for during the construction of the quay. A DNO has been filed with MEPA and funds to carry out this project have been made available under EBF Specific Actions.

Other Projects

Also during the year in review, the AFM refurbished a building at the perimeter of the airfield, that was transferred to it by the Estate and Management Department, with funds made available by MIA. The premises are currently being occupied by ‘A’ Coy, 1st Regiment, AFM. A tender document has been compiled to carry on refurbishments at the Operations Centre Block at Luqa and studies were initiated by the AFM Architect and a separate Architect, who eventually compiled a report on works needed on another block in same barracks.

Several other minor works were also conducted, most notably the refurbishment works carried out on AFM Chapel; refurbishment works to be carried out at Officers’ Mess and Waterproofing works carried out on a garage at Safi Barracks.

Communications and Information systems

Application submission for EBF project for the Upgrade of Microwave Carrier Link

The AFM communications equipment required to gather the critical data for Vessel Travel System and Information Communication System heavily depends on the currently installed Microwave link network. However, this infrastructure, twelve years after its initiation, has reached an obsolete state, in terms of functionality, broadband capacity and spare-parts replacement. If there is a failure in the current network, the operational state will be compromised and all the supported Information Systems inoperable. The aim of this project is to upgrade the current Microwave Link infrastructure through the procurement of new microwave links and provide additional redundancy in ten different sites. This upgrade to a modern Microwave equipment will provide more bandwidth and reliability, including preventive and corrective maintenance required for the subsequent five years. The project also provides a new fibre infrastructure to serve as a redundancy to the microwave network and increased security monitoring at the remote installation sites through CCTV and electronic access control.

BRIGADIER JEFFREY CURMI Commander Armed Forces of Malta

POLICE DEPARTMENT

Administration Department

Attachment of German and Dutch Police Officers

During July, ten German Police officers followed a two-week attachment policing programme prior to their attestation as sergeants in the German Police Service. The officers were shown the various sections and branches of the Force where they were able to gain hands-on experience as to how their Maltese counterworks work, as a measure of routine, in their day- to-day duties.

New Police Academy

During the year under review, construction works were almost near completion. The Academy is expected take the first intake of police recruits during summer.

Internal Affairs Unit

During 2013, the Internal Affairs Unit received and investigated 99 complaints against members of the Force. Besides, other investigations were initiated on the initiative of this Unit, such as those following inspections or on receipt of confidential information. Apart from the above, 30 cases which were originated during previous years were also concluded during this year.

Other investigations made by this Unit, which are not included in the list as shown hereunder, include breaches of discipline during supervisory patrols, failure to attend court sittings, etc.

Nature of complaint Reported Concluded Breaches of the provisions of the Malta Police Act 54 21 Service not rendered 16 9 Failure to enforce the law 3 1 Others 26 8 Total 99 39

The outcome of those concluded ranged from action before a disciplinary board or internal disciplinary action to no further action - as allegations proved unjustified.

Quarter Master Stores

The Quarter Master Stores (QMS) is under the supervision of Assistant Commissioner Strategy and Planning.

During 2013, various items were purchased to cater for the daily needs of the Police Force in general consisting of the usual uniforms and accoutrements, from local or foreign suppliers following necessary authorisation.

Other purchases, through tendering or quotation process are as follows:- officers’ and other ranks’ shirts, pullovers, summer and winter trousers, caps, motorcycle safety wear, portable/base radios, Tasers, pistols, ammunition, buckles, badges, ankle/high leg boots, officer's shoes, socks, duty belts, under belts, torches/pouches, gloves, cleaning items, chairs, air-conditioners, building materials and ironmongery.

Items found by individuals and delivered to the Police were also dealt with by this Section following the publication of each item in the Government Gazette.

During the year 2013, 12 vehicles and 12 motorcycles were also procured.

Community and Media Relations Unit (CMRU)

Community Relations

The remit of the Community and Media Relations Unit is that of:

 Processing of requests for information by students, NGOs and the general public;  Handling of the Customer Care System and the OPRES (On-line Police Reporting System) as regards requests for information;  Liaison with other Police units for the Police Day programme;  Liaison with various NGOs, Local Councils and schools requesting services of various Police Officers in educational talks, Traffic Safety Campaign, the services of the Police Band and Jazz Group and visits to the Police Academy and Museum as well as the Police Dog and Mounted Sections;  Quarterly publication of the Police Magazine;  Co-ordinating the visiting of the Last Supper Display for schools and Local Councils;  Lecturing in various schools regarding careers in the Police Force;  Co-ordinating visits to Police sections (Police Museum, Crime Museum, Police Academy, Dog Section and Mounted Section) by students and other NGOs as required;  Disseminating crime prevention material such as posters and book marks to all Local Councils and Police Stations and in talks delivered to schools.

Requests received in 2013

Visits by schools, NGOs, etc.

Museum Academy Dogs Mounted Other Total Requests 18 1 10 6 134 169

Displays and participations at schools, Local Councils, NGOs, etc.*

Police Jazz Silent Dogs Mounted Traffic Total Band Band Drill Requests 32 17 21 3 1 11 85

Other requests

Nature of Requests No. Interviews given to students, newspapers etc. 83 Participation and interviews on TV and Radio 150 Stations Talks in Schools, Locals Councils, NGOs, etc. 99 Requests for information received by e-mail, fax and 410 post from journalists, students and other persons Others 52 Total 794

Received Settled Pending On-Line Reporting System 304 284 20 (OPRES)

Media Relations

 Daily monitoring of news both visual and radio, newspapers and internet, publications of Press Releases and co-ordination of Press Conferences;  Recording and monitoring of news bulletins and programmes where these concern the Police;  Arrangements as requested by the Media for interviews of Police personnel;  Processing of requests for information for the Radio, TV and print media;  Liaison with local producers as regards requests for filming for local programmes (requesting police assistance, uniforms and liaison with other police departments).

Type of activity No. of performances

Issue of Press Releases 834

Editorial Meetings/Crime Conferences 6

Replies to articles published through the Media 14

Total 854

Human Resources Branch

Retirements

During 2013, there were 86 cases of retirements/resignations/medically unfit/dismissals/deceased/transfers to other Departments.

This office also examined confidential reports regarding Police personnel for eventual promotion from one scale to another, or as to advancements and confirmation in their respective appointment. Medical and injury boards were also appointed by this office.

The Human Resources Office kept updated members of the Force with directives issued by the Commissioner. As a result, various GHQ Circulars were issued and circulated from this office so as to inform all members of the Police Force with these directives.

Attestations

On 4th January 2013, ninety five (95) recruits were sworn in as Probationary Police Constables. This was the culmination of a call for applications in this grade issued in the Malta Government Gazette of 8th May 2012.

Furthermore, throughout 2013, as per call for applications for Police Constables issued on 6th September 2013, a total of four hundred and seventy six (476) applications were received at this office. Same were duly processed and all applicants were interviewed.

As per call for applications for Probationary Police Inspectors issued on 13th August 2013, a total of sixty-five (65) internal and forty-seven (47) external applications were received at this office.

Promotions

During 2013, twenty six (26) Constables were promoted to Sergeants, one (1) Superintendent was promoted to Commissioner of Police, forty-seven (47) Constables were promoted to Sergeants, one (1) Sergeant was promoted to 1st Class Sergeant-Major and 13 Sergeants were promoted to 2nd Class Sergeant-Majors, and sixteen (16) Constables were promoted to Sergeants.

District of the Year Award

The internal competition held in connection with crime reduction between all police districts was won for the first time by Police District No. 6 (Sliema, Gżira, Kappara, Msida, Ta’ Xbiex). This district managed to reduce the reported crime rate by 2.82%, when compared with the previous year (2012).

Officer of the Year Award

The Force also organised the Award, introduced in 2006 to identify that member of the Force who throughout the preceding year had manifested exceptional commitment to service, thereby upholding the highest traditions of the Force. Two Constables were awarded and this after they went beyond their normal call of duty, when on 4th May 2013, plunged into the sea in an attempt to save the life of a person who was trapped inside a vehicle underneath the water.

Certificates of Merit / Commendation

During 2013, eleven certificates of merit / commendation for outstanding performance were awarded by the Commissioner to various Constables.

Estate Management

A number of Police Stations / Branches were refurbished as from 1st January 2013 to 31st December 2013 by the Trades Section. These works were carried out at the following Police Stations:

Marsa Police Station; Sliema Police Station; Lapsi Police Station: Forensic Offices; Qawra Police Station; St. Paul's Bay Police Station; C.I.D Lock-Up; S.B Detention Centre at C.I.D yard; Ta' Kandja Detention Centre; S.B Detention Centre at ex Mobile quarters at Mt garage; G.H.Q Main Kitchen; Valletta Lock-up; Mosta Police Station; Msida Police Station; Ċirkewwa Police Station; Santa Luċija Police Station; Marsaskala Police Station; Qrendi Police Station; Valletta P.A room; Żabbar Police Station; Xgħajra Police Station; Għadira Police Station; St.Julians Police Station; Rabat Police Station; C.M.R.U Insp. Office; Żejtun Police Station; Luqa Airport Police Station; B'Bugia Police Station; Commissioner of Police Dormitory; G.H.Q Secretary Office; Ta' Kandja R.I.U Quarters; G.H.Q - Other ranks canteen; G.H.Q - P.Q Office; G.H.Q - E.T.U Office; G.H.Q - I.T Department; G.H.Q - C.I.D Department; G.H.Q - Licence Trades Office; G.H.Q - Officer's Mess and Veranda; Mellieħa Police Station; Gozo - Gharb Police Station; Gozo - Munxar Police Station; Gozo - Sannat Police Station; Gozo - Police Flat; G.H.Q - Eurodac Office;

G.H.Q - Human Resource Office; M.T. Garage Rest room; A.L.E Section SM Office; Ta' Kandja Police Academy canteen/Kitchen; P.M's Residence.

1. Police Computer Network infrastructure:

1.1 Police Stations

During the last quarter of the year, the following sites were identified as an expansion of the Police network infrastructure for 2014. These include: Dog Section, Mounted Section, Mdina, Ċirkewwa, Kalkara, Għadira and Mġarr (Gozo) and possibly Kemuna. There is also planned to replace the entire Criminal Records wing infrastructure due to the expansion of technology in that area of Headquarters.

During the month of June 2013 the Police Lockup was connected to the main Police infrastructure, in order to give Police IT services also to that particular area.

An exercise has been initiated during the last week of July going through all August 2013, where 40 police stations sought the total maintenance on site of their communication racks. These have been totally refurbished. Where required, wiring has been changed together with new equipment to expand the network within the same Police Station.

1.2 Police Domain

During 2013, 170 new users were enrolled, totalling the amount to 1,746 Police officers.

2. ICT. Department – Data Centre GHQ:

During May 2013, an exercise for the relocation of active equipment was conducted by the IT core team. The new Active Directory of the Police was installed in a new operations room. Servers were split in order to offer redundancy through primary and secondary servers at each Police Data Centre. A new Active directory has been installed and is being populated by the transfer of existing users from the previous one, which was based on Windows Servers 2003 to Windows Servers 2008.

At present an internal exercise is being conducted in order to start converting and upgrading computers that fall under the current lease agreement, which totals around 470 units.

2.1 Upgrade of Network Switching

Four new Network switches were deployed at MIA as part of the network upgrade in order to facilitate query data transmission for Border Control.

Four other new network switches were also deployed at specific point at Police GHQ due to new fibre being implemented from the Police Lockup area up to the IT Services block.

2.2 Control Room – Driver Database (Transport Malta)

During the month of October 2013, a new system at Control Room was deployed. The system accesses the information supplied by Transport Malta, with all information in relation

29 to the Driver Details. The Police now can make use of information related to any driver in terms of:

 Drivers’ particulars;  Court sentences and suspension of licence;  Type of licence the licensee has (car/motorcycle/heavy vehicles and so on)

3. Police National Systems:

3.1 Police Incident Reporting System II (PIRS II) / National Stop List II (NSL II):

In view of the scheduled change over from SIS I TO SIS II, both PIRS II and NSL II, were enhanced and released on the 8/9th April 2013. Both systems can process information in line with the new regime of legislation pertaining to Schengen.

During the month of September 2013, Malta had undergone the SIS II evaluation. As a result Malta scored high results were it came to Security and the structure that the NSIS Agency within the Police ICT has formed.

During September and October 2013, additional enhancements have been identified and proposals have been submitted to MITA in order to enhance the NPS; these include: Weapons Module, Criminal Record Module, Driver Licence Detail, Police Bail and EUCARIS. These additional modules are currently being studied, whilst others have been already implemented, such as EUCARIS.

3.2 Weapons’ Administration System:

From meetings held with MITA during the month of June, an agreement was concluded with this Agency to reserve €30,000 for this year (2013) for the initiation and in-house coding of a new Weapons’ Administration system.

After a preliminary meeting held on the 27th June 2013, it was established that the system should be part of the Police Incident Reporting System.

4. Police Training:

4.1 Police Incident Reporting System II and Schengen Awareness Campaign

As part of the NS-SIS Unit campaign a total of 1,380 (SM, W/Ps, W/Pc) Police Officers from all ranks were briefed on the new features and information that will be at their disposal from the introduction of the changes occurring on the PIRS II and Schengen II.

These sessions were conducted on a three week schedule at the Police Training Facilities at Ta’ Kandja by IT personnel.

4.2 CEPOL (EU Police College Network)

During the last three months a total of 100 Police Officers attended Webinars offered by CEPOL through Internet. Sessions were conducted at the IT department, conference room.

To note that there are on-going plans to shift these sessions to the new Police Academy at Ta’ Kandja in a new Police IT Class room that can hold up to 20-40 users at a time.

5. EU Police Systems

5.1 CODIS: An upgrade of the system was installed as scheduled with the EU Commission.

5.2 AFIS: A procedure for daily tasks was initiated by this department in order to absorb the effort through in-house personnel. All Police Network Operations Centre’s personnel were trained to perform such tasks. This effort will result in better monitoring and will ease preventive maintenance.

5.3 National Schengen Information System Unit (NS-SIS) Between the 8/9th April 2013, Europe changed with a big bang approach from SIS I to SIS II. The Police NS-SIS Unit, together with the support of its relevant contractors, successfully entered the SIS II regime.

To note that as a country, Malta was one of the very first groups to migrate. As expected with all new systems, the first weeks after the changeover were dedicated to arrange and monitor the entire process and information flow. Maintenance was conducted on National systems by MITA and on the Border Control System by the PISCES Team.

During the last week of June and beginning of July, an exercise has been initiated to integrate the VISA Information System into the Police Border Control system, so that any Border Guard may perform queries on the two systems through a single interface.

6. EU Projects (Active)

6.1 Advanced Passenger Information System:

Border control system for the checking of incoming persons on flights upon departure and arrival. Total allocated funds for the project: Euro 200,000

The first meetings about this new project were conducted during May 2013. During the same month, MITA together with the Police went into agreement for them to act on the Police behalf to conduct a feasibility study to integrate the above mentioned system.

As part of this project, funds have been allocated for a Maltese small contingent to visit three other Member states in order to acquire knowledge and report back. The countries identified are: Spain, Italy and Cyprus. The first visit is expected to happen at the end of July 2013.

6.2 EUCARIS

Even though Transport Malta is the National Contact point for EUCARIS, exchange of information under the PRUM treaty, the Malta Police had to be audited, since the access to the system is made from system to system. With this strategy, the Eucaris information may be accessed through the National police System, implying that potentially every Police officer may have access to foreign plates and information. The evaluation concentrated on the security parameters in place from the NS-SIS and ICT Unit to safeguard data and information. A presentation of the current policies and baselines that the ICT and NS-SIS Unit follow were scrutinized. A thorough walkthrough at premises was conducted from where members of the unit involved showed and presented themselves what happens during daily routines. At the end of the evaluation to comments were very favourable in terms of security, whilst their main comment included the fact that such system once it is

31 approved by the Commission should be made available to any Police officer. A decision higher authority has to consider.

7 Projects through EU funds (application stage)

7.1 Proposed Projects through EBF 2013 and Internal Security Funds 2013:

The ICT and NS-SIS Department has submitted proposals for the following projects:

a. External Border Funds 2013

Action 7: Purchase and instalment of a system that integrates existing police and border control systems with API and PNR data Acquisition services.

Following the EBF 2012 feasibility study the IT unit together with Police Immigration services have applied for the system itself. The grant that has been submitted, if approved is around: Euro Four Million (€ 4,000,000)

Action 8: IT-Related Equipment for Border Control and Police Data Centre.

The Action focuses on the review, replacement and enhancement of various present aspects of existing technology in use by the MPF for border control purposes with regards to software, hardware and infrastructure. The equipment to be reviewed has been in operation for the last six years. In IT terms, it is being phased out and also becoming too out-dated to serve the present requirements for border control in terms of efficiency and effectiveness. The grant that has been submitted, if approved is around: €935,000).

7.2 Internal Security Funds 2013

Project 1: Police National Systems to be accessed from remote mobile equipment (€450,000) Project 2: Extension of the current Case Management System to be implemented at Sirene, for Interpol and Europol (€1,005,000.00) Project 3: Extension of Operations Room within the Police NS-SIS and ICT building. (€163,100.00).

8. Tenders involving the IT Department (2013)

During June 2013, the Police IT, together with the Accounts and the Criminal Investigative Department concluded the adjudication of a tender for the Supply, Delivery and Installation of CCTV system for Police GHQ Lockup and Valletta Lockup (P.4584/2011) (value: €103,000). Papers have been forwarded to respective authorities in order to complete the adjudication from Contracts Department Board.

9. Digital Telephony (112 and PABX)

Investigations:

The total amount of investigations which occurred during 2013 were 96, where 31 were retrieved from the 112 System and remaining 65 from the GHQ PABX System.

Statistics and Crime Analysis:

In total, throughout 2013 the Statistics Unit replied to 256 requests. These vary from requests from within the Police and in respect of Parliamentary Questions.

One is to note that as from September 2013, the Statistics office has assimilated the function of analysis of crime. Thus new type of reports are being generated to help the District Police to focus on targeted crime areas within their borders.

Police Academy

General

During this year, the Police Academy continued to function from the ex-Umberto Calosso School at St. Venera. Then in November the Police Academy was relocated to Ta’ Kandja, temporarily operating from the ex-detention centre premises, pending the finishing works at the new building.

Works on the construction of the dormitory, which is to serve for accommodation of recruits during the living in phase of the training course, was commenced in October 2013.

Training and courses

In January, 95 recruits successfully completed the 33rd Basic Training Course.

Half day training sessions for second class sergeants, sergeants and constables were held between January and April. This training included academic topics related to the duties of police officers as well as tactical and physical training.

Between the 18th February and the 26th June 2013 a course was held for trainee correctional officers. Five refresher courses for Police officers, Immigration Officers, Customs and AFM Personnel involved in border control were held In April, May, June, October, November and December.

Also in April 2013 a seminar related to the new Euro bank notes was held for personnel handling cash within the Police Department.

During May 2013, four courses related to facial composite production were held for police officers posted at the Forensic Science Laboratory.

In October training sessions in use of the Taser and pepper spray were held for personnel posted at the Mobile and CID Sections in the No 10 Police District.

In November and December training sessions in the use of small arms, Taser and pepper spray were held to a number of personnel who were reinstated within the Force.

E.U. Affairs Office

The Police EU Office are an integral part of the Malta Police Force.

The purpose of this Office is to assist the Malta Police Force in carrying out its EU-related business. Amongst others, the EU Office carries out the following roles:

 Information gathering  Raising the Malta’s Police Force profile in the EU  Developing regional links  Exchange of information

The EU Office falls under the remit of the Assistant Commissioner in charge of Administration. The EU Office is also responsible for the handling of classified information which is regulated by a number of laws which inter alia include the following:

 The Official Secrets Act (Cap 50)  The Professional Secrets Act (Cap 377)  The Security Service Act (Cap 391)  The Code of Organization and Civil Procedure (Cap 12)  The Data Protection Act (Cap 440).

One main function of the EU Office is the processing of documents received from various Ministries as well as from other foreign organizations such as FRONTEX, CEPOL, OLAF, the European Commission, Europol, Interpol, etc. Information received differs from Council decisions and regulations to training programmes for police officers. These training programmes and courses offer police personnel a chance to acquaint themselves with new methods of policing as well as information gathering and thus enhancing efficiency and competency in the Malta Police Force.

The number of invitations received for our officers to travel abroad during the year 2013 amounts to a total of 744. Average acceptance of participation to these invitations amounts to 46.6%.

Legal Office

Tasks of the Legal office

The Legal Office is responsible for various tasks which are listed and explained here below:

1) Legal Advice

This Office delivers both oral and written advice/opinions on various legal matters mainly criminal, administrative and civil matters. Members of this Office, on a daily basis, are faced with criminal cases where investigating officers seek the advice of this office as to whether a case merits a prosecution or not.

The Police are not only involved in cases of criminal nature but also with administrative matters such as issuing of licences for weapons, explosives, Criminal Conduct issues, issues relating to the granting of security guards licences and certain commercial activities that are held on specific days. This office several times was approached to assist in those cases which are heard before the Police tribunal where the Police would have objected to issue a licence for a one-off event.

Moreover, as from 2013, the Legal Office is directly involved in every civil or constitutional case whereby the police is involved, both directly and indirectly.

2) Assistance in the prosecution of criminal cases

The Legal Office assists prosecuting officers by discussing any legal issues that crop up during the prosecution of offences in court. It assists prosecuting officers in compiling note of submissions and replying to court decrees. In some cases legal officers appear in court to assist prosecution officers during the criminal proceedings as directed by the Commissioner of Police. Furthermore the Inspector in charge is responsible from the prosecution of offences in the Juvenile Court and sometimes carries out prosecution duties in the Family Court when Vice squad Inspectors are not available due to other work commitments.

3) Drafting of Domestic Laws & Circulars

This Office is in charge from drafting domestic laws and also advises on EU Regulations and Directives with the Ministers concerned and with the respective direct Maltese representatives in Brussels.

4) EU working groups

Officers within this office attend a number of EU working groups.

Prior to these EU meetings an amount of preparation is required. Officers attending these meetings have to acquire feedback from other Police departments and also discussing certain topics with the Ministry as for the position that Malta should take during the discussions. Following the meetings, apart from compiling the required report in particular where legal issues have been discussed, this office will scrutinise domestic laws and highlight which laws may require certain amendments.

The Legal Office has been appointed as the national correspondent for Eurojust and thus participates in meetings which deal with the Eurojust national coordination system. This system includes participation from the Attorney General and MITA for the necessary network.

Parliamentary Questions Office

During 2013 this office dealt with 319 Parliamentary questions all concerning the Police Department.

General Collection

Each quarter on receiving their salary all members of the Force are required to pay the contribution in respect of The General Fund, Mutual Help Association (of serving members) & The Malta Police Association. After paying their contributions at their respective districts and sections, the funds are brought over to this office where reconciliation is carefully made. The funds are then deposited at accounts section. An estimated amount of about € 110,000 has been handled during last year.

Mutual Help Association (of retired members)

During 2013, the sum of €42,138 was given through this office obo. The Commissioner of Police to 27 families of deceased ex/member whilst the annual subscription payment amounting to about €15,210.24 was collected from each 1,088 members (ex-servicemen) who either called personally at this Office or sent their payment by post.

International Police Association

During 2013 this Office has also served as the Official I.P.A. Office within Headquarters for the purpose of disseminating information, customer care and the renewal of I.P.A. memberships.

Internships for foreign Police Cadets

This Office also assisted in organising and coordinating the annual internship programme in July/August 2013 for 14 foreign police officers where this year’s group were all German cadets being 10 from the ‘Polizeiprasidium Gelsenkirchen’ and 4 were from ‘Fachbereich Polizei’.

Department of Finance and Administration

Finance and Administration

The main role of the Finance and Administration Directorate, which is manned by civilians, is to provide support and direction to the various units within the Police Department on matters related to finance and administration within the parameters of the established financial regulations, the PSMC and the Public Administration Act, as well as, to regulate, monitor and manage in an efficient way, the financial allocation approved in the budget estimates.

EU related projects

During 2013 action was taken in conjunction with the Department of Contracts to award a tender for 11 cars funded by the European External Border Fund. These border control vehicles cost €189,783 and include equipment such as a two way radio, beacon lights, siren and GPS. In addition, this directorate has also assisted the officers from the Funds and Programmes Division of MEAIM during the audit exercises performed under the Activities of Forced Return Programme. Funds allocated under this programme were utilized for the deportation of 36 individuals accompanied by a total of 7 escorts. Funds claimed under this initiative amounted to €12,202.

Investment on Capital Items

This Directorate assisted in the procurement of new capital equipment to be used by police personnel in their day to day duties. Surveillance equipment was installed at the police lockups and new video display monitors were purchased in order to improve the visual quality of the Automatic Vehicle Location system. Moreover, during the same year, the police fleet was upgraded with the purchase of ten motorcycles, one Segway and two new motor scooters. Radio equipment was procured in order to complement the newly acquired motorcycles and new Taser guns were purchased following direct order approval by the Ministry of Finance.

New Police Academy

The administration and lecture block is now in its finishing stages and is currently being equipped with new furniture. Moreover, during 2013, an extension was approved for the construction of a new dormitory. Works are progressing at a fast pace and shall be completed in 2014.

Accounts/Procurement Section

This section processed 8 public tenders for various items and services. Expenditure was monitored regularly in order to ascertain that it was in line with the allocations in the budget for the Department.

The following is a table showing expenditure during the years 2012 and 2013:

Recurrent Expenditure 2012 2013 € € Personal Emoluments 45,472,217 47,443,799

Operational & Maintenance 4,150,329 4,255,663 expenditure

Totals 49,622,546 51,699,462

Capital Expenditure 620,214 540,823

Human Resources (Civilian Personnel) Section

The Human Resources Section caters for all the requirements of civilian personnel, including the 56 Immigration officers posted at the Malta International Airport. These included salary scale progressions, the submission of appraisal reports and the drawing up of letters of appointment or progression, regular verification of attendance sheets, the management of vacation/sick leave, and applications for retirement pensions. Performance Management Programs Reports were also drawn up and updated for the 79 officers entitled to such a report. Assistance was also provided on disciplinary cases as necessary.

A new sick leave policy introduced in 2013 to control possible abuses by civilians in certain sections of the Police Department is already yielding good results.

Moreover, towards the end of 2013, the final group of Immigration Officers completed their course on border guard control and customer care, thus concluding an ambitious six-month programme involving intensive refresher training to 56 personnel.

Travel Section

This section processed a total of 410 flight arrangements, catering for visits abroad undertaken by Police personnel attending seminars, conferences as well as other meetings connected with various EU related activities. All the required administrative support was provided to Police personnel travelling abroad, and to assist in the reimbursement of expenses incurred during the visit, when applicable.

Revenue Section

The main source of revenue generated by the Police Department is the income collected from annual weapons licences. During 2013, a total of €48,000 in arrears from previous years were collected in this regard. Other revenue was generated from Police Districts, taxes, fines, Criminal Records Office, ID Cards Section, Police Licences Office, Seaport,

Central Immigration Office and Principal Citations Office. All the revenue was deposited regularly and reconciled with the statements received from the Commercial Banks.

The following table is a breakdown of revenue generated during 2013:-

Item 2013 Sporting Licences 857,464 Miscellaneous Licences 58,060 Miscellaneous Fines 43,414 Permits/Certificates 228,064 Fees on Visas 13,150 Services to Third Parties 85,483 Road Accident Reports 51,838 Miscellaneous Receipts 47,064 Total €1,384,537

Secretariat/Registry Services

The main role of the Department’s registry is the management of the Department’s filing system, the management of all incoming and outgoing correspondence and the distribution of GHQ internal circulars.

In addition to the above, the Secretariat has also processed 196 police conduct certificates required by foreign citizens, the tracking of 3389 Death Certificates, 2700 Tickets of Admission in respect of unpaid Court fines, 7,000 archiving of files, and 296 notices to the Department of Information for publication in the Govt. Gazette of all traffic deviations required during National activities, village feasts and other activities.

Investigative Services

(Criminal Investigation Department - Homicide Squad - Cultural Property Crime Unit - Stolen Vehicles Squad - Criminal Records Office - Mobile Squad/RIU - Lock-Up)

Criminal Investigation Department

The mission of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is to endeavour to be a principal player in the investigation and prevention of serious crime in order to contribute towards a safer and more stable environment. To meet the terms of its mission, the CID has been constantly striving to improve its structure to be in a better position to respond to its responsibilities.

Responsibilities

The primary role of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) remains that of investigating serious crimes although on a secondary but equally important level, the CID also takes up a supportive role in the prevention of crime. The main role entails a responsibility of carrying out follow-up investigations of crimes originally reported to the district police. On the other hand, the secondary role involves a rather proactive approach with the aim of preventing and reducing.

During 2013, a total of 732 CID case files were originated for investigation. These investigations led to the arrest and interviewing of 1,081 of which 338 were detained for more than six hours. As a result 363 cases were solved. All these cases were arraigned in court with a total of 184 arraignments, which involved the prosecution of 229 persons of which 16 were under the age of 18.

The following is a list of offences instituted in court during 2013 in connection with the above mentioned cases

Arraignments Offences Persons Minors Inder 18 of Solved presented Over 18 year Arraigned years Cases 2013 in Court Males Females Males Females 184 919 229 25 188 16 0

Homicide Squad

During 2013, the Homicide Squad investigated 6 homicide cases, (one case being a double homicide) out of which 3 were solved and the related suspects were charged in court.

Additionally, this office assisted in the investigation of three cases of suspicious deaths which turned out to be of accidental or natural cause. Another three suspicious deaths resulted to be suicides. The squad also investigated two cases of grievous bodily harm and one case that resulted to be that of a sudden death. Two other suspicious deaths were investigated and resulted to be overdose.

Cultural Property Crime Unit

During the year 2013, the CID Cultural Property Crime Unit investigated a number of crimes related to cultural heritage, in the majority consisting of crimes of theft and receiving stolen goods.

In the current year, the unit has also contributed to the protection of the country’s heritage by adopting various crime preventive measures. This included special patrols with sites of international importance and escorts during the movement of high value antiques as well as in the provision of security with high profile exhibitions.

The Unit has also been instrumental in enhancing the general investigative capabilities of police officers in this crime area by lecturing for in-service and recruitment courses at the Police Academy.

Stolen Vehicles Squad (SVS)

During 2013, the Stolen Vehicles Squad carried out the following vehicle inspections:  2,187 second hand imported vehicles.  66 second hand imported engines.  69 half cuts imported for parts.  155 other vehicles were inspected by SVS technical unit at MT Garage.  153 vehicles were punched with new Police VIN NO. by SVS Technical Unit.  SVS inspected 35 vehicles on assistance to other government departments.  SVS inspected 42 vehicles on assistance to other Police sections.

 22 vehicles were seized pending investigations out of which 10 were returned to their rightful owner after such vehicles were reported stolen from abroad.  152 SVS query files were originated by SVS technical unit following vehicle/engine discrepancies.  SVS investigations led to the prosecution of 12 persons who were charged with vehicle crime related offences which cases are included in the statistics presented by the department.  Over 10,000 other checks were conducted through the SIS system as regards imported vehicles, foreign plates, and imported engines.

Criminal Records Office (CRO)

During the 2013, the Criminal Record Office issued 47,857 Conduct Certificates and Conviction sheets. The total amount of revenue generated was that of €119,75.50c The number of persons that had a conviction recorded at the CRO ammounted to 17,206 of them 10,979 were convicted of crimes whilst 6,227 were convicted of a contravention.

From the total of persons convicted of crimes and contraventions; 755 were foreigners and 209 were under the age of 18.

Mobile Squad (Till June 2013)

The Mobile Squad ceased to exist by the 1st July 2013, and the Unit was amalgamated with the Special Assignment Group, and is now known as the Rapid Intervention Unit (RIU).

The RIU was strengthened in manpower and vehicles in order to reinforce the patrols around the Island. The RIU is also responsible security with high profile embassies, and VIP protection with dignitaries that visit the Island.

Its main task remains that of patrolling the Island and to assist other sections in the police. Up till June, the then Mobile Squad managed to arrest 223 persons due to suspicious criminal activities. The squad also affected 122 roadblocks in different localities.

Rapid Intervention Unit (RIU) (As From 1st July)

The Rapid Intervention Unit was set-up on 1st July 2013 with the amalgamation of the former Special Assignments Group and the Mobile Squad. The combined existing compliment was beefed-up with additional members from various other districts and branches. The RIU with a strength of around 160 officers is the largest entity within the Malta Police Force and was set up to provide proper response to the needs of the public in the shortest time possible and make a much more visible presence on our roads. This in conjunction with maintaining and enhancing SWAT capabilities and continue providing protection to visiting dignitaries Additionally, the unit also covered fixed-point guard duties with embassies and other highly- sensitive premises, crowd-control in mass-events coverage and high-profile enforcement operations requiring tactical capabilities

Between 1st of July and 31st of December 2013, the RIU managed to arrest 262 and checked another 111 suspects, checked 97 vehicles in suspicious circumstances, apprehended 42 cases of drug abuse, recovered 9 stolen vehicles and traced 9 other wanted vehicles, recovered stolen items and dangerous items such as firearms or arms proper on 13 occasions, traced 2 missing persons, assisted on 14 cases of attempted/suicides, were dispatched 296 times on public-order cases, 82 cases of theft, 8 shooting incidents, 6 stabbings, 33 fires/explosions and 2 bomb-threats, assisted cash-vans and non-public

40 officers on 57 occasions, assisted/rescued civilians 81 times, assisted other police units on 285 occasions, responded to 572 alarms and assisted in 70 traffic accidents.

As part of their routine work schedule, RIU officers undergo a day of training every five days whilst at the same time providing additional back-up to the patrol fleet in case of need. Training is carried out against regular monitoring and assessment and measured against ever-higher standards and benchmarks

Investment was made in the procurement (or planning thereof) of new weapons, uniforms and equipment to reflect the recognition the RIU merits in its role as a specialized unit at the cutting-edge of policing in Malta. Some of the equipment procured is innovative and a first- time acquisition for the MPF including optical equipment for the automatic weapons.

CID LOCK-UP

The CID Lock Up is located at the CID yard. Its primary function is that of serving as temporary housing for persons who have breached or are suspected of having fringed the laws of the State.

In 2013, a total of 2,170 persons were registered at the Lock Up. 1,387 of these detainees were Maltese and the remaing 783 were of foreihn nationality. Out of these detainees 1,953 were males and 217 were females.

Investigative Services

Drug Squad

Between 1st January 2013 and 31st December 2013, the Drug Squad successfully concluded a number of drug investigations into the drug activities of suspected individuals/groups both locally and abroad, some of which had been targeted, investigated and placed under surveillance for some years and others who although have pending court cases, are out on bail but still active in drug trafficking. During the same year, the Drug Squad also charged in court other persons who were actually identified during that same year.

The presence of Drug Squad personnel at Malta International Airport (MIA) has been kept as a priority and as a matter of fact, operations were carried out conjointly with the Customs Enforcement Unit on a daily basis, targeting suspected passengers arriving on particular sensitive flights originating from those destinations which through intelligence and experience have been identified to be the principal and high profile drug routes.

This strategy has led to a number of seizures of drugs during the last couple of years. The same success, though, has forced drug traffickers to seek other means of transportation and concealment. The MO trend and changes were in fact recognised and measured throughout many EU airports. This was also due to the successful prosecution and extensive imprisonment terms for prime individuals forming part of OCGs, the identification of drug couriers has become an intricate task more than ever before. These OCGs during this period were recognised to be both West African nationals, in particular of Nigerian origin, and South Americans in particular Colombians, and Panamanians. However the police have also managed to identify Italian, Sicilian individuals who were trying to set up a shop locally.

Exchange of information and intelligence with our counterparts in the two North African countries closest to Malta, Libya and Tunisia were re-established and a delegation from the Libyan Authorities met at Police GHQ to re-establish communication and intelligence exchange channels in the area of drug trafficking and organised crime.

On the other hand, cooperation with EU MSs through Europol has been strengthened, and Europol’s expertise has been also used to assist in local investigations involving South American groups.

Other minor anti-drug operations mainly targeting street level drug-pushers were also positively concluded. Through these investigations we have also actually managed to identify other drug traffickers.

Special investigative techniques in the form of controlled-deliveries and the use of participating-informants continued to be adopted and led to drug seizures and arrests.

The table below refers to the total seizures recorded during the period 01.01.13 to 31.12.13,

Total Seizures:

Drug Type Quantity Cocaine 3613.4 gr Heroin 1300.89 gr Cannabis Resin 535.33 gr Cannabis Grass 9738.9 gr Cannabis Plants 27 Cannabis Seeds 54 Ecstasy Tablets 30374.5 Crack Cocaine 14.3 gr Amphetamine 5 gr Mephedrone 38.6 gr Methadone (liters) 200.145 ml Khat 159.084 kg Cutting agent 300 gr Joints 56

It is worth mentioning the fact that the Drug Squad has also focused its investigations on the seizure and freezing of assets from drug traffickers and as a matter of fact the police have requested the courts on many occasions to issue freezing orders. Parallel money-laundering investigations were also initiated by the Economic Crimes Unit, in line with the drug investigations.

The number of arrested persons/raids and searches effected during 2013, when compared with those of 2012, show a decrease but there is still an increase over 2011. On the other hand, judgments delivered during 2013, increased by approximate 70% over 2013.

The total number of trafficking cases decreased by 7% whilst that for possession increased by 8% over the previous year.

Investigative Services - Economic Crimes and Vice Squad

Economic Crimes Squad

The Police Economic Crime Unit is tasked to tackle any type of crime related to the financial sector. It has to adapt to and investigate crimes within the financial sector, the public sector and the general public where victims of fraud still abound.

The tasks of the ECU are multifaceted and there are no tangible parameters for our remit. The reports received by the unit vary from fraud to corruption to defrauding institutions such as the government and European Union. As a general rule, the following is a list of crimes that are mostly reported to us but this is not exhaustive and we have to remain flexible in our approach:

 Fraud  Misappropriation  Money Laundering  Investigation of all Customs related offences  Intellectual Property Rights violations  Breaches of the Financial Institutions Act  Extortion  Corruption  Usury  Forgery of Documents  Embezzlement  Currency counterfeiting  Computer Crime  Judicial requests for assistance from abroad regarding economic crimes  Police requests from abroad through Interpol regarding economic crimes

At the beginning of the year, this Squad as well as the Money Laundering Office was headed by an Assistant Commissioner and a Superintendent. There were a total of eight investigating teams which rose to ten by the end of the year.

The Economic Crime Unit dealt with 465 reports in 2013. Notwithstanding the complex nature of some of these reports, we have had successes in some major cases such as the oil trading case which was so widely reported in the local media as well as many other cases that were not so widely reported. The contraband of oil was high on the agenda last year and a number of arrests were made. Despite the small number of charges from these investigations, it is believed that we have caused huge difficulties for these operators thereby attaining our obligation to prevent crime.

The contraband of cigarettes and alcohol was tackled along with the oil issue and the Unit was able to suppress quite a number of attempts. Plastic card fraud remains prevalent although a small number of cases were reported. Nevertheless, our unit has dedicated many hours to following reports of ‘hits’ carried out against ATM’s by foreigners acting in concert with one another to defraud the user’s of these machines. We also take any opportunities to use the media to make the public aware of the risk.

The Money Laundering Unit

The Money Laundering Office is responsible for investigating all cases of money laundering. It also has to deal also with judicial requests for assistance and with other requests for assistance from our foreign counterparts concerning matters related to money laundering investigations.

This Unit investigates all suspicious transaction reports that are referred to this unit from the Financial Intelligence and Analysis Unit, together with other information received from other independent sources. Other investigations are initiated by the Unit itself or that are referred to the unit from local police sources.

The MLO liaises with other institutions such as MONEYVAL/FATF, EUROPOL, OLAF and CARIN during its normal course of operations.

During 2013, the Superintendent travelled to a conference in North Africa related to the presence of several hundred million Euros that are deposited in local banks and that are alleged to have come from the former regime in Libya. We have offered every type of assistance and support to our counterparts to repatriate these funds however no contact has been made from the other side to initiate proceedings.

The Vice Squad

The Squad is responsible for investigating all sexual offences, domestic violence issues, child abuse, child neglect, curbing of prostitution, missing persons, illegal gambling, clandestine lotto, paedophilia on the internet and trafficking in human beings and other criminal offences not directly related to Vice.

As in the previous years, Trafficking in Human Beings remained a top priority. Several efforts were made to ensure that no THB occurred on our territory we carried out several raids on outlets – mainly massage parlours - suspected to be involved in THB. These efforts were assisted by making use of the information available in various government offices and on the internet to profile outlets for investigation. This culminated in three persons being arraigned for THB during the year under review.

Members of the Vice Squad still remain a part of the ministerial stakeholder’s task force against THB. This multi-agency task force allows a wider approach in combating THB and the contacts made on this task force provide us with information that allows us to focus our resources to better effect.

Missing persons is another task that is mainly thankless. As in other years, several hundred persons were reported missing for reasons best known unto themselves for the most part.

The Vice Squad also remained available to assist social services whenever necessary in order to minimize the risk of re-victimisation by aggressors.

During the year, the following arrests, interviews and arraignments took place:

Vice Squad Arrests, Interviews & Court Arraignments 2013 Males Females Total

Persons (Number 60 85 145 arraigned) Cases (Number taken to - - 134 court) Arrested 53 17 70 Persons Interrogated 72 31 103 Persons Interviewed 178 216 394

Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL)

This laboratory is one of the main arteries of the Force when it comes to investigations. The forensic team consisting of forty-one seasoned officers including a police inspector who is the officer in charge provides a wide spectrum of services related to forensic evidence and scene of crime preservation on a twenty four- seven service all year round.

The laboratory is also committed with a number of European obligations including the exchange of of information related to dactyloscopic and DNA data in the Prum environment, the exchange of detected counterfeit and falsified travel documents through working groups within the European Council and other sharing of information with other law enforcement agencies.

The Dactyloscopic Data Unit

The Dactyloscopic Data Unit is manned by five officers who carry out a number of tasks which vary from the actual taking of impressions of suspects, illegal immigrants, victims and tanents for elimnation pruposes, convicted persons; the processing of latents recovered from the scene of crime; the comparisons between questioned and outstanding latents with the database of suspects and convicted persons.

The “Automated Fingerprints Identification System” (AFIS) which was upgraded in 2012, facilitates the acquision, storage and comparisons of fingerprints from suspects and scene of crime evidence. Moreover, on daily basis, outstanding prints are searched through other European databases through a dedicated network.

During this current year, 2,748 persons were fingerprinted and entered in the database for investigation purposes. The fingerprints experts processed 2,450 latents recovered by scene of crime officers from the crime scene recording 200 positive fingerprint hits.

Other sections within the Police such as Europol, Interpol, Siren and CIAU were also assisted by this unit. In total, 914 requests were processed which requests relate to serious crime reported in various countries and wanted criminals.

Indeed, the exchange of data initiated and continued during the year with Austria, France, Cyprus, Slovakia, Romania and Belgium where 14,359 transactions were received. 13,310 transactions were exchanged and searched against foreign databases in the Prum environment.

The DNA Database Unit

The DNA database is run by a dedicated software better known as “Combined DNA Index System” (CODIS). The system has undergone also an evaluation process as per Council Decision 2008/615/JHA, which process was conducted by Austrian DNA experts.

The Chemical Enhacement Unit

All the chemical enhacements related to fingerprints, palm prints and shoemarks are catered by this unit which is manned by a single officer. The demand on this unit is quite high and relates to the analysis in search of traces body fluids and blood on items recovered from the crime scene.

The officer has explicited his expertise in 161 investigations and repaired on 77 crime scenes. His anaylsis involved chemical fingerprint development on a wide range of items

45 recovered from the scene which vary in size, texture and composite. The total number of examinations exceeded 3,000 during the twelve-month period.

The Photographic and Video enhacement Unit

The unit is manned by four police officers, this section is responsible for the processing of digital photography, carry out photographic and videographic surveillance in police and sports activities. This unit is the core of this department. During this year, this unit were involed in the following activities:

Processing of digital photos: 66,849 Surveillance of sports activities: 132 Surveillance of other activities: 14 Police activities: 54 Processing of cctv footage: 986 Other work requested by other sections including CID, Drug Squad, CIAU, Mobile Squad, Traffic 115 Squad, MT Garage and immigration.

Scene of Crime Unit

Five teams consisting of four officers for each team form the scene of crime unit. They are responsible for the preservation of the scene of crime unit. All possible evidence at the scene will be collected, packed, preserved and exhibited before the Courts during the course of proceedings. The evidence is supported by a detail report providing also conclusions when appropriate.

The scene of crime officers were called on 1,051 magisterial inquiries and 1,870 police work investigations. Moreover, these officers were summoned to attend to 980 court sittings in total.

The Ballistics Unit

This unit offers a wide spectrum of services related to firearms and projectory evidence. The services include the maintenance of the service firearms, the processing of firearm licences, inspections at firearms retail outlets and shooting ranges, inspections of imported and exported firearms held by the customs authorities, and escorts of firearms during film making.

Due to their experience and qualifications, these officers are also appointed as court experts in cases related to firearm incidents.

The National Documents Examination Unit

The recruitment of another officer has counter balanced the workload within this unit. Manned by three specialized officers and supported by the Inspector in charge of the Forensic Laboratory, this unit was instrumental in providing training to Immigration Officers

46 within the Police Force and to the members of consulates and embassies within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which training amounts to 400 hours.

Forensic Administrative Office

Manned by only a police officer and directly supervised by the head of the Laboratory, this office caters for the monitoring and the movement of files, the opening and closure of files, keeps the daily records for court commitments, and is responsible for the production of facial composite images that aid in investigations. These so called e-fits are produced during interviews held with victims and witnesses which will be later be communicated and scattered in all police stations.

During this year, 38 facial composites were produced and served as a vital tool in crime solving.

Protective Services

(Traffic Road Police, Administrative Law Enforcement Unit, Control Room, Principal Citations Office, Central Citations Delivery Office, MT Garage, Mounted Police, Dog Section Police)

Traffic Section

The Traffic Section focused mainly on the European TISPOL Logo to save lives by preventing traffic accidents, aiding the flow of traffic, assisting drivers, pedestrians and other road users alike. Traffic personnel adopted both proactively and physical enforcement at various places and events.

Traffic Field Officers make their daily presence 17 hours daily and cover morning and evening rush hours. They are deployed at strategic spots used by motorists, at arterial roads even assisting road works, road closures and deviations, in order to control and decrease infringements on the road.

Several main issues dealt with and heavily focused on were; a. Drink-driving/ drug; b. Driving without seat belt; c. Driving and using cellular phones; d. Ignoring on red lights; e. Exceeding speed limit; f. Vehicles with expired licence and uninsured vehicles; g. Drivers without driving licence; h. Foreign vehicles not being registered with Transport Malta;

Daily spot checks were carried out by the Traffic field officers, 29,210 drivers were stopped and Traffic offence Tickets and charges were issued Infringements were detected.

Further fruitful work was introduced for the curbing of derelict vehicles that were removed from the roads. Inspections on several car dealers to stop vehicle exhibitions on public roads were also effected.

The total number of charges and Traffic Offences Tickets (TOTs) issued by the Traffic Branch is indicated below.

The total number of charges and TOT’s issued by the Traffic Branch;

Number of drivers Charges issued Traffic Offence Tickets Brought to book 29,940 553 36,108

Traffic Field officers were also responsible for providing police escorts with foreign dignitaries visiting Malta on official functions. There were 322 foreign visits and 550 for Local VIPs occasions, involving about 1,482 traffic motorcyclists.

New equipment introduced within the Traffic Road Policing for the year 2013

New high visibility vests and the full face crash helmets together with a radio communication wire system were introduced for the traffic field officers for more safety on the roads thereby creating a new and better image.

New Procurement of Motorcycles

During October 2013, 10 motorcycles were procured and built with police equipment in house prior their introduction on the roads (deployed in February 2014).

The Administrative Law Enforcement Unit increased its delivery for the protection of the environmental law. During 2013, 2,994 individuals were brought to book. Enforcement was focused on smoking in public places, offences against the Litter Act, illegal dumping, illegal hunting/trapping activities and illegal activities on the seas.

Like previous years the Administrative Law Enforcement Section continued to collaborate with other entities outside the Force and in 2013 continued collaboration with enforcement entities i.e., fisheries department for illegal fishing of Tuna, ALE was even in collaboration with several NGO’s to address the illegal hunting and also co-ordinated with AFM in aid during the hunting season.

Co-ordination with Transport Malta for the summer season and illegalities on open seas and shores were also conducted.

ALE officers were also deployed for summer patrol on foot and on bicycles at popular bay to aid to curb the issue of theft from beaches and any other illegality noticed.

COMMAND AND CONTROL ROOM

Emergency Line 112 for 2013 Calls Calls answered 353,394 Calls unanswered 151,182 Calls transferred back to GHQ from other emergency services 3,553 Calls transferred to Police Department 2,489 Calls transferred to Civil Protection Department 10,254 Calls transferred to Armed Forces of Malta 345 Calls transferred to Mater Dei Hospital 38,546 Calls transferred to 112 Gozo 1,940 Calls transferred to Gozo Health Department 964 Total Calls incoming to 112 508,129

During the year 2013 several works were done in order to install a caller location system on the 112 emergency lines.

It is to be noted that during 2013, new consoles and headsets were purchased and renewed in order to modernize and facilitate work at the Control Room. Indeed, officers stationed in this particular department are also responsible of the radios communications of police stations and branches. Bank alarm systems, are also monitored within this section. It is to be noted that we also have monitoring of a CCTV system in Valletta which was installed by a private entity but which in turn helps in crime prevention and also in on-going investigations.

Every important and relevant 112 call is registered in a register whereas all the details concerning this call and the action taken are registered. Other registers present within this section involves useful information about drug trafficking or about illegal hunting is also logged on appropriate registers, this information is then passed to the respective branches for further necessary action to be taken. Calls regards bank alarm systems are also registered in respective registers.

Personnel at the Control Room, apart from answering 112 calls, are also responsible for incoming general calls made, mostly by the public on telephone number 21224001/9. They also cater for incoming calls on the ‘Crime Stop’ – 119 and the ‘Information Line’ – 21221111.

It is also the responsibility of Control Room personnel to operate radio communications with their colleagues from various branches, sections and district officers. They also monitor bank alarms and other security alarms some of which are connected to commercial establishments as well as to private premises. As part of this responsibility, it is essential for them to monitor, from time to time, police vehicles and motor cycles deployed on patrol.

PRINCIPAL CITATIONS OFFICE (PCO)

The Principal Citation Office holds the responsibility to issue subpoenas, and compile court sittings for the under listed sittings after entry of charges from all districts and sections and other Governmental entities that do not hold the executive powers to issue subpoenas.

CENTRAL DELIVERY OFFICE (CDO)

This Central Delivery Office consists of office personnel and motor-scooters’ drivers to deliver citations all around the island that are issued from the Police department and other Governmental entities. Over 100,00 documents are handled per annum.

In total, the CDO consists of 15 Police officers and 12 motor-scooters.

DOGS SECTION

During 2013 the Dogs Section deployed its K9 Teams 1,281 times at the Malta International Airport as an added security measure at MIA and also as Public Relations between the Malta Police Force and the general public.

The Drugs Sniffer Teams were deployed 25 times in total, both with the Drugs Squad and also at CCF.

The Explosives Detection Dog Teams were deployed with the assistance of AFM EOD to carry out 88 searches at various venues and as a security measures in connection with VIP Visits.

Dog Section personnel were deployed 125 times at Paceville during the weekends and on public holidays in order to assist the district police. The Dog Section also contributed police work with the Malta Football Association in various stadiums on 75 occasions.

The dog section personnel were also called on 57 times for reinforcements duties in connection with local and national commitments.

Furthermore, the Dog Section performed 53 displays in various schools and local councils. These also included some visits at the dog section premises. Besides displays during the Police week

MOUNTED SECTION

The Police Mounted Section during the Year 2013 provided 5 Presidential escorts to visiting Heads of States. 8 other ceremonial duties were carried out by the Mounted Section on occasions when the President of Malta received ambassadors to present their credentials. Ceremonial duties that the Mounted Section were deployed without horses amounted to 13 where Mounted Police Personnel stood guard in their ceremonial dress.

Displays and public relations events amounted to 24.

The Mounted Section also contributed to deterrence of crowd control at football games held at the Ta’ Qali National Football stadium and other stadiums (Paola) for 56 occasions

This Section also affected patrols at areas of importance in Malta and Gozo amounting to 79.

Other patrols in co-ordination with other Police Sections as with ALE (during hunting seasons) summer patrols, on horseback amounted to 276. Reinforcement duties on foot amounted to 16 occasions, adding to 44 duties for general election distributing votes.

MT GARAGE (WORKSHOP/MT STORES) SECTION

The Police Mechanical Section is divided in three sections, being the Mechanical repair section, the Stores section and the Radio Workshop. The Workshop section caters for the maintenance of all the police service vehicles whilst the MT Stores caters for the procurement and issue of service spare parts to MT mechanics

The following 28 vehicles were acquired during the year 2013, where 14 were in brand new condition.

Throughout 2013 the MT Workshop was upgraded by the installation of the following equipment:

 3 new trolley tools for mechanics (1 Gozo Garage).  Various hand-tools.

 Motor cycle exhaust gas extractor

During the year 2013, the MT Section handled 3,349 job request cards for repair works on police service vehicles that varied from routine maintenance, through to major engine and/or collision body repairs. In connection with these repairs, the sum of €354,254 was spent on the purchase of spare parts, oils and other services.

SPECIAL BRANCH

IMMIGRATION

The main task of the Immigration Branch is to control the island’s points of entry, which include checks to prevent illegal entry of foreigners and detection of forged documents, improperly documented persons and other persons who do not fulfil the conditions for entry. It has five designated entry points which are at the Airport, Seaport and Yacht Marina Msida the Mġarr, Gozo Yacht Marina and the Freeport. Police and civilian personnel man the entry point at the airport. Police officers carry out border control at all other points of entry.

During the period under review the number of persons who arrived in or left Malta by air, was as follows:

Arrivals 2,019,077 Departures 2,018,055

The statistics quoted above were obtained from Malta International Airport sources since these keep all record of Schengen and extra-Schengen movements.

Following please find the number of ferry and ro-ro passengers inclusive of Virtù passengers and excluding cruise liner passengers for Year 2013.

Arrivals 139,732 Departures 134,985

The number of arrivals and departures of cruise liner passengers for the same year was as follows:

Arrivals 51,128 Departures 50,846 Transit 375,785

These figures were brought from Transport Malta which is responsible for collation of these statistics.

A Visa-on-line system secures the proper and avid processing of applications for uniform visas in line with EU Regulations. An ad hoc office is housed within the Immigration Branch at Police HQ and deals with visa issues and it can be reported that the process between the police and consular posts is excellent.

During 2013 the Border points have been upgraded with IT equipment in all arrival booths and the system is still being enhanced to meet the requirements of the EU legislation of biometric details and also SIS II. In addition to this, other equipment for the processing of visas and the printing of visas as the border, inclusive of photo equipment, have also been set up at each border point of entry.

Immigration Field Duties

In so far as field duties are concerned, two thousand, four hundred and thirty-eight removal orders were issued by the Immigration officers. These include 95 removal orders issued in respect of foreigners found in Malta, 335 issued at M.I.A. while arriving or departing from Malta and 2008 to foreigners intercepted on boats. Immigration officers deployed on field duties also had to cater for the twenty-four boats which were rescued or entered Maltese waters illegally. The boats carried a total of two thousand and eight migrants. These all had to be medically checked, photographed, finger printed in line with Eurodac requisites and accommodated. They were also interviewed in order to establish their identity and wherever possible repatriations were effected, once any claims for any status in Malta were exhausted.

In the field of repatriation, a total of seventy-three foreigners were repatriated in line with immigration procedures. Also in this aspect, the Police were responsible to acquire the relative documentation and return tickets in order to secure smooth repatriations. Requests for documents continued to be forwarded to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in an effort to be in a position to repatriate failed asylum seekers.

Deployments abroad 2013

Immigration Gazetted Officers actively participate in a number of meetings, seminar, working groups and other activities, held both at EU level and by Frontex. Council meetings related to immigration and frontiers issues were also covered and these included The Strategic Committee on Immigration, Frontiers and Asylum, the Schengen Evaluation Working Group and Frontiers.

EURODAC OFFICE

The Immigration Police are also responsible for the running of the Eurodac Office. As such they are responsible to store and to disseminate fingerprints of all asylum seekers and illegal immigrants to the central data bank which is shared by all EU States. The same office is also responsible for the responses to requests to check or take back of such immigrants who may be discovered in other Member EU States or vice versa.

Very close relation is kept with the Refugee Commissioner who is technically responsible for Dublin activities. All action is being taken to ensure that from our end all data is entered in good time in the Eurodac system. During the period under review, a total of 1,395 new requests for information and requests to take back and take charge were filed to this office and 204 migrants were accepted and sent back to Malta following the required checks and verification

Duties at Open and Closed accommodation Centres

Figures of illegal immigrants kept in detention centres during the year under study increased drastically over the previous year. In December 2013 we had four hundred and eighty-two (482) recorded to be in the two detention centres at Safi and Lyster. Such premises are guarded by the Detention Service Officers and other AFM Officers. The Immigration Police kept assisting in the housing of foreigners who had entered Malta by boat or had been rescued by their Maritime Unit or those who were found in breach of their immigration position in Malta.

This section is also responsible to ensure that all immigrants are released from custody according to government policy. During the period under study, one thousand, nine hundred and seventy-one immigrants were brought over to GHQ for release which obviously entails a lot of administrative duties apart from issuing them with an Immigration document for identification purposes, obviously subject to the identity declared by them on arrival or during interviews.

PRIVATE GUARDS AND LOCAL WARDENS

Another duty entrusted to the Special Branch is the processing of applications and the licensing of applicants, for the position of Private Guards and Local Wardens and for the registration and licensing of the Agencies which employ such guards and wardens.

1,112 applications for Private Guards were recieved by the Police and 26 for Local Wardens.

COUNTER TERRORISM UNIT

The Counter Terrorism Unit is the police (unit) responsible for the collection, collation, analysis and dissemination of intelligence with a view of combating terrorism, extremism, radicalization, and ancillary matters. The unit is also responsible for investigating related cases. Same unit is the police point of contact with the Cabinet Office on Critical Infrastructure Protection issues. The structure of the Unit is described in Figure 1.

The Unit has been operational since 1st May 2004. Ever since the setting up of this unit several contacts have been established with other foreign services both at EU level and with third country states involved in related activities. This Unit is also required to exchange information and intelligence with local and foreign counter parts, either spontaneously or on the basis of a request for information.

For this purpose the Unit make use of a secure system/network for the efficient exchange of restricted/secret intelligence related to terrorism, security and ancillary matters.

The provision of adequate and relevant training to the staff of the Unit is crucial for the effectiveness of the national systems in place for the combating terrorism. Indeed, the Unit places considerable emphasis on the provision of training to its staff and strongly believes that training is essential for the successful fulfilment of its functions and duties. In 2013 members of

53 the Unit once again participated in various training programmes in both Malta and overseas dealing with a broad spectrum of issues on terrorism, extremism, foreign fighters, CBRN, cyber terrorism and other ancillary matters.

The Unit is also entrusted to assist and continuously supports, security preparations related to VIP’s official visits and major events in Malta.

WEAPONS OFFICE

The Special Branch was also entrusted with issues relating to weapons and explosives. In so far as weapons are concerned, the Weapons Office was responsible for approving import of weapons and the temporary approvals for import/export of weapons for sporting purposes. In view of this activity action was also taken to comply with EU requirements for the movement of firearms within the Union which requirements are also embodied in our laws. The Special Branch was the designated contact point with other European Police Services dealing with the movement of weapons.

The Weapons Office is also responsible to ensure that correct amounts of explosive materials are used at hard stone quarries. To ensure that this activity is well carried out, regular consultation is kept with the Planning Authority. Officers from the Special Branch department were present during all blasting operations carried out in local hard stone quarries or on construction projects requiring the blasting of rocks. They are responsible to escort and control the issue and use of explosives when such operations take place.

AIRPORT POLICE STATION

The Special Branch is also responsible for the public areas at the Malta International Airport. It is also responsible for security of the airside of the airport and for all investigations of incidents reported within the airport area including the cargo areas within the same complex. Such duties are directed by the Officer in charge of the Airport Police Station.

Duties at the station concern normal public order duties, prevention of crime and investigation of offences. For this purpose several inspections and various road blocks are organised. The airport police are also responsible for the running of the custody centre at the MIA.

Various offences relating to traffic contraventions were dealt with and regular patrol is secured at the airport. A number of traffic offence tickets were issued by the airport police.

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS UNIT

Until February 2014 the International Relations Unit (IRU) within the Malta Police was part of the Special Branch. The Unit is now autonomous and falls directly under the charge of the Deputy Commissioner Administration and Security. The function of the IRU is to co-ordinate cooperation between the Malta Police Force and International Law Enforcement Agencies in particular in the field of criminal matters. This co-operation is handled though three channels, namely Interpol, Europol and the SIReNE Office. The operations of these units are described below. Further to this, the IRU also co-ordinates all requests for assistance (Rogatory Letters) received from foreign States through the Chambers of the Attorney General. This Unit also deals with Investigation Requests sent through our most able representative at The Hague .

EUROPOL NATIONAL UNIT

Europol is housed in The Hague and is the European Union’s law enforcement agency whose main goal is to help achieve a safer Europe for the benefit of all EU citizens. We do this by assisting the other European Union’s Member States in their fight against serious international crime and terrorism. Emerging threats are assessed and identified by the OCTA (European Organised Crime Threat Assessment) which forms part of the Europol.

From January 2013 to December 2013, eighty eight incoming requests for mutual assistance in criminal matters have been coordinated by Officers from this Unit and executed by or with the assistance of officers from other Specialised Branches of the Police with whom very close liaison and cooperation exist. The requests involved mainly investigations into various serious crimes and included the delivery of judicial documents. Officers from this Office also assisted other Units with the compilation of outgoing requests for mutual assistance in criminal matters.

During the same period, the Europol National Unit processed over 1000 new Europol case files. Also during 2013 the compliment of officers remained the same despite the ever- increasing work-load and relevance of Europol within the European Police Cooperation scenario.

S.I.Re.N.E Office

During 2013 the number of officers deployed at SIReNE Office (Supplementary Information Request at the National Entries) stood at 16. Thirteen of these officers operate on 24/7 shifts while the others carry out their duties on day shift.

SIReNE staff has continued to support District personnel with problems they encounter whilst entering reports and hits on alerts in the SIS to ensure these comply with data quality criteria. Besides assisting when requested, these officers routinely check the daily reports entered for the very same reasons. Cooperation with PIRS operators continues to be satisfactory.

During 2013, the SIReNE office started using the SIS II and the new SIRENE II case management system which in the coming years will be modified to process Interpol requests. Officers from this Bureau have also actively participated in high-level meetings with other Government Officials and the Italian contractors during the preparatory and implementation phases.

With regards to requests for extradition received via the Schengen Information System (SIS), the SIReNE Office coordinated the arrest and surrender of nine (9) wanted persons to the requesting Schengen States.

More importantly this year The SIReNE Bureau successfully underwent the Schengen SIS SIRENE Evaluation. Very few recommendations were made by the evaluators most of which ask for continued training for end-users and making the domestic application more user- friendly.

INTERPOL OFFICE

The Malta Police Force became part of INTERPOL in the year 1972 as part of the efforts to answer to the international aspects of criminal activities. Until 2004, INTERPOL was the main channel connecting the Malta Police Force to its counterparts abroad. It is the exclusive cooperation centre which links domestic law enforcement partners to the worldwide INTERPOL community.

Located at the General Headquarters in Floriana, the NCB (National Central Bureau) is headed by a Police Inspector in command of five police officers who serve as contact point for all Interpol activities connected to Malta which fall under the direction of the Assistant Commissioner and the Superintendent.

NCB duties include:

- Serving as permanent contact for all Interpol member countries, 24 hours a day.; - Sharing criminal data with local police entities and the Interpol community; - Supporting and helping in the coordination of the international fight against crime, serving as a liaison point between domestic law enforcement agencies and Interpol member countries; - Cooperating with Interpol member countries in investigations or data checks linked to Malta; - Cooperating with Interpol member countries in investigating crime either committed in Malta or by Maltese nationals abroad; - Assisting in the location of fugitives and missing people in Malta and abroad.

DISTRICT POLICING - REGIONS ‘A’ & ‘B’

REGION ‘A’

 435 Searches and 463 suspects were arrested in connection with crimes committed in Region A or elsewhere.  249 Roadblocks and Road Checks along major roads and traffic arteries.  17,951 Tots;  32 Breathalyzer Charges;  80 for breaches of Smoking Regulations.  33 Charges in connection with Prostitution; o 12 Males o 21 Females  4 Charges Auto Dealers;  19 Minors were detected consuming alcohol;  4 Vehicles have been Towed during 2013;  540 Litter act cases.

Inspections in Places of Entertainment and Wines, Beer & Spirit Regulations reached the figure of 6,765 for the past year and 128 charges have been issued for breaches of these regulations.

Night patrols by gazetted officers reached to 266 in Region A. Usually these patrols are carried out on a period of 4 hours and these differ in times between 9 pm and 4 am.

There were 635 major commitments in Reg. A. for the year 2013 such as village feasts, football grounds, water polo games, horse races, parliament and political commitments including the General Election etc. It is enough to say that 433 police personnel from Reg.

A. have been detailed for soccer games during the past year, whilst another 492 police personnel have also been detailed for public order at Paceville, and a further 5,577 for other major commitments.

As regards to Court Sittings the Police at Region A held 119 sittings. A great number of police personnel are always detailed to cover these sittings in court apart from police personnel who attended tribunal sittings. In fact the number of affidavits presented by Region ‘A’ personnel during 2013 has risen to 15,193. Court affidavits amounts to 4,818, plus another 10,375 Tribunal affidavits.

Of course one has to add also the fixed point duties. During the 2013 Reg. A. has detailed 7,942 fixed point duties. These covered the US Embassy, Castille Place, The Attorney General residence, the Hon. Prime Minister’s residence, the Hon. President of Malta and with illegal immigrants at Mater Dei Hospital and Mt Carmel Hospital.

REGION ‘B’

The Divisional Police posted in Region ‘B’ performed the following duties:-

1. 262 searches and 699 arrests of suspects in connection with various crimes committed throughout the Region. 2. 322 roadblocks were effected in major roads and traffic thoroughfares. 3. A grand total of 21416 Tots’ were issued. 4. 35 charges were issued following positive breathalyser tests made. 5. 232 offenders were brought to book for infringements of the smoking regulations. 6. 225 charges were issued in connection with prostitution. 7. No auto dealers were booked for breaches of their licences. 8. 49 shop licensees were charged for permitting minors inside their business outlets. 9. 24 charges were issued for illegal hunting. 10. 82 vehicles were towed by the Police in contravention to tow zones, clearly indicated by appropriate signs.

A total of 5,345 inspections were made in Places of Entertainment during the year 2013, where charges were pressed against offenders for breaching of regulations. Further to, other charges were also issued for other breaches in respect Wines & Spirits Regulations. It is to be observed that the Divisional Police are at a steady pace in order to curb and preferably annihilate such abuses, directing all available resources in trying to achieve the best results.

The number of night patrols performed by Gazetted Officers in Reg B reached 589. These patrols are usually performed between 10 pm and 3 am on a 5 hrs shift. This includes the number of night shifts duties performed by gazetted Officers posted in number 6 and 6A districts, who during every weekend are deployed in supervising Paceville night entertainment. This also includes as additional the Swieqi and Pembroke areas where public disturbance was reported.

There were 204 commitments in the Region B during the year 2013, which varied from village feasts, football, waterpolo games, horse races, political commitments and others which demanded the police presence. To cater for these commitments, 3,335 police officers were detailed for soccer competitions, whilst another 2,119 were detailed for various commitments.

A number of 265 Court divisional sittings, dealing with summary cases throughout the Region B, were held last year. During these sittings a number of Police Officers had to attend these sessions. This does not include another number of Police Officers which were detailed to attend Tribunal Sittings. It is to be noted that since the introduction of sworn affidavits, the number of Police Officers attending for Court and Tribunal Sittings, decreased substantially. It is worth mentioning that during 2013 no less than 10,053 of affidavits were presented during tribunal sittings, whilst another 4,074 affidavits were presented during Divisional Court Sittings.

Indeed one has also to include the number of Police Officers detailed to perform fixed point duties with Embassies and VIP's.

This amounted to 7,735 officers deployed for such duties.

PROJECTS/EVALUATIONS

One of the main issues put on top of the agenda and submitted to all Supt’s in charge districts within the region was, in giving more attention towards the victims of crime especially the elderly. In reaching this aim, a number of meetings were organized in which victims of crime were addressed, informing them that their reports are still under police investigations and never left aside. So was the interest in increasing observations and patrol in their localities. Further to, and without placing pressure on these persons, they were all addressed and directed of how to better reach the police in passing information on crime observed or on any update on their crime.. Meetings in mention were held either at Local Councils, Day Care Centres or at police stations

Another issue dealt with was in increasing foot patrol. Pressure was placed on all Supt’s in charge all districts, directing them to place all efforts on the issue and to secure that foot patrol in all and each corner within their districts is carried out. Supt’s were also continuously directed to press on all their subordinates in understanding such duty and to monitor same 24 x 7. Superintendents were also directed to also include districts drivers to fill such a task.

Further measures taken in strengthening supervision and better hands on districts was in having gazetted officers be deployed during night time i.e. between 22:00 Hrs till 03:00 Hrs Sergeant Majors posted in all districts are also being deployed to assist. At this level and with the recent increase of Inspectors in each police district, better night patrol was affected.

Considering that Gozo district also falls under same region, particular attention is being given to this district, where gazetted officers i.c. thereat are being directed of how to increase efforts in community policing, together with of how to direct their subordinates in increasing their self-esteem. Besides, together with gazetted officers better attention is being given on all major events taking place in Gozo, directing them that same are to be covered only by personnel posted in Gozo without the need of additional personnel from Malta.

During the previous year better monitoring was also registered at football grounds where deployment of members and security measures taken stands.

RESPITE WARRANTS EXECUTED BY THE DISTRICT POLICE

Tickets of Admission collected & executed during 2013

Fines collected in respect of Respite Warrants

Number of Police Amount respite District collected warrants 1 78 21927.91 2 243 69866.19 3 138 33610.01 4 174 47657.20 5 116 38239.11 5A 66 26750.70 6 126 32095.13 6A 175 55875.28 7 201 65208.51 8 316 94621.74 9 93 63067.10 9A 183 48162.53 10 58 5998.38 Total 1967 603, 079.79

Fines not paid and respite warrant executed

Number of Police respite District warrants 1 30 2 26 3 39 4 34 5 16 5A 1328 6 15 6A 43 7 28 8 24 9 55 10 4 Total 355

PETER PAUL ZAMMIT Commissioner of Police

OFFICE OF THE MANAGER OF AIRPORT SECURITY (OMAS)

OMAS is the regulatory body for aviation security in Malta, as defined in Chapter 405 of the Laws of Malta, Airports and Civil Aviation (Security) Act 1998.

OMAS is recognized as the Appropriate Authority for aviation security at international and regional level by the following:  International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) under the auspices of the United Nations (UN);  European Commission (EC);  European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC).

In view of its responsibilities as the regulator in the field of aviation security, during the year 2013, OMAS pursued the following specific initiatives, apart from the ongoing administrative tasks related to its function:

Processing of Aviation Security Passes

In the period under review, OMAS processed 966 applications for aviation security passes originating from employees of stakeholders in the aviation industry. The number of active passes at the end of the year approached the 4,700 mark.

New application form and seminars for stakeholders

Due to the increase in the number of applications for an Aviation Security Pass being received as well as the need to collect more detailed personal information from applicants in line with the relevant regulations, OMAS introduced a new unified security pass application form in the summer. Ahead of the expected renewal of a large number of security passes next year, this office organised a series of 8 seminars for authorised signatories so as to facilitate the correct filling up of the new application form by new applicants.

Aviation Security Pass and basic training audit

An audit exercise on all pass holders was conducted with the specific aims of confirming that pass holders indeed still require use of their aviation security pass and that pass holders are up-to-date with their recurrent and relevant security training.

Approval of new Civil Aviation Security Training Programme

The newly-appointed Aviation Security Committee approved a new National Civil Aviation Security Training Programme (CASTP) in December. The CASTP is now in its fifth iteration.

Inspections on behalf of European Commission and ECAC

As the recognised authority for aviation security for Malta, OMAS is also required to take part in inspections and audits in other European countries. OMAS inspectors and auditors took part in three such activities in the period under review as follows:

Airport inspection in Portugal (European Commission) Airport audit in Poland (ECAC) Airport inspection in Bulgaria (European Commission)

Appropriate Authority inspection by the European Commission

A team of inspectors from the European Commission carried out a week-long inspection on OMAS operations and standards in May. The issues raised in the Commission’s formal report were addressed swiftly and the EC subsequently communicated that the file in relation to the inspection has been closed.

Monitoring activities and Quality Control

As the regulatory body responsible for aviation security in Malta, in the period under review OMAS conducted the following inspections on stakeholders categorised according to the relevant chapter of the National Civil Aviation Security Program (NCASP) and the corresponding EC regulations, decisions and directives.

Chapter 1 - Airport Security 11 inspections Chapter 3 - Aircraft Security 9 inspections Chapter 4 - Passengers and Cabin Baggage 8 inspections Chapter 5 - Hold Baggage 1 inspection Chapter 6 - Cargo and Mail 26 inspections Chapter 8 – In-flight Supplies 1 inspection Chapter 9 - Airport Supplies 9 inspections Chapter 12 - Security Equipment 4 inspections

MARIO BUGEJA Manager Airport Security

DETENTION SERVICE

General

During the year under review 2008 immigrants arrived over a period of eight months, mostly originating from Somalia and Eritrea while the rest were from West African countries.

The arrivals this year were characterized by a large number of immigrants who were claiming to be minors.

The Detention Service

The Detention Service was established on 18th August 2005. It is made up of personnel seconded from the Armed Forces of Malta and Detention Service Officers under one Command.

The Mission Statement of the Detention Service is to provide custody in as humane a way as possible of those persons declared as irregular immigrants on arrival until such time that they are granted freedom of movement, i.e. Refugee or Humanitarian Status, or freed without their case being resolved, or repatriated.

Tasks of the Detention Service

To achieve its mission, the Detention Service is tasked with the security and general administration of Closed Centres while providing:

. Adequate accommodation, including the necessary sanitary facilities . Basic needs, such as food, clothing, hygiene and safe environment . Access to medical care . Access to the asylum system i.e. Commissioner for Refugees . Access to Non Governmental Organisations . Means of contacting home or their country representative in Malta

At the beginning of 2013 there were 488 immigrants in both detention centres. This number increased to 2008 by end of October 2013. A large number the new arrivals were granted some form of protection and were subsequently released early. As a result, by the end of the year there were 431 irregular immigrants in detention, the majority of who were failed asylum seekers.

Projects Co-Financed Under The European Refugee Fund

A number of projects were co-financed under the ERF and included the erection of new fencing around the Lyster Detention Centre, refurbishment of all accommodation areas in both centres, purchase of a large number of mattresses and footwear, meals and food supplies for all immigrants and the provision of medical services within the Detention Centres.

Mobile X-Ray Unit

In order to provide immediate screening of detainees upon arrival and before release from detention, the Ministry of Health installed an X-Ray Unit at Lyster Detention Centre and a number of Isolation Units in both centres.

MARIO SCHEMBRI Head (Operations) Detention Service

IDENTITY MANAGEMENT AGENCY– TASK FORCE E-ID

The Task Force responsible for bringing the e-ID cards project to fruition was constituted during 2013. The Task Force brought together representatives from the Land & Public Registry Division, the IDMO, the Electoral Office and MITA. The Task Force was responsible for ironing out and resolving the difficulties that prevailed as at the time of its constitution. The work carried out up till the end of 2013 may be evidenced by the rollout process which kicked off during 2014.

The Task Force also produced a number of policies which were endorsed by the Ministry. These included:

1. the dovetailing of the e-ID card rollout with the absorption of the Kartanzjan and the facilitation of the renewal process for the elderly; 2. policy options regarding the e-Residence rollout in order to bring EU nationals more in line with the Maltese e-ID card; 3. the resolution of the use of titles on the new e-ID cards; 4. a road map for the e-ID rollout process.

To this effect, the TFEID conducted a number of meetings with key stakeholders and the supplier of the system. This meant:

. 23 meetings of the Task Force; . 8 meetings of the Rollout Team subgroup; . 10 meetings of the Board of Review with the contractor; . 2 meetings with the Electoral Commission . Meeting with the Commissioner of Police.

In addition, the Chair TFEID and his team, as distinct from the TFEID itself, also developed a policy on street naming and door numbering which, in its transformation to the Office of the Regulator of the Individual Investor Programme, will also be acting in an advisory capacity to the Electoral Commission discussing issues which relate to the implication of the e-ID card project on the electoral voting system.

It is now envisaged that the TFEID will no longer be required as implementation issues are being handled by the IDMO. To this effect the structure assigned to the Chair TFEID will be transformed into the Office of the Regulator – Individual Investor Programme under the provisions of the Maltese Citizenship Act. This will consolidate upon the experience of the TFEID on citizenship and identity matters.

DR GODWIN GRIMA Chairman

DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONAL SERVICES

In the year under review, the Department of Correctional Services underwent significant restructuring. Such restructuring resulted in improved security operations and procedures as well as the relocation of the young offenders’ division from the main prison compound in Kordin to Mtaħleb. Various projects, such as the building of a new playroom for children visiting their parents at Corradino Correctional Facility (CCF), the building of a music room, and the refurbishment of the Debtors area, were undertaken and completed. The process for the tender for nursing Services at CCF was also given priority and a new contract commenced in November 2013. In 2013, the first inmates were released on parole through the Restorative Justice Act.

The Department of Correctional Services incorporates the following sections: medical services, psychological services, spiritual services, educational services, social work services and other services that are not housed within the CCF precinct. These include the Young Offenders Unit of Rehabilitation Services (YOURS), which relocated to Mtaħleb in November 2013, and the Forensic Unit for psychiatric and mental health services annexed to Mt Carmel Hospital. The total number of personnel at the Department of Correctional Services as at 31 December 2013 was of 202. The correctional staff comprised of 183 officers whereas the inmate population was of 620.

Care and Reintegration Unit

During the period under review, the Care and Reintegration Unit (CRU) embarked on new initiatives. Meetings between different stakeholders within the CRU itself started being held every two weeks. Such meetings entail the discussion of inmates’ care plans in relation to Parole applications. Resulting from such efforts, on 13 September 2013, the first inmates were released on Parole.

Various meetings were held between the Employment and Training Corporation (ETC) and Life Long Learning with the ultimate aim of increasing the number of courses offered to inmates. A further important undertaking was the publication of a magazine, which though subject to security clearance from CCF authorities, was the work of inmates within the said facility. Moreover, drama activities were organised through which inmates were given the opportunity to express themselves while interacting with the community outside.

The Care and Reintegration Unit has also played an integral part in two projects financed by the European Union, both of which addressed the development of various capabilities pertaining to the inmate population.

Operations

Various projects related to the infrastructural needs of CCF were carried out during the period under review, namely:  the replacement of the Gate-House motors;  the refurbishment of the Adult Visiting Section;  the Music Room;  the restructuring of the common room into a Dormitory at Division 1;  the restructuring of the SRT room at the Main Gate into the Lawyers’ Offices; and  the refurbishment of SATU.

Other infrastructural projects within the unit were initiated, namely

 the organisation of the Division 2 project, which project did not reach completion; and  the design and coordination of the Playroom at CCF. The operational section was also involved in a number of ancillary tasks at CCF, such as the coordination of food provision with an external provider, the setting up of the first correctional officer toxicology testing, as well as overseeing the Playmobil Work Distribution at CCF.

The operations section was also involved in the Energy Efficiency in Correctional Institutions project, which is an EU project targeted at making CCF more energy efficient. In this respect, one of the main activities organised throughout 2013 was the provision of a training course on energy efficiency to all the correctional workforce.

Young Offenders Unit of Rehabilitation Services

The Young Offenders Unit of Rehabilitation Services (YOURS) was relocated to Mtahleb in the final quarter of 2013, and for the initial months, the division was still finalising the remaining works needed to change the SATU unit into one secure enough and adequate for the needs of young inmates. These works involved:

 getting the MEPA permits to raise the boundary wall and actually oversee the works related to this task (finished by 2013);  re-organising the kitchen;  cleaning the premises;  setting up a clinic;  ensuring that the requirements regarding the restructuring of the gym were adhered to;

Following the relocation, work started being carried out on securing the new operational programme for the division in line with the requirements of the New YOURS project. Various contacts have been secured in order to ensure a varied educational and psycho-social provision of the unit. Additionally, the following activities were also carried out:  new arrangements for the SMOM mentors have been made;  the provision of counselling students for the whole of CCF, with 3 of these students being dedicated to YOURS;  so far, the provision of 2 teachers and the beginning of the educational assessments of the inmates.  The termination of the Żveljarin Bla Ħin Project (August 2013) and the beginning of the Pass the Parcel Project (October 2013) both with St James Cavalier Centre for Creativity;

Security

During the second half of the year under review, various projects were undertaken by the new security coordinator at the Department of Correctional Services. The following include some of the work carried out within the security remit:  New security cameras were installed: These cameras are in HD and cover the contact and non-contact visit areas. Also a wall was constructed to include a metal door as the entry point for all inmates going into the visit area. Anti-climb fencing and razor ribbon were added for increased security.  Works at YOURS Imtaħleb Unit: The Electric fence securing the interior yard has been repaired. The height of the perimeter wall needed to be extended and is now

complete giving the ability to determine placement of exterior security cameras. Interior security cameras were also installed giving the officers the ability to closely monitor inmate movement within the unit. New flood lights were added to increase visibility at night to help identify any potential dangers to those officers while conducting night duties.  Works at CCF’s main facility: Old security cameras were replaced for increased security. Plans for the replacement of cameras displaying black and white images were also drafted. Razor ribbon has also been reinforced in areas of the perimeter wall. Policies and procedures regarding security operations have also been implemented which are concentrated mainly on interior/exterior patrolling, inmate searches, cell searches, vehicle searches, inmate movement within the facility etc.  Special Response Team (SRT): A standardised physical fitness test was established and implemented for newly transferred officers into the special response team. This requires every member must maintain a strong physical and mental proficiency level to be able to remain on the team. An audit was conducted on all SRT equipment to check its reliability and effectiveness. Random searches and surprise inspections have also been introduced resulting in more illegal items being seized and reducing the inmate’s ability to smuggle drugs into the prison.

The Chaplaincy

During the year under review, spiritual and social acivities were organised by the Chaplaincy. These include the spiritual exercises during lent and collaborations with Christ the King Parish and Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Paola. For Mother’s day, Mass was celebrated in the main chapel and a tablet was given to a boy suffering from cancer. The money for this tablet was collected by inmates.

Other events organised by the Chaplaincy included:  an awards giving event during which, officers, prisoners and sponsors who contributed for the success of events held, were acknowledged.  a football tournament was organised in the prison football pitch. Teams made up of inmates, a team of officers and some teams from different localities particpated in the tournament.  a Maraton was organised to collect money for the RISe Foundation. About 40 inmates took part in this event.

Education

During the period under review, the Education Centre at CCF offered lessons to inmates in various subjects, including English, Maltese, Italian, Computer Awareness, ECDL, Accounts, Drama and Pottery. Lessons were delivered by a number of part-time teachers and two volunteers A group of inmates also worked in a workshop, producing high-quality souvenirs of Malta. In the final part of the last quarter of 2013, a new Head for Education Services was appointed.

Statistical Report 2013

The prison inmate population reached the highest record during the year under review. On 5 February 2013 the facility population soared to 643 inmates (sentenced and awating trail).

Chart 1 below shows a graphical illustration of the montly prisoner population during 2013.

Monthly Population

During 2013, the turnover of prison inmates was of 670, of whom 288 were sentenced prisoners and 382 under arrest. Tables 1 to 3 below a breakdown of prisoners in terms of sex, crimes committed and nationality.

Table 1: Prisoners entering CCF during 2013 Sentenced Total Arrested Total Maltese Males 187 Maltese Males 179 Maltese Females 26 Maltese Females 21 Foreign Males 72 Foreign Males 170 Foreign Females 3 Foreign Females 12 TOTAL 288 TOTAL 382

N.B. A prisoner may be listed on two different types Table 2: Sentenced prisoners categorised according to crime* Type of Crime Total Aggravated Theft 164 Arson 1 Attempted Homicide 5 Breach conditions of bail 27 Breach of Probation 6 Breach of suspended sentence 4 Conspiracy in drug trafficking 12

Contempt of Court 12 Conversion of VAT fine 5 Conversion of Court Fine 151 Copyright theft 1 Court order 1 Cruelty on animals 1 Cultivation of drugs 3 Defilement of minor/s 6 Domestic Violence 2 Earned Money from Prostitution 3 Escape from Police Custody 14 Evasion of Duty 1 Extradition order 3 Failed to give surety money to his wife 20 Falsification/Fraud 30 Grievous Bodily Harm 14 Grievous Injuries followed by death 1 Harassment 2 Harbouring of wanted persons 1 Human Trafficking 5 Illegal Arrest 1 Illegal Hunting 1 Importation of drugs 7 Landed or was in Malta w/o leave from the PIO 5 Misappropriation 2 Organized Crime 1 Possession and Trafficking of Drugs 44 Possession of Drugs 18 Possession of drugs with intent to supply 1 Possession of explosive material w/o license 1 Possession of False Passport 34 Possession of Firearm 1 Possession of Pornographic material of children under age 1 Rape 2 Received stolen articles 6 Slight Injuries 5 Threats 20 Traffic Offences 4 Traffic Offences 4 Trafficking of Drugs 2 Violence against Police Officers 5 Violent Indecent Assault 3 Voluntary Damages 4 Wilful Damages 1 Wilful Homicide 1 Total 669

*The list includes also those prisoners who were kept under arrest at CCF before 2012 and who were sentenced during 2013.

Table 3: Prisoners who were admitted to CCF in 2013 according to nationality Nationality Total Algerian 2 American 2 Armenian 1 British 6 Bulgarian 4 Chinese 3 Colombian 2 Congo 2 Czech 1 Danish 1 Dutch 3 Egyptian 17 Eritrean 4 Ethiopian 2 French 2 German 2 Ghanaian 2 Hungarian 2 Iranian 2 Iraqi 1 Italian 12 Ivorian 2 Jordanian 1 Libyan 30 Malian 11 Maltese 413 Moroccan 2 Niger 6 Nigerian 14 Pakistani 1 Palestinian 8 Panamean 1 Polish 1 Portuguese 1 Romanian 9 Russian 2 Senegalese 1 Serbian 2 Somali 73 Spanish 1 Sudanese 4

Swedish 1 Syrian 6 Tunisian 6 Turkish 1 Grand Total 670

Note: an individual may have been admitted more than once

RAYMOND G. ZAMMIT A/Director Correctional Services

DEPARTMENT OF PROBATION AND PAROLE

Mission Statement

The Mission Statement of the Department is: “To help ensure social stability by contributing to minimise the frequency of crime for more public protection and by ensuring the re-integration of offenders. To ensure that the services offered address the needs of the criminal justice system in line with the principles of restorative justice.” Functions and responsibilities of the DPP

The main functions and responsibilities of the DPP emanate from the Probation Act (Cap. 446) and the Restorative Justice Act (Cap. 516).

DPP Business Plan

In 2013 all the objectives planned for the year 2012 were achieved. The DPP had set up 2 new units.  The Parole Unit The main task of the Parole Unit is to compile Parole reports for the Parole Board upon the inmate’s application for Parole. During 2013 the Unit compiled its first parole reports and in September 2013 the Unit commenced supervising inmates on a Parole Licence.  The Victim Support Unit The role of the VSU is to contact victims of parole applicants. In 2013 a total of 276 victims were identified – the first applications were received in March 2013. All these victims were contacted and invited to give their views on granting Parole to the applicants. A further 23 applications were received where no specific victims are identified “victimless crime”.

Interviews can be conducted face to face/via telephone or e-mail. The Liaison Officer provides recommendations to the Parole Board after analysing reports completed by VSOs.

A Victims’ Register has been set up as per requirements of the Restorative Justice Act. Cases received are being logged on promptly in the register. The Unit’s top priority is to ensure that victims do not come into contact with offenders (who come into the DPP’s offices for their appointments with their respective Probation Officers) and avoid secondary victimisation.

In-house training

In 2013, the DPP focused on in-house training in order to enhance the working skills of staff. Training given dealt with mental health, life skills, cybercrime, mediation, interpersonal skills, and coping with change. The objective behind this training was geared towards strengthening teamwork and teambuilding.

Cooperation and networking with local organisations

Year after year the DPP continues to strengthen networking with other entities within the criminal justice system such as the Courts, the Police, Prison, Sedqa, Caritas, Oasi, Appoġġ, Housing, Health and Mental Health professionals, amongst others. Networking is a top priority tool at both the pre-sentencing as well as the post-sentencing stage in the daily work of a Probation Officer.

Cooperation and networking with foreign organisations

The DPP strengthened its ties with foreign organisations and peers, in particular with the European Organisation for Probation (CEP) whilst establishing new contacts and cooperation arrangements with other organisations working in the field of criminal justice system

Staff Appointed as Members in Offender Assessment Board and Parole Board

In 2013 the MHAS set up two important boards within the Restorative Justice System. Members of staff from the DPP were appointed as members on these boards together with other professionals whose expertise lies within the rehabilitation of the offender.

Participation in EU Programmes

Following last year’s participation the DPP continued to collaborate with local stakeholders in STREAM – Strategic Targeting of Recidivism through Evaluation and Monitoring, managed by the United Kingdom’s National Offender Management Service. Adding to this the DPP participated in the COST Action project and ISTEP Final Conference. Also in 2013, 15 Probation Officers, 1 Psychologist, 1 Senior Probation Officer and 1 Asst Dir participated in the NewBe Project held in Trapani, Italy. (EU Project) The department also participated in other EU programmes as a partner. These programmes mainly deal with networking, research and sharing of experiences.

A Course for Offenders

In 2013, the DPP, in collaboration with Mid-Dlam għad-Dawl, continued running a Life Skills course for offenders. The course carries a Level 1 accreditation and focuses on five modules, namely, Assertiveness; Thoughts, Feelings and Actions; Attitudes; Relationships; and Employment. At the end of course a certificate of participation and attendance is given to all participants.

Statistical data

During 2013, the DPP received a total of 651 new cases from the Courts of Law of Malta and Gozo, Parole Board (Parole Licence) and Parole Clerk (Parole reports). A slight increase in the number of Probation Orders and Report writing (PSRs, SIRs and Verbal Reports) has been noted. (Refer to Table 1).

On 31st December 2013, the DPP was handling a total of 969 active cases.

Chart 1 Break-down of Cases Issued between January - December 2013

350 Provisional Orders of Supervision 309 300 Pre Sentence / Social Inquiry Reports / Verbal Reports 250 Probation Orders

200 Suspended Sentences

Community Service Orders 150 121

NumberCases of Combination Orders 100 93

52 Parole Reports 50 40 22 10 4 Parole Licences 0

Further increases in cases were registered with reference to Provisional Orders of Supervision; Report writing (PSRs, SIRs and VRs) and Combination Orders. Adding to this data, the DPP introduced new services which include Parole Reports and Parole Licences.

The DPP database reveals that offenders come in contact with this Department for various offences (Refer to Chart 2). The predominant offence proved to be theft, as has been the case in previous years. 224 theft cases were referred to DPP and this figure showed an increase when compared to 2012.

Chart 2

Type of Offence January 2013 - December 2013

250

224 Illegal Substances Drug Trafficking 200 Sexual Offence Aggravated Theft Theft Possession of Indecent Video Recordnig/Images Fraud 150 Assault/Grevious Body Harm Corruption of Minor Domestic Violence Lodged a False Report Traffic Offence 100

Harrasment NumberCases of Loitering / Prostitution 70 Voluntary Damage Attempted Homicide 52 55 54 50 Human Trafficking Other 32 31 25 24 Unknown 19 14 11 10 6 7 5 2 5 5 0

In terms of gender distribution, the number of females stood at 92 while the number of males stood at 559. Females constituted 14% of the entire case load during 2013. (Refer Chart 3) Chart 3

Gender Distribution January 2013 - December 2013

Females 92 Males 559

The age distribution graph (Refer to Chart 4) for the year 2013 showed that the highest proportion of offenders who benefitted from DPP services fell in the 25 to 29 years age bracket. This constituted 19% of the total case load for the year under review. Sharp increases were also noted in the following age groups 15 to 19 which almost doubled and the over 50 age group. A significant decrease was registered in the age group 20 to 24 whilst the 10 to 14 year age group remained stable.

Chart 4

Age Distribution January 2013 - December 2013

140

123 120 115

100 94 10 - 14 15 - 19 20 - 24 80 77 76 25 - 29 69 30 - 34 60 35 - 39 49 40 - 44

Number of Cases of Number 45 - 49 40 32 50 +

20 16

0 1

Compared with 2012, 2013 indicates that there has been an increase in cases in Regions 10 and 12, on the other hand a decrease in cases has been registered in Regions 1, 3, and 7.

Referring to Table 5, with regards to locality in 2013, San Gwann (Region 9) yielded the highest percentage of probation cases followed by Qormi (Region 6) and Cospicua (Region 2).

Table 5 Region 1 Region 2 Region 3 Region 4

Valletta 15 Vittoriosa 8 Zabbar 24 Tarxien 8 Floriana 10 Senglea 11 Zejtun 13 Marsa 8 Hamrun 19 Cospicua 27 Marsaskala 8 Paola 16 Pieta 2 Fgura 12 Bir id-Deheb 0 Santa Lucia 4 St Thomas G'Mangia 0 Kalkara 6 Bay 0 Xghajra 1 Total 46 Total 65 Total 45 Total 36 Region 5 Region 6 Region 7 Region 8

Birzebbuga 14 Qormi 29 Mdina 0 Balzan 1 Ghaxaq 3 Kirkop 3 Zebbug 2 Birkirkara 22 Marsaxlokk 2 Luqa 3 Siggiewi 5 Iklin 1 Mqabba 1 Santa Venera 7 Attard 6 Lija 1 Qrendi 1 Dingli 1 Swatar 0 Safi 4 Zurrieq 7 Gudja 1 Total 33 Total 42 Total 14 Total 25 Region 9 Region 10 Region 11 Region 12

Bahar ic- Gzira 17 Caghaq 0 Mosta 10 Bugibba 1 Msida 7 Ibragg 0 Mtarfa 0 Gharghur 3 San Gwann 30 Paceville 1 Rabat 26 Mellieha 5 Kappara 0 Pembroke 8 Burmarrad 0 Mgarr 3 Ta' Xbiex 3 San Giljan 14 Bahrija 0 Naxxar 9 Sliema 16 Qawra 1 San Pawl il- Swieqi 4 Bahar 22 Ta' Giorni 6 Xemxija 1 St Andrews 0 Madliena 0 Total 57 Total 49 Total 36 Total 45 Region 13 Corradino Hal Far

Correctional Open Centre 1 Gozo 38 Facility 100 Hal Safi Total 38 Unknown 18 Barracks 2

MIRIAM SEVASTA Principal Probation Officer Department of Probation and Parole

DEPARTMENT OF CITIZENSHIP AND EXPATRIATES AFFAIRS

The Department’s main function is to administer and implement the provisions of the Citizenship and Immigration legislation and relative policies. In undertaking the relative tasks in order to carry out the said function the Department, during the year under review, continued to play a significant role in the management of the legal migration process in Malta and provide the services related to Maltese citizenship matters. Since October 2013, the Department became part of Identity Malta Agency.

Citizenship

1989 marked a significant landmark in the development of Maltese Citizenship legislation as a result of the relative amendments to the Maltese Constitution and the Maltese Citizenship Act. The concept of dual citizenship was introduced - Maltese migrants became entitled to hold dual citizenship, provided that certain conditions were satisfied. As from 1 August 1989, it became possible for Maltese mothers to transmit Maltese citizenship, if their children were born abroad, and from such date also Maltese citizenship would no longer be acquired by mere birth in Malta. During the following two decades further amendments to such legislation, continued to enhance a liberal approach in matters concerning citizenship. The amended or newly introduced provisions of the Maltese Citizenship Act (Cap 188) now cater for:

• the right to spouses of Maltese nationals to acquire Maltese citizenship, which right is not subject to residence conditions in Malta (prior to 1989 only the wife of a Maltese national enjoyed such right); • the concept of dual citizenship being the rule and not the exception; • Maltese migrants, who were deemed to have lost their Maltese citizenship when they acquired the citizenship of their country of emigration, re-acquired their Maltese citizenship automatically or they could do so by means of registration; • the right to such dual citizenship was extended to first and subsequent generations of Maltese born abroad; and • the acquisition of Maltese citizenship by persons born abroad, who are of Maltese descent, consists of a mere formality.

As a result of the said amendments, children born outside Malta, prior to Independence, of mothers who were born in Malta and who became citizens of Malta on 21st September 1964, as well as second and subsequent generations of Maltese migrants, who were born abroad, became eligible to acquire Maltese citizenship by registration, that is, as of right, following the submission of the relative application. The majority of such applications were received from the Australian continent, as well as from persons residing in the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States of America and South Africa.

The Department continued to receive applications from spouses of citizens of Malta for registration, applications for naturalization from foreigners who had resided in Malta for a considerable number of years, and requests for the confirmation of the right of persons possessing Maltese nationality to hold dual/multiple citizenship, provided mainly the rest of the inflow of work.

In 2013, amendments were made to the Maltese Citizenship Act through Act XV of 2013, which introduced the possibility of persons to be granted Maltese citizenship by naturalisation when such persons become eligible under the Individual Investor Programme.

Migration (expatriates)

The Department is involved in the management of the migration process through its role in the issue of residence documentation to the majority of the different categories of foreigners who are authorised to reside in Malta. Such tasks entail the implementation of the provisions of national immigration legislation and policies and the Acquis Communautaire in this field.

The purpose of the stay for which the persons concerned have been authorized to reside in Malta varies according to the relative authorisation. Amongst others, such purpose could be work, study, family formation, long term residence or an inherent right in the case of spouses and dependents of Maltese nationals. The relative authorisation is granted on the basis of legislation provided for in the Immigration Act (Cap 217) and subsidiary legislation and current policy.

European Union directives dealing with migration issues such as the admittance of third country nationals for the purpose of study, family reunification, research and long term residence and highly qualified employment have been transposed into Maltese legislation and thus continued to provide the Department with the tools for the management of Malta’s legal migration process. In this regard the Department, together with the EU Affairs Directorate of the Ministry for Home Affairs and National Security, commenced the task of preparing legislation to transpose the provisions of Directive 2011/51/EU Directive 2011/51/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2011 amending Council Directive 2003/109/EC to extend its scope to beneficiaries of international protection Text with EEA relevance which would be amending Subsidiary Legislation 217.05 Status of Long Term Residents (Third Country Nationals Regulations and the provisions of Directive 2011/98/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13th December 2011 on a single application procedure for a single permit for third-country nationals to reside and work in the territory of a Member State and on a common set of rights for third-country workers legally residing in a Member State).

During 2013, the Department started issuing residence documents in plastic card format for both EU/EEA/Swiss nationals and members of their families as well as Third Country Nationals. The new documents replaced the previous residence documentation issued in sticker format. Residence documents are of special relevance to its holders because they entitle them to enter, travel in and exit Schengen territory without the requirement of a visa. Moreover following the publication of the Identity Card and other Identity Documents Act Order, 2012 (LN 308 if 2012) the new residence document is also considered an identification document replacing the document previously issued by the Identity Cards Office and in addition to the traditional identification features, also includes an electronic component which will eventually allow the user to access an array of electronic services provided by the Government and other parties. Such system has been developed in providing statistical information which the EU regulation on migration statistics makes it mandatory for Malta to provide to the EU.

As from 2013, all persons who enjoy national and international protection, not only those who are in possession of a travelling document, are entitled to apply for a residence permit at the Department as soon as such protection is granted. During the year under review, 3,273 persons enjoying such international protection were issued with a residence permit by the Department.

EU/EEA/Swiss nationals and their family members, who, in Malta, are in the exercise of any of their Treaty Rights as workers, self-employed persons, economically self-sufficient persons or students, are required, in accordance with both EU and national legislation, to register their residence in Malta. EU/EEA/Swiss nationals and members of their families

78 were given the option to submit their application for a registration certificate/residence card by post. This was introduced in the beginning of May 2013 in order to reduce the number of persons calling at the Department and to minimize waiting time to submit an application. In 2013, 8,346 residence documents were issued to EU/EEA and Swiss nationals as well as members of their family.

In 2013, 13,803 permits were issued to Third Country Nationals on the basis of employment, exempt person, study, family members and temporary stays, amongst other.

During the year under review, the Department continued to give a one-stop shop service to persons entitled to hold exempt person status/freedom of movement, that is, the foreign spouses of citizens of Malta and their dependents. Since this service started being provided, persons concerned are no longer required to call at the Police Immigration Office to have their passports stamped with the relative endorsement that reflect such immigration position, but are instead issued with a residence document in the abovementioned format in order to facilitate their movements in the Schengen territory.

The Department’s function requires the support of the Police Immigration Office, with whom it continued to cooperate in full during 2013, especially to vet applications from a security point of view and to curb abuse, where this emerges, when processing applications for citizenship and the issue of residence permits. The Department also maintained constant interface with the Employment and Training Corporation and the Department for Social Security vis-à-vis their role in the migration process as well as the Attorney General when the Department’s decisions, even in the case of citizenship matters, are challenged in our Courts and the Immigration Appeals.

The department’s activities in 2013

Implementation of the Single Permit Directive

The implementation of the above-mentioned directive 2011/98 regarding the single application procedure for a work/residence permit will present new challenges to the Department in view that new processes for the submission of applications for employment licences and residence permits would have to be established in accordance with the provisions of the said directive. To this end the Department will continue to hold meetings with EU Affairs Director, MHAS and ETC with regards to the implementation of the Single Permit Directive. The legislation has been prepared and is being discussed with the authorities involved in the implementation.

Outreach Services by the Department

In 2013 the Department started offering outreach services principally in respect of persons enjoying international protection, language students and University students. Department’s personnel received applications on a weekly basis from the following three locations: Office of the Refugee Commissioner, AWAS office in Floriana and Closed Centres. This has improved the service being offered to such persons and is ensuring that persons who have just been released from detention and those persons who had a previous appointment are provided with a residence document as early as possible. Such service has also been extended to the University of Feltom in respect of students. The Department will continue its outreach services.

Completion of EU Funded Project

During 2013, the Department continued the implementation of the EU funded project, started in 2012, to provide training to staff regarding integration measures. A number of seminars

79 were held in this regard, whereby speakers from other Member States and local speakers were invited to give presentation on integration issues. Part of the project also consisted in the publication of a leaflet with useful information for Third Country Nationals. The leaflet was published in English, Arabic and Chinese and copies were available from the premises of the Department.

Relocation of the Department to Evans Building

During 2013, the Department moved to larger and newly refurbished premises in Evans Building, Valletta which is better equipped to receive foreign nationals applying for Citizenship or residence documentation.

Extension of the Service to Gozo

In 2013 the Department also started offering its service related to the receipt of residence permit applications in Gozo making it easier for Gozo foreign residents to apply and collect residence documents from Gozo. It is expected that in the coming months the Gozo office will also take on back office functions of the Department in relation to applications submitted by both EU nationals and Third Country Nationals.

EU Related Matters

Currently three proposals concerning migration are being discussed in the relevant working committees of the Council and the Department is contributing to the input required in the examination. The said proposals deal with

 a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the conditions of entry and residence of third-country nationals for the purposes of seasonal employment;

 Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on conditions of entry and residence of third-country nationals in the framework of an intra- corporate transfer  Recast proposed Directive on Third-country nationals: conditions of entry and residence for the purposes of research, studies, pupil exchange, training, voluntary service and au pairing repealing Directive 2004/114/EC and Directive 2005/71/EC

It is expected that Directive 2011/51/EUDirective 2011/51/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11th May 2011 amending Council Directive 2003/109/EC to extend its scope to beneficiaries of international protection Text with EEA relevance would be transposed into Maltese legislation by early next year and Directive 2011/98/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13th December 2011 on a single application procedure for a single permit for third-country nationals to reside and work in the territory of a Member State and on a common set of rights for third-country workers legally residing in a Member State, will be implemented in the coming months.

Statistical Information

Nationality

The Department continued to deal with enquiries regarding the national status of both Maltese and non- Maltese citizens and with applications for the acquisition of the citizenship of Malta under the provisions of the Maltese Citizenship Act (Cap 188). During the year, 945

80 persons were registered as citizens of Malta whilst 130 others were naturalised as citizens of Malta, as shown in Appendices A and B.

Applications for naturalisation made under the Maltese Citizenship Act (Cap 188) are considered in the light of the established Citizenship Guidelines for the grant (or refusal) of citizenship.

The number of persons who acquired Maltese citizenship during the past five years is as follows:

Year Registration Naturalisation Total

Registration Naturalisation Total 2008 594 50 644 2009 745 74 819 2010 863 81 944 2011 988 92 1080 2012 954 162 1116 2013 945 130 1075

Dual Nationality

During the year, the Department continued to deal with quite a number of enquiries concerning dual citizenship. Former Maltese citizens, who have resided abroad for more than six years, may hold dual nationality, provided the relative conditions laid down in the Maltese Citizenship Act are satisfied.

Expatriates

Persons who enjoy ‘Freedom of Movement’ This Department is responsible also for confirming that persons to whom Section 44 of the Constitution refers enjoy freedom of movement, that is, the right to remain in Malta and to work here (without the necessity of a work permit). Confirmations issued by this Department during the year cover 120 persons.

Details of confirmations issued during the past five years are shown at Appendix B.

‘Exempt Person’ Status to the Foreign Husband of a Citizen of Malta As from 1st August 1989, the foreign husband of a female citizen of Malta enjoys exempt person status. This means that if the said husband wishes to work in Malta he does not require a work permit whereas if he merely wishes to reside here he is not required to have his permit to reside in Malta renewed periodically. The number of persons to whom such status was confirmed during 2013 was 121.

‘Exempt Person’ Status to the Foreign Wife of a Citizen of Malta As from 24 April 2001, the foreign wife of a citizen of Malta enjoys freedom of movement only after five years from the date of marriage. Until then she enjoys exempt person status which nevertheless gives her the right to remain and to work in Malta. During the year, 206 wives of citizens of Malta were informed that they enjoy exempt person status.

Uniform Residence Permits

During 2013, 16,930 applications were received from third country nationals for the issue of a uniform residence permit. The number of such permits issued during the period under review was 13,803 including persons enjoying international protection. The Department received also 9,479 applications for residence documents in respect of EU citizens and their family members, who are third country nationals, for the necessary processing. 8,346 documents were issued.

MARIELLA GRECH Director (Citizenship & Expatriate Affairs)

APPENDIX A

FOREIGNERS REGISTERED AS CITIZENS OF MALTA UNDER THE MALTESE CITIZENSHIP ACT CAP 188-2013

MINOR CHILD PERS CHILD FORME REN ONS REN HUSBANDS WIVES OF R OF A OF OF NATIONALITY OF CITIZENS CITIZENS CITIZEN MALTE MALT TOTAL MALT OF MALTA OF MALTA S OF SE ESE ESE MALTA MOTHE DESC DESC R ENT ENT ALBANIAN 1 1 0 0 0 0 2 ALGERIAN 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 ARGENTINIAN 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 AUSTRALIAN 18 26 3 61 86 158 352 BANGLADESH 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 BELARUS 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 BELGIAN 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 BOSNIAN 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 BRAZILIAN 1 1 0 0 1 1 4 BRITISH 21 31 4 55 28 15 154 BRITISH OVERSEAS 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 BULGARIAN 0 2 0 0 0 0 2 CANADIAN 2 13 0 12 13 26 66 CHINESE 0 4 0 0 0 0 4 CONGOLESE 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 CROATIAN 1 1 0 0 0 0 2 DUTCH 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 EGYPTIAN 4 4 0 0 0 0 8 FILIPINO 0 4 0 0 0 0 4 FRENCH 2 1 0 1 0 11 15 GEORGIAN 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 GERMAN 1 11 0 1 3 0 16 82

GREEK 0 1 0 2 0 0 3 ICELAND 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 INDIAN 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 IRAQI 0 2 0 0 0 0 2 IRISH 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 ITALIAN 14 4 0 18 11 2 49 IVORY COAST 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 JORDANIAN 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 KAZAKHSTAN 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 LEBANESE 3 2 0 0 0 2 7 LIBYAN 24 2 0 0 6 0 32 LITHUANIAN 0 1 0 0 1 0 2 MAURITIUS 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 MEXICAN 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 MOLDOVIAN 0 3 0 0 0 0 3 MOROCCAN 1 7 0 0 0 0 8 NEW ZEALAND 0 1 0 2 2 0 5 NIGERIAN 4 0 0 0 0 0 4 PERUVIAN 2 1 0 0 0 0 3 POLISH 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 PORTUGHES E 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 RUSSIAN 1 22 0 0 1 0 24 SERBIAN 3 8 0 0 0 0 11 SIERRA LEONE 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 SOUTH AFRICAN 3 3 0 0 5 9 20 SWEDISH 0 2 0 0 2 0 4 SYRIAN 5 0 0 0 0 0 5 THAI 0 6 0 0 0 0 6 TUNISIAN 2 2 0 0 1 8 13 TURKISH 2 2 0 0 0 0 4 UKRIANIAN 0 5 0 0 0 0 5 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 12 6 0 16 21 24 79 UZBEKISTANI 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 STATELESS 1 0 0 0 1 0 2 TOTAL 137 189 7 170 186 256 945

APPENDIX B

FOREIGNERS NATURALISED AS CITIZENS OF MALTA UNDER THE MALTESE CITIZENSHIP ACT, CAP 188-2013

CHILDREN NATIONALITY MALES FEMALES UNDER 18 TOTAL YEARS ALBANIAN 0 0 1 1 ALGERIAN 0 0 2 2 BANGLADESH 2 0 1 3 BRITISH 0 0 7 7 BULGARIAN 1 0 1 2 CHINESE 0 0 2 2 COLOMBIAN 0 0 1 1 CONGONESE 0 0 1 1 CROATIAN 1 0 1 2 CZECH 0 0 1 1 DUTCH 1 0 0 1 EGYPTIAN 1 0 0 1 FRENCH 0 0 1 1 GERMAN 0 2 3 5 GREEK 0 0 1 1 IRAQI 0 1 0 1 ITALIAN 0 1 1 2 JAMAICAN 0 0 1 1 JORDANIAN 2 2 0 4 KAZAKHISTANI 0 1 0 1 LIBYAN 0 0 1 1 LITHUANIAN 0 1 0 1 MOROCCAN 0 3 0 3 NIGERIAN 0 0 2 2 POLISH 1 2 3 6 ROMANIAN 0 0 4 4 RUSSIAN 5 12 0 17 SERBIAN 6 4 0 10 SPANISH 0 0 3 3 SWEDISH 0 0 1 1 SYRIAN 1 1 0 2 THAI 0 2 1 3 TUNISIAN 1 0 0 1 TURKISH 2 0 0 2 UKRANIAN 1 3 5 9 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 1 0 2 3 NOT KNOWN 1 0 21 22 TOTAL 27 35 68 130

Persons Informed that they Enjoy ‘Freedom of Movement’

Category of Persons born in Children of Non-Maltese Non-Maltese Persons Malta who Maltese Wives of Husbands of ceased to be Emigrants Maltese Maltese Maltese citizens (Column 1) or of Citizens or of Citizens whilst being Citizens of Persons or of emigrated Malta, who are appearing in Persons Total Year (Sections 3(1) under 21 years Column 1 appearing in and 5(1) of the of age and who Column 1* Maltese hold another Citizenship Act) citizenship 2007 2 48 17 5 72 2008 - 46 17 24 87 2009 2 39 17 19 77 2010 - 39 12 11 62 2011 - 34 12 13 59 2012 2 32 27 17 78 2013 - 48 40 32 120  As from 24/04/2001 (and provided they have been married for at least 5 years)

LAND AND PUBLIC REGISTRY

LAND REGISTRY

Functions

The functions of the Land Registry emanate from the Land Registration Act (Chapter 296 of the Laws of Malta). Its main responsibilities are the registration of titles to immovable property within registration areas and the registration of charges on immovable property whether registered or not, as well as other functions consequential and/or ancillary to such registrations, primarily the issuing of certificates of title and charge certificates. There are also functions derived from the Condominium Act (Chapter 398 of the Laws of Malta) consisting mainly in the maintenance of a register of administrators and a register of condominium rules.

Land Registry Services

The table hereunder indicates the amount of applications for registration as well as search applications which were lodged at the Land Registry in 2013, as compared with 2012. There has been an increase in the amount of applications lodged in the year 2013 when compared to 2012; most notable is the increase in the number of search applications lodged. The same table also shows the amount of Land Registry Plans issued in 2013, as compared with 2012. In this case there has been a decrease in the number of plans issued during 2013 when compared to the amount of plans issued during the preceding year.

2012 2013 DIFFERENCE Applications 8785 8900 +115 Search 11282 13159 +1877 Applications Land Registry 28405 27519 - 886 Plans

Land Registry Certification System (LRCS)

To fully upgrade the system during 2013 further enhancements were made on the LRCS. Some of the modifications resulted in improved control and security features concerning the issuance of Land Registry Certificates and Plans. To ensure that the basemap is continuously adjourned, during 2013 further fine tuning of the system was required following the successful integration of the LRCS base map in 2011.

Condominium Act (Chapter 398 Laws of Malta)

The Land Registry receives applications for the appointment of administrators and the registration of rules regulating the common parts of buildings co-owned by different owners. By the end of December 2013, the total number of applications received amounted to 966, of which 146 were received during 2013.

Land Registry Quality Service

The Land Registry has a Quality Service Charter which was one of the first introduced by Government way back in 1999. Commitments featuring in the Quality Service Charter offer a service that aims at responding to customers’ requests sometimes within a few minutes: 86 clients coming to the Registry for a Land Registry Plan, for example, are guaranteed service within ten minutes of their request. A generic e-mail account for the Land Registry - [email protected] - which enables clients to make comments or complaints electronically was created and queries are dealt with on a daily basis. Random checking on all types of applications lodged at the Registry revealed that targets and deadlines set out in the Charter are rigorously being observed.

Voluntary Registration Scheme

In conjunction with the Rehabilitation Project Office and the local councils, a voluntary scheme of registration was launched in November 2001 for property situated within Valletta, Floriana, Senglea, Cospicua and Vittoriosa. By virtue of this scheme, owners of immovable property within these areas are entitled to benefit from certain subsidies. These include the preparation of the registration plan by government employees at the expense of €23.29 and subsequently the actual registration of property at the cost of €23.29 rather than €46.59.

During 2011 an extensive exercise was prepared to draft a strategy to deal with the remaining applications. During 2012 a further 13 applications were processed. Out of 2,182 applications received, 1,797 applications have been finalised and work on the remaining 385 applications is ongoing. The applications were divided as follows:

COUNCIL APPLICATIONS FINALISED ONGOING Valletta 469 402 70 Vittoriosa 326 300 30 Cospicua 673 527 148 Senglea 379 298 83 Floriana 335 270 67

DR AUDREY VASSALLO Director Land Registry

PUBLIC REGISTRY

Main Functions

The main functions and responsibilities of the Public Registry emanate from the Public Registry Act, Cap 56; the Marriage Act, Cap. 255; Chapter 16 (Civil Code) and the Housing (Decontrol) Ordinance, 1959, Cap 158.

The Public Registry deals with the registration and issuance of copies of Acts of Birth, Marriage and Death as well as all annotations to these Acts. Besides registering all births, marriages and deaths occurring in Malta, the Department registers, on request, certificates of births, marriages and deaths of Maltese citizens where the event occurred abroad. During 2013, a total of 3,111 such registrations were made which included 2,186 births, 891 marriages and 34 deaths. There were also 468 annotations of nullity of marriage and divorces. Statistical data is also regularly forwarded to government departments, particularly the National Statistics Authority.

Registrations Section

The total number of Acts of Civil Status registered in 2013, as compared with 2012, is shown in the following table:

Registrations 2012 2013 Births 6080 6116 Marriages 3328 3255 Deaths 3515 2989 Total 12,923 12,360

Civil Status Section

During 2012, a total of 64,267 Acts of Civil Status were issued against 67,522 copies issued the previous year. A total of 16,985 Civil Status certificates issued were ordered online.

The Department issues Free Status Certificates which attest that no registration of an act of marriage exists in the Civil Status Records against a particular individual. The number of these certificates issued in 2013 was 234. 249 Certificates had been issued in 2012. The table below indicates in further detail:

Extracts Issued Full Copies Issued 2012 2013 2012 2013 Adoptions n/a n/a 115 117 Births 36,320 34,291 4,798 4,503 Marriages 7,682 7395 3,365 3,580 Deaths 13,720 12,993 1,522 1,388 Total 57,722 54,679 9,800 9,588

Annotations Section

Any person, who may have an interest, can bring an action before a competent court in Malta for (a) the correction of any registered Civil Status Act, (b) the legitimation per subsequens matrimonium of a person born out of wedlock, and (c) the acknowledgement of the paternity of a

88 person born out of wedlock. Legitimation per subsequens matrimonium may also be effected by applying to the Director, Public Registry.

Moreover divorces and nullities of marriage obtained abroad in a competent court may be registered at the Public Registry after ascertaining that they conform to the relative requisites of Maltese Law. Nullities of marriage obtained in Malta are also registered at the Department. All changes emanating from the above instances are recorded in the Annotations column of the relative Civil Status Act. Comparative figures for annotations entered in the registers of Civil Status in 2012 and 2013 are:

Types of Annotations 2012 2013 Corrections 253 150 Legitimations or Acknowledgements 386 354 Nullity of marriage 123 77 Foreign Divorces 67 57 Local Divorces 420 334 Total 1249 972 Adoptions

The number of adoptions entered in the Adopted Persons Register in terms of the Civil Code (Amendment) Ordinance 1962 during 2013 was 66.

Marriage Registry

The number of marriages in respect of which formalities were completed by the Marriage Registry during the year under review, as compared to the preceding year, was as follows:

Marriages in Malta 2012 2013 Religious 1452 1,243 Other Religious 7 5 Civil 1011 1058 Total 2,470 2,306

The number of marriages (Religious and Civil) between foreign couples who in 2013 opted to contract their marriage in Malta amounted to 712 of which 629 were civil marriages, 79 Catholic marriages and 4 other religious marriages. These couples hailed from various countries. During the year, 160 Maltese men and 116 Maltese women were married to foreigners. The number of Catholic marriages between Maltese couples was 1,110 while 212 opted for a civil marriage. Civil marriages may be celebrated at the Marriage Registry and also outside the Public Registry premises upon request from the spouses.

Adjustments (to names and surnames) Section

This section was created in 2012 to administer the changes in terms of Articles 4, 253 (2A) and 278A of the Civil Code (Cap 16) with regard to names and surnames.

Annotations in terms of Act XV of 2012 2012 2013 Amendments to the Civil Code (Cap 16) Form S in terms of Art. 4(2) Cap. 16 (option expired on 23 1 1 July 2013)

Form T in terms of Art. 4 (3) Cap. 16 (option expired on 140 470 23 July 2013) Form U in terms of Art. 4 (7) Cap 16. 41 32 Translation of names in terms of Art 253(2A) 259 168 Form V in terms of Art 278A n/a 2786

441 3,457 Total applications finalized

ERMELINDA ZAHRA Director Public Registry

PASSPORT AND CIVIL REGISTRATION DIRECTORATE

The main function of the Passport Office and Civil Registration Directorate is the issuance of Maltese passports to Maltese citizens. The Passport Office also provides assistance to Maltese embassies, high commissions, consuls and the Passport Office in Gozo. Other functions of the Civil Registration Directorate include: maintaining, enhancing and developing Government’s corporate database known as the Common Database (CdB) and notifying the Public Registry of births and deaths that occur in Malta.

Passport Office

The first Maltese biometric passport was issued in September 2008 and it brought Malta in line with EU legislation and also allowed it to form part of the US Visa Waiver Programme. Fingerprints started being captured as from 28th June 2010 in accordance with Regulation (EC) 444/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28th May 2009 amending Council Regulation (EC) No 2252/2004 on standards for security features and biometric in passports and travel documents issued by Member States.

Ancillary Services

 The Passport Office accepts applications for the issuance of a second passport in special circumstances and when considered necessary. During the year, 149 such passports were authorised and issued.  Convention Travel Documents are also issued by the Passport Office. A total of 46 Travel Documents were issued during the year under review.  1,573 Aliens Passports were issued during 2013 to persons holding subsidiary protection.  To further enhance the one-stop-shop concept, Passport Office officials are also appointed as Commissioners for Oaths to administer oaths when necessary. A total of 518 oaths were taken in 2013.  The Directorate also offers an all inclusive round-the-clock emergency service to clients needing an urgent passport during silent hours: 65 such cases were processed in 2013.  During 2013, a total of 960 urgent passports (issuance within four hours of application) were issued.  The Passport Office also offers the services of an Arabic translation of passports to those persons who request this service. A total of 396 translations were carried out during the year in review.  The Passport Office also issue one way travelling documents instead of a passport to both Maltese and foreign nations. During the year 19 Emergency Travelling Documents and 516 Documents of Identity were issued.  During 2013, 6 Collective passports were issued for children going abroad in a group with their school.

Total Number of Passports issued in 2012 - 2013 Passports Issued Revenue 2012 2013 2012 2013 € € Malta 2,046,74 2,138,39 36,381 37,936 1 6 Gozo 2,520 2,747 142,612 153,998 Missions 3,078 3,422 246,220 274,959 Diplomatic 94 159 3,290 5,565 Total 42,073 44,264 2,438,863 2,572,918

Notification Section

This Section may be considered as the front office for the registration of all births and deaths occurring in Malta. Following notification, the relative Acts are drawn up and checked before being delivered to the Public Registry for registration. This is an important process which must ensure that the details submitted by the notifier are correct.

Total Number of Notifications received in 2012 - 2013 Births Deaths 2012 2013 2012 2013 Malta 3,915 3,854 3,475 2,896 Gozo 279 266 271 280 Total 4,194 4,120 3,746 3,176

The Common Database

The Common Database (CdB) is a corporate initiative aimed at providing commonly used information that falls under the public domain and serves to achieve information consistency across government departments. The CdB processes person data which forms the main area of information, and all other areas of information, such as person relationships, addresses and organisations associated with it. The Data Protection Act has put greater responsibility on the Public Service and Public Sector to ensure that the CdB is used appropriately and only when really needed to assist in the business process of a department.

The primary objectives of the Common Database are basically to produce a repository for commonly used information which is in the public domain to be shared among government departments, and to facilitate the one-stop-shop concept in government departments.

Thus the Common Database System integrates public domain information that is commonly used amongst government departments and which is available in computerised systems. Established security and audit procedures are in place to ensure proper use of the available data, particularly in conformity with Data Protection legislation.

The information contained in the CdB concerns persons and their addresses and furthermore an Organisations Area of Information is gathered from the Public Registry, the Electoral Office and the VAT Department. This is validated against predefined rules so as to ensure data integrity and quality.

GAETANO VELLA Director Passport and Civil Registration

IDENTITY MANAGMENT OFFICE

The Identity Management Office (IDMO) was set up as a separate Directorate on the 18th July 2012 however its functions existed previously and were assigned to the eID Section within the Passport Office. Its main function, up till the end of 2013 has been to act as the Registration Authority for the electronic identity account (e-ID) however it is intended to also take over the role of issuing identity cards to Maltese Nationals (which role is presently being carried out by the Identity Cards Section of the Electoral Office) as from February 2014. Other present functions include the provision of support to third parties intending to launch e- ID related initiatives and the verification of identity – on behalf of the Passports Office – of persons applying for a passport.

Preparations for the Launch of the New E-Id Card

Following the provision of the initial version of the new eID Card system by the supplier, during 2012, a number of user acceptance test sessions were carried out during the year in question. This allowed the IDMO to identify a number of errors which were duly rectified and also a number of enhancements to be implemented.

Following a review of the organisational set up of the project, the various Boards and Working Groups were deemed to be ineffective and were therefore replaced by a slimmer Board of Review and Task Force. As one of the main stakeholders the IDMO was represented in both.

Although there will not be any drastic changes to the format of the new card and to the information contained therein, one significant introduction will be that it will contain an electronic chip which will be capable of storing information. The technology, similar to the one used for the electronic passport, will be a tool which opens up to a vast list of potential functionalities and will also be a means for integrating a number of existing services.

In view of such enhancements security features have been increased as well. Such advanced security features will drastically increase the reliability of online Identity and Authentication and will also enable electronic signatures which are legally equivalent to handwritten signatures. The chip on the card will hold the same biographic data that is visible on the face of the card, including a digital image of the holder. Additionally the chip will include two digital certificates for authentication and signatures, and applications for ticketing and an electronic purse.

The new e-ID Card will also double up as a KartAnzjan (this feature will remain optional and it is up to the holder him/herself to decide whether to have such information included on his/her identity document or not). This will effectively mean that the citizens have one card less to carry.

It is expected that once the roll-out process is underway it will facilitate the synchronisation of data that is presently stored in different databases, such as the ID Cards Database, the Common Database and the Public Registry Database.

The new Identity Card is expected to be launched on the 12th of February 2014. During 2013 a decision was taken in order to transfer the Front Office in Malta from the Evans Building in Valletta to Gattard House in Blata l-Bajda.

E-Id Related Processes

During 2013 the number of new citizen e-ID registrations reached 15,336. This figure compared well with that registered during 2012 (17,400) and exceeded the figure recorded in 2011 of 7,940. Furthermore, throughout the past twelve months a total of 1,062 organisation applications have been received, processed and approved, whereas during 2012 the number of organisations totalled 928.

A breakdown of such figures, on a monthly basis, is as follows:

Month Citizen Organisation Registrations Registrations January 1,020 96 February 918 74 March 758 44 April 1,216 90 May 1,114 121 June 1,015 65 July 1,364 109 August 1,319 80 September 1,481 109 October 2,976 130 November 1,478 97 December 677 47 Total 15,336 1,062

Furthermore the e-ID Office continued to offer support services through its Help Desk. Such services were extended during different periods of the year to mainly provide increased support to the business community. The Help Desk serviced a total of 14,716 requests during 2013, a significant increase from the number of requests made throughout 2012 (which totalled 12,776 requests).

A breakdown of such figures, on a monthly basis, is as follows:

Month Helpdesk Logged Calls January 1,415 February 1,187 March 787 April 1,091 May 1,057 June 1,077 July 1,424 August 1,099 September 1,086 October 2,006 November 1,808 December 679 Total 14,716

As also indicated above, the e-ID Office carried out identity verification and authentication checks of national identity card holders applying for an e-Passport. During 2013 the Office carried out a total of 24,846 identity verifications.

JESMOND CAMILLERI Director National Identity Management

CENTRAL VISA UNIT

Functions

The Central Visa Unit (CVU) is the Government’s immigration central authority responsible for the implementation of the provisions of the Schengen acquis. It ensures that the EU visa policy is implemented through the proper functioning of the visa issuing procedures in all of Malta’s Diplomatic missions and Consular posts. It operates in collaboration with the Malta Consular Offices and Immigration Police in relation to the authorization of visa issuance to third-country nationals that require such entry clearance.

Other functions include support and surveillance of all of Malta’s Missions abroad in relation to visa issues as well as providing information to the general public regarding visa requirements and procedures.

Issuance of Visas

Third-country Nationals who are not visa exempt, and who wish to travel to any Schengen country, including Malta, for any particular reason, need to apply and be issued with a Schengen Visa or a National Visa. During 2013 the 18 Malta Consular Offices processed about, 82,000 visa applications, an increase of 50% over 2012.

TOTAL VISA APPLICATIONS PROCESSED 2012 54,750 2013 81,986

Visa for Study Purposes

The demand by foreigners to attend an educational institution in Malta is on the increase, mainly by those seeking to attend English Language courses as well as those wishing to read for a graduate or post graduate degree. This increase in demand has also been noted in those countries whose nationals require a visa to travel to Malta. During 2013 an increase of 6.4 % has been registered in the number of visas issued for study purposes, by the Malta Consular Offices.

VISA FOR STUDY PURPOSES 2012 12,189 2013 12,964

Tourism Visa

Tourist arrivals continued to increase in 2013 over the preceding years. Out of the total visas issued by the Malta Consular Offices during 2013, 44% have been issued for tourism

96 purposes. They amount to 35,946 visas, which reflects an increase of 32.6% over the year 2012

VISA FOR TOURISM PURPOSES 2012 27,107 2013 35,946

Consular Cooperation

Malta currently has sixteen consular offices which are located outside the European Union. They processed more than 35,000 Visa applications during 2013. In those third countries where Malta is not directly represented, bilateral agreements were signed with Austria, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, who represent Malta for the purposes of Visa Issuance. Inter-departmental discussions have been initiated in order to review the existing bilateral agreements with the aim to improve the service being given by these representing Consular Offices.

Meetings with Stakeholders

Regular meetings have been held with the various stakeholders, mainly the business community and the educational institutions. Their feedback and suggestions are necessary for the improvement of the service as well for the drawing up of policies, including a National Policy for the Processing of Study Visas.

Opening of New Consular Offices

A Consular office is planned to open in Algiers during the first months of 2014. The necessary preparations have started during 2013, and a Consul General has been identified for the post and given the necessary training. The person will also be responsible for the processing and issuance of Visas from Algiers.

NEIL HARRISON Head Central Visa Unit

DEFENCE MATTERS DIRECTORATE

The Defence Matters Directorate was set up in May 2003 to upgrade, consolidate and formalize the defence function exercised by the civilian authorities under the oversight and authority of the Minister responsible for Defence.

The main responsibilities of the Directorate are:

 To formulate defence policy and provide objective, technical and policy advice as well as timely analysis on all aspects of military matters affecting the Government’s defence policy.  To monitor and analyze the implementation of Cabinet decisions and government policies on defence and military matters and to report on the extent to which policy and performing targets are met.  The democratic control of the armed forces which includes the development of new policy initiatives and concepts on all AFM matters with a view to improving the operational, logistic and administrative effectiveness of the AFM.  In coordination with other stakeholders within the Public Service, and in liaison with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other Ministries and government entities, conduct defence diplomacy, to manage bilateral as well as multilateral defence relations with other countries and international organisations.  To represent Malta in all national and international defence meetings, fora and conferences.

International engagement in the post-Libya crisis and crisis contingency preparation-In pursuance of its engagement in the post-Libya crisis phase, the Directorate continued giving priority to all matters regarding this phase principally by liaising at the EU and local level on policy matters; at the EU level, it constantly monitored and provided input to the formation of the new EU Integrated Border Assistance Mission to Libya (EUBAM Libya) while at the local level, the Directorate coordinated Malta’s participation in the aforesaid mission through the nomination of highly skilled and well prepared AFM officers to the mission.

Also to note that thanks to the Directorate’s recommendations during EU discussions in the relevant Council preparatory bodies, the word “Integrated” was inserted in the new EU mission’s name. The change is aimed at showing that this mission is three-pronged i.e. land, sea and air borders. Malta’s position was successfully accepted and carried through and is reflected in the adoption of Council Decision 2013/223/CFSP of 22nd May 2013 on the establishment of the new EU mission.

The Defence Matters Directorate is also responsible for setting up and maintaining the systems within the Government Contingency Centre (GCC). These systems were fully activated at the onset and during the Libya Crisis in 2011. During 2013, the Directorate continued its close monitoring of the situation in North Africa which remained characterised by significant instability and volatility.

AFM Policy and Administrative Issues

AFM Recruitment

Due to annual retirements from the Force and to retain its strength, the AFM continued its process of human resources replenishment through recruitment exercises. During the course of 2013, there was one recruitment process of Gunner recruits and another for Cadets. The Gunner recruitment process commenced in 2012 was concluded in 2013. A total of 79 recruits

98 were confirmed in the rank of gunner. The Defence Matters Directorate was involved in monitoring and acted to help ensure the smooth process of recruitment by liaising with the Education Department on publication of the enlistment exams.

Furthermore, the Directorate cooperated closely with a number of stakeholders (i.e. Justice Department and the Legal Advisers of the AFM) in order to bring the core legal act of the Armed Forces, namely the Malta Armed Forces Act (Cap. 220), in line with international legislation. The text is now amended to read “the age of eighteen years” instead of “the age of seventeen years and six months”. The amendment was made in order to bring the AFM Act in line with the Optional Protocol to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Parliamentary Questions

During the period under review, the Directorate processed and forwarded draft replies 25 parliamentary questions pertaining to general and defence matters.

Board of Survey on AFM assets and standards

The Directorate continued to monitor and approve as necessary all requests for the issue and/or awarding of AFM tenders and AFM administrative matters.

Following requests from the AFM, the Directorate made the necessary arrangements with Ministry to appoint an Independent Board to review the AFM’s Board’s recommendations on the disposal of the Unserviceable and Obsolete items (as per the General Financial Regulations para 108) as well as recommendations on other matters.

The Directorate monitored the proceedings for these Boards, including on site inspection of items as and when required. A final report was drawn up by the board and recommendations submitted to Ministry before being eventually forwarded to AFM for necessary action.

EU Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP)

Developments in CSDP and ensuring that Malta’s rights are safeguarded

The Directorate continuously monitored developments in the EU Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP), with the aim of ensuring that Malta’s interests were safeguarded. A number of exchanges were held with other governmental stakeholders, in particular Malta’s Permanent Representation in Brussels, in relation to the position to be adopted by Malta on various formal EU documents. Major exchanges concerned:

 EU Integrated Border Management Assistance Mission (EUBAM) to Libya.  Coordination and preparation to facilitate the deployment of civilian personnel to CSDP missions  Extension of mandate for EUTM Somalia The Directorate ensured that Malta’s interests as an EU Member State were properly safeguarded, particularly by ensuring appropriate wording in texts containing statements of policy action or posture by the EU in these areas.

European Council on Defence (Brussels, 19-20 December 2013)

The Directorate was fully engaged with national preparations for the European Council meeting of 19-20 December 2013, where the agenda of discussion by Heads of State and Government included a substantial item on the EU's Common Security and Defence Policy.

In connection with the European Council meeting and conclusions, the Directorate followed discussions and texts prepared in the different Council preparatory bodies ensuring Malta’s interests were safeguarded wherever applicable. It was especially important for Malta for texts on defence capabilities as well as the defence industry to be balanced in order to safeguard national prerogatives and to create a level playing field for potential investors respectively.

EU Missions and Operations

EUMM Georgia

Malta participated with two personnel from the AFM in the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia, furthering its support to this initiative since its inception in 2008. The mission is tasked to contribute to the stabilisation and normalisation of the situation in the areas affected by the recent conflict, to oversee the redeployment of Georgian police forces and to observe compliance of all parties with human rights and humanitarian law. However participation was terminated in September 2013 since the AFM had to re-assess overseas commitments, particularly after being assigned commitments closer to home.

EUNAVFOR Atalanta

Malta, through AFM, participated in EUNAVFOR/Operation Atalanta since its inception, and till December 2013. Additionally, Malta also deployed a military Vessel Protection Detachment (VPD) team comprising of 22 AFM personnel on board the Dutch warship HNLMS Johann de Witt. The deployment of these AFM specially trained teams enhanced Malta’s contribution to this operation through its active engagements in-theatre with the VPDs carrying out a variety of tasks including providing, on request, close protection to World Food Programme (WFP), African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) or other vulnerable shipping against pirate attack.

EUTM Somalia

Malta participated in EUTM Somalia with one AFM Personnel occupying the staff post of CJ8 Contracting Officer at EUTM Somalia Operation Headquarters in Kampala, Uganda, until June 2013.

EU Integrated Border Assessment Mission (EUBAM Libya)

During 2013, the EU accelerated work on assisting Libya in the sectors of Border Management and Security Sector Reform. In May the EU launched an Integrated Border Assessment Mission under the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) in order to develop Libyan capacities to deal with security of their land, sea and air borders in the short term, and to develop a broader Integrated Border Management (IBM) strategy in the long term.

In this context and well aware of the challenges involved in assuring national involvement in such a strategic mission for Malta, the Directorate coordinated efforts in fielding AFM personnel for posts in the new mission, particularly in the maritime field. Two AFM officers now occupy the posts of Senior Naval Coast Guard Adviser and Naval Coast Guard Trainer in the new EU mission.

The CSDP mission should be seen as part of a coordinated package that will hopefully lead to an improvement in the Libyan authorities’ ability to engage fully and deliver on effective border management.

100

Malta’s participation in EU Defence Fora

The Directorate represented Malta at various meetings with a bearing on defence and security. Items discussed in such meetings included the current operations and missions, the development of capabilities, the EU Maritime Security Strategy, the EU’s cooperation with partners such as the United Nations, the African Union, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation amongst other things.

Western Mediterranean Forum (5+5 Defence Initiative)

The Defence Matters Directorate liaised with the AFM’s CSDP and International Relations Branch and relevant Points of Contact (PoC) to ensure the best participation by Malta in the Western Mediterranean Forum, more commonly known as the 5+5 Defence Initiative. During 2013 Portugal held the 5+5 Defence Initiative Presidency.

Malta participated in a number of related activities such as the Steering Committee Meeting and the Ministerial Meeting both held in Portugal. It also organised the CANALE 13 exercise jointly with Italy. This aero-naval exercise is held in Maltese waters and airspace with the aim of promoting co-operation and peace in the Mediterranean region, with particular emphasis on strengthening the cooperation between the 5+5 Defence Initiative partners.

This was the 19th edition of the exercise, planned and organized jointly by the Headquarters Armed Forces of Malta (Training Branch) and the Italian Joint Operational Headquarters (IT JOHQ) coordinated by the AFM Maritime Squadron and involving naval and air units deriving from Mediterranean countries forming part of the 5 + 5 Defence Initiative. Algeria, France, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia accepted the invitation to take part with surface/air assets or personnel in order to commit staff to be integrated in all the exercise phases and operational levels.

In this connection, the Directorate sought the assistance of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs regarding the issue of travel visas to the North African Delegations.

Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)

During the period under review, the Directorate maintained the effective monitoring of Malta’s commitments under the documents binding participating States in the OSCE. Principally this concerned the timely return of documents which OSCE Member States are obliged to compile and submit to the OSCE from time to time under their commitments to implementing confidence and security building measures under the OSCE’s Vienna Document 2011. These commitments include provisions on an annual exchange of military information about forces located in Europe, notifications for risk reduction, including consultation about unusual military activities and hazardous incidents, prior notification of certain military activities, observation of certain military activities, exchange of annual calendars, and compliance and verification by inspection and evaluation visits.

Malta’s Defence Bilateral Relations

Ministerial and Ambassadorial Meetings

The Directorate fully supported and assisted the preparation of a number of briefs in connection with bilateral meetings which the President of Malta, the Prime Minister, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Permanent Representative to the EU and/or Maltese Ambassadors to third countries had with their counterparts and which had a bearing on/relevance for defence and border control issues.

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Landing and Overflights of Foreign State Aircraft and Visits by Military Vessels

Following the direction imparted in November 2005, this Directorate continued to make recommendations to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about requests from foreign countries who ask for permission to use Maltese airspace for their aircraft, either for landing or over flights. The Directorate continued to make recommendations to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on diplomatic over flight and military vessel clearances.

This Directorate also continued to make recommendations to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about requests from foreign countries, for military vessels to use Maltese territorial waters. Recommendations are based on the guidelines issued in 1988, 1996 and subsequent updates.

During the period under review, the Directorate processed 744 requests for overflights and 62 requests for port visits by military vessels.

Participation in National Boards/Committees

Sanctions Monitoring Board

During the year under review, the Director sat on the Sanctions Monitoring Board which was very active due to UN and EU restrictive measures and sanctions on Iran, Zimbabwe, Belarus, North Korea and Syria in particular. In this context, the Directorate was also consulted regarding the transhipment of suspicious cargo as well as movements of vessels suspected to be going against EU or UN sanctions.

JOANNE MERCIECA Director (Defence Matters Directorate)

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THE OFFICE OF THE REFUGEE COMMISSIONER

Mission Statement

The Office of the Refugee Commissioner within the Ministry for Home Affairs and National Security is responsible to receive, process and determine applications for international protection in Malta, as stipulated by the Refugees Act, Chapter 420 of the Laws of Malta and its subsidiary legislation.

The fundamental objective of this Office is to ensure a totally transparent and efficient asylum determination process while, at the same time, guaranteeing the best quality possible regarding the hearing, examination and determination of application for international protection.

Looking towards 2013

2013 was a very busy year for the Office of the Refugee Commissioner, with the arrival of 2,008 third country nationals, 1,905 (94.8 percent) of which lodged an application for international protection with this Office. Similar to the previous year, the Office has experienced an increase in the number of applications received by third country nationals who approached the Office personally to seek international protection. In fact, the Office received 348 applications from this latter category.

During 2013, the Office of the Refugee Commissioner received a total number of 2,253 applications for international protection. This year marked the second highest number of applications received by this Office since it was set up in 2001, after 2008.

In 2013, the Office of the Refugee Commissioner processed 2,272 applications for international protection. The Office notes that 80.1 percent of the applications concluded in 2013 were granted some form of protection. Of these 59 were recognised as refugees, 1,682 were granted subsidiary protection status and 72 were granted local temporary humanitarian protection.

Staff Compliment

Back in 2001, when the Office of the Refugee Commissioner was setup, the Office was composed of just five persons. From the very beginning, steps were taken to increase the staff compliment according to the exigencies and to ensure continuous training to speed up the asylum determination process while, at the same time, ensuring high quality standards.

As at the end of December 2013, the staff compliment at the Office of the Refugee Commissioner consisted of the Refugee Commissioner, the Assistant Refugee Commissioner, four senior asylum determination officers, twelve asylum determination officers, two clerks, one IPSL worker and one auxiliary. The Office is in the process of recruiting eleven case workers and six administrative staff.

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The Asylum Process

Information Sessions

The majority of the applications for international protection received by the Office of the Refugee Commissioner are lodged by third country nationals who enter Malta irregulary by sea, the so-called ‘boat persons’. In 2013, this category made up 85 percent of all the applications received. The second largest category of applications received by this Office are those lodged by third country nationals who approach the Office personally to seek international protection in Malta. The other categories remain very very low - these are applications lodged by third country nationals who are apprehended by the police staying in Malta illegally and applications lodged by third country nationals who express their wish to apply for international protection in Malta with an authority other than the Office of the Refugee Commissioner. In the latter case, the Refugee Commissioner is informed and the persons are provided with information and instructions to visit the Office of the Refugee Commissioner to lodge their application.

The Office of the Refugee Commissioner notes that all persons who express their wish to apply for international protection are provided with information about the asylum procedure in Malta. In order to ensure effective access to the asylum procedure in the case of persons who enter Malta irregularly by sea, a few days after their arrival in Malta, personnnel from the Office of the Refugee Commissioner visit them in the centres and inform them about their right to apply for interntional protection in Malta.

During 2013, the Office of the Refugee Commissioner continued with its good practice to provide information to third country nationals. Through ‘information sessions’, the Office provides information through different means to reach all those with different levels of education and cultural backgrounds. Information is provided verbally with the help of an interpreter, by means of a booklet and through an audio-visual presentation. Both the booklet and the audio-visual presentation are available in eleven different languages. The third country nationals are given the opportunity to ask questions to clarfiy any points/issues and then are provided with one-to-one assistance in filling up a registration form also known as preliminary questionnaire. Interpreters are provided during the information sessions. This same procedure of providing information is adopted with all the categories of applicants referred to above.

Decisions reached not exceeding six months

The Office of the Refugee Commissioner has also continued with its commitment to ensure that all cases are concluded in a fair and efficient way within six months after the lodging of the application. This Office notes that this has been achieved with the absolute majority of the applications which were made in 2013.

In 2013, 2008 third country nationals entered Malta irregularly by sea. 1,905 of these third country nationals applied for international protection in Malta. By the end of December 2013, 1,134 (59.52%) of these applications were concluded. 1,119 (58.74%) of these

104 cases were concluded in less than six months and only 15 cases (0.78%) were concluded after six months. On average, cases were concluded in 93.83 days.

Training

The Office of the Refugee Commissioner has participated actively in the training organised by the European Asylum Support Office (EASO). The EASO training modules aim to enhance the capacity and quality of the European asylum process as well as to strenghten practical cooperation among the European asylum/immigration systems. In 2013, the Office had twelve of its sixteen case workers participate in the EASO training moduels. The EASO training modules attended were: interviewing vulnerable persons, inclusion, evidence assessment, Dublin regulation, country of origin information, interviewing techniques, decision making and exclusion.

In April and in December, the Office of the Refugee Commissioner had all of its case workers attend training organised by UNHCR Malta. In April the focus was on the different asylum procedures as found in the Asylum Procedures Directive (Council Directive 2005/83/EC) and in December the focus was on interviewing techniques and credibility assessment.

During 2013, the Office of the Refugee Commissioner developed training for its interpreters. Interpreters are essential to the Office in fulfilling its responsibility. A correct interpretation of the applicant’s statement is essential in enabiling this Office to understand the applicant’s claims. On 05th June 2013, the first training session was held with Somali interpreters.

Transposition

In 2013, the Office of the Refugee Commissioner, together with the Policy Unit and the EU Affairs Unit within the Ministry for Home Affairs and National Security, worked on the transposition of the Council Directive 2011/95/EU on standards for the qualification of third- country nationals or stateless persons as beneficiaries of international protection, for a uniform status for refugees of for persons eligible for subsidiary protection, and for the content of the protection granted and of the Council Directive 2013/32/EU on common procedure for granted and withdrawing international protection, into Maltese legislation.

European Refugee Fund Projects

ERF Project 2012 – 2013: Putting Integration into Perspective: Studying integration efforts of beneficiaries of international protection and identifying areas where special input is needed.

This project, aimed to study the integration efforts of beneficiaries of international protection and to identify areas where special input is needed in the field of integration, was concluded in the end of June 2013. The project started on 01st June 2012 after the Office has been

105 awarded funding under the European Refugee Fund under the General Programme Solidarity and Management of Migration flows.

The aim of this project was to identify the opportunities and problems that persons having international protection are finding in the Maltese society. This was done through a structured questionnaire, designed by this Office with the help of the sociologists. The questionnaire was conducted with all the beneficiaries of international protection who came to the Office of the Refugee Commissioner to renew their protection certificates. The information collected from these questionnaires was examined by the sociologists and areas where there was lack of information were identified. Reports were produced by the sociologists on each topic. The topics ranged from education, employment, social benefits, housing to language.

A final conference was also organised that marked the end of the project. The final conference was held on 19th June 2013 in St. Julians. All the stakeholders that participated in the various meetings were invited along with other agencies/NGOs and organisations. During the conference, a report on the different aspects of integrations, as compiled by the sociologists, was presented to all those present. A copy of the detailed report was also disseminated to all those present.

The Office of the Refugee Commissioner is of the opinion that this project helped to shed light on many aspects of integration.

ERF Project 2013 – 2015: Setting up a database for the electronic management of documentation during the asylum process and issuance of new protection certificates and ERF Project 2013 – 2015: Enhancing structural and material facilities of the Office of the Refugee Commissioner

The Office of the Refugee Commissioner submitted two project proposals to the Responsible Authority (PPCD) to receive funding from the European Refugee Fund (ERF) – Annual Programme 2013. The first project entitled ‘Setting up a database for the electronic management of documentation during the asylum process and issuance of new protection certificates’ incorporated in this project the digitalization of the client’s files as well as the issuance of a new format of the protection certificate. The second project proposal entitled ‘Enhancing structural and material facilities of the Office of the Refugee Commissioner’ aimed at setting up a new structural facility where information sessions could be conducted.

The overall aim of the first project mentioned above is to enhance the structural facilities of the Office of the Refugee Commissioner which are needed to continue providing information about the rights and obligations in the asylum procedure to third country nationals, few days after their arrival in Malta. This shall be achieved by the setting up of five mobile offices to cater for the information sessions. These structural facilities which shall be equipped for the information sessions will ensure that Third Country Nationals (TCNs) receive the necessary information in an environment congruent with trust; keeping in mind that these persons shall be disclosing personal information and therefore should ensure privacy.

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The second project mentioned above has two aims. Since the setting up of the Office in 2002, the Office received more than 14,000 applications for international protection and has an acceptance rate of over 55%. The increase in workload/cases highlights the need for an electronic storage of all clients’ files currently stored at the Office. This project will provide security, through the use of a password, allow easy access of files, saving time and space. It will also allow the Office to organize the clients’ information in a uniformed, structured, digital way, modernizing the system to reflect today’s necessities.

All the beneficiaries of international protection are issued with a protection certificate, currently an A4 laminated security paper with a dry rubber stamp. The document is renewed every three years for people benefitting from refugee status, while those who benefit from subsidiary protection is renewed every year. The Office issues an average of 3,000 certificates a year. The Office’s proposal to change the current format of the protection certificate/document will create a more secure, sophisticated and easy to handle card. Possible modern features will allow this Office to store valuable information on it, providing more information and making this valuable card less likely to be tampered with. Prospective beneficiaries of protection, i.e. Asylum Seekers, are also given a certificate which should be handy at all times.

On the 5th September 2013 the Office of the Refugee Commissioner was informed by the Responsible Authority that the above-mentioned project proposals were selected for funding under the European Refugee Fund – Annual Programme 2013. Up until December 2013, the Office of the Refugee Commissioner was working on the recruitment of a project officer and two administrative officers.

Year 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Applications 1686 502 1388 1822 1780 1702 2775 2389 135 1862 2116 2203 received

Cases 422 588 888 1158 1210 979 2731 2959 922 1980 1654 2272 Concluded

Statistical Tables and Graphs

On average the Office of the Refugee Commissioner receives 1700 applications for international protection on a yearly basis.

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Applications received by third country nationals who entered Malta irregularly by sea in 2013.

Applications received by third country nationals, other than those that entered irregularly by sea in 2013.

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Applications received in 2013 by nationality.

Cases concluded in 2013 by decision.

MARIO FRIGGIERI Commissioner for Refugees

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AGENCY FOR THE WELFARE OF ASYLUM SEEKERS

The primary contribution of the Agency for the Welfare of Asylum Seekers (AWAS) to the management of irregular immigration was the operation of open centres. Most of the 2,008 persons who arrived irregularly at our shores reside for a longer or shorter period of time in open centres and the year in review was no exception. Occupancy levels were always above 1,000 persons, with a high of 1,748 persons at the beginning of January. Totals rose again sharply once the 2013 boat arrivals started moving from closed to open centres, averaging around 1,500 persons for the rest of the year. In contrast to previous years, an outflow pattern which positively impacted operations was the relatively high volume of persons who opted to leave open centres once their application for non-contributory social benefits was deemed eligible by the competent authorities. Top nationalities resident in open centres at year’s end were Somalis (42.36%), Eritreans (31.42%), and Ethiopians (7.47%).

2013 was characterised by the unprecedented number amongst the total 2,008 arrivals who claimed to be unaccompanied minor asylum seekers (UAMS). No less than 26% of arrivals claimed to be UAMS, which meant that AWAS was overwhelmed by the related services, most notably age assessment. By year’s end, 371 Care Orders were signed by the Minister for the Family and Social Solidarity, and AWAS had to provide services to them. Here again, the unprecedented numbers posed a significant challenge, since 371 UAMS in one year was way beyond the annual total for all preceding years. This was dealt with by means of a restructuring in the open centre network. A centre that previously housed families was reorganised in order to house UAMS over the age of 17 in a semi-independent programme.

AWAS housed a large number of mostly-Syrian survivors of a large-scale tragedy at sea. In close collaboration with other Government and non-Governmental stakeholders, our staff assisted service-users with the harrowing task of identifying deceased relatives and friends, as well as supporting them through the weeks and months after the tragedy. This event alerted us to the possibility of a sudden influx into our services of a large number of traumatised individuals.

During the year under review AWAS assessed and recommended to the Principal Immigration Officer the transfer of 647 persons from closed to open centres on grounds of vulnerability, viz. nearly one-third of arrivals. This percentage manifests that asylum seekers do have access to a procedure to assess and act upon certified vulnerabilities. Furthermore, AWAS launched internal procedures and a code of conduct for its personnel to address Sexual and Gender Based Violence. Work on this was carried out in very close collaboration with the office in Malta of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and under the direction of a UNHCR expert. Also worthy of mention is the internal restructuring that brought about the setting-up of the Care Team, which is the unit within AWAS which responds to the needs of vulnerable persons residing in open centres.

From a human resources perspective, AWAS signed its first Collective Agreement with the Government and Public Entities Section of the General Workers’ Union, bringing about improved working conditions and remuneration to employees.

In 2013, the Agency continued its established practice of taking up all available EU funds for new services, maintenance, and renovations. AWAS also submitted proposals for the Asylum and Migration Fund 2014 - 2020.

ALEXANDER TORTELL Head of Agency

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PUBLIC BROADCASTING SERVICES LTD – Report on operations

PBS Creativity Hub

Public Broadcasting Services Ltd achieved its primary goal in 2013 when it inaugurated and started operations from the refurbished premises at the PBS Creativity hub. The project was carried out in different phases as was the migration of operations. By the end of the year all departments were operating from the new premises. PBS invested in digital apparatus and since October, the two television stations, TVM and TVM2 have been transmitting on a full HD format.

Eurovision Song Contest 2013

As a National Public Service Broadcaster, PBS is responsible for the yearly transmission of the Eurovision Song Contest. This involves also the execution of the national song contest, whose winning entry would represent Malta in the Eurovision.

EBU General Conference

PBS successfully organised the 70th EBU General Assembly which took place in Malta between the 26-28June 2013. Two hundred delegates from various countries in the EBU, including, inter alia, Russia, Canada, USA and South Africa, attended the conference.

Work in collaboration with various sectors in Gozo

The Board of Directors met representatives from the private sector, mainly those relating to trade and tourism, with operators in the field of culture and finally with the Minister for Gozo Dr Anton Tabone. It was agreed that PBS will invest in a micro link to enable live transmissions from Gozo and also to boost the reception of Radju Malta in localities where the signal was weak. PBS agreed to help boost cultural activity in Gozo

Agreement signed with RAI, Radiotelevisione Italiana

As part of an agreement signed with Radiotelevisione Italiana (RAI), has passed on to PBS, a number of productions and documentaries, both for television as well as for radio transmission. One of the first to be transmitted was the mini radio series on the occasion of the centenary of the birth of the famous baritone Tito Gobbi. Radju Malta also joined up with three other Mediterranean islands: Corsica, Sardegna and Sicily in a programme entitled ‘Mediterradio’ which featured information regarding history, culture, music, folklore and general attractions in Malta.

Training by COPEAM

Agreement was reached in November, with the Euro-Med organization COPEAM, an EBU subsidiary, to organize a course in cultural journalism for the states in Southern Europe and the Maghreb. PBS was requested to organize the logistics of the course. This is a new venture which is aimed at enhancing the development of human resources and increase the dialogue between audio visual entities in the Europe and the Mediterranean. PBS collaborated in productions with other countries in a project named "Joussours" which deals with cultural aspects.

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RTV - San Marino

In November, PBS signed an agreement with RTV – San Marino. The agreement provides for a journalistic exchange to enhance training as well as the exchange of television material.

Liechtenstein TV - Mr. Peter Kolbel

PBS signed an agreement in November, with a private radio and TV station in Liechtenstein to enable the creation of opportunities for PBS journalists to train as video journalists. PBS will in turn, train the Liechtenstein staff in sales and commercial marketing.

Junior Eurovision Song Contest

On Saturday 30th November 2013, in Kiev, Ukraine, the Junior Eurovision Song Contest was held. Malta won this prestigious event, and, consequently, the next such event in 2014, will be held in Malta.

Eurovision Academy Assembly – EBU

During a meeting of the EBU in Geneva, which was attended by PBS Chairman, it was agreed that the Eurovision Academy will be held in Malta between the 9-10thOctober 2014. The main aim of the Eurovision Academy is to develop training prorammes for social media professionals, digital technology professionals, professionals in education, corporate management, communications and journalism as well as the development of human resources.

World Cup Launch

PBS launched its preparations for the World Cup 2014. PBS managed to acquire rights for 64 games where the viewers may watch all the games on TVM for free.

Agreement between Radju Malta and Euroradio

In December, Radju Malta took up the invitation proffered by EuroRadio to free access to the 20,000 plus concerts in its libraries. Operated by the EBU, Euroradio has made available this very rich cache of classical music, jazz and folk music to Radju Malta. PBS is contributing its share through the uploading of concerts by the national orchestra. It is estimated that these concerts will now reach an audience of just under two million listeners in EBU countries.

ANTON ATTARD CEO

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CIVIL PROTECTION DEPARTMENT

Acting under the provisions of the Civil Protection Act XV, 1999, the Civil Protection Department has continued to offer services in the field of disaster management to protect human lives, property and the environment. In this respect, the Department was tasked to maintain the following functions as indicated hereunder:

Interventions

An Assistance and Rescue Force, which is set up under the umbrella of the Civil Protection Department, operates with the sole purpose of maintaining an adequate service for prompt intervention in case of an emergency, whether occurring on land or at sea. This Force, is made up of a total staff complement of 123, officers from six different stations in Malta and one in Gozo. The members of this Force have to deal with everyday operations, ranging from domestic fires and rescue interventions to specialised tasks, such as hazardous substance control and technical diving operations. In 2013, the Assistance and Rescue Force of the Department was called to assist in a total of 5,122 operations. A breakdown of interventions which were carried out by the Department during the year in review is shown at Appendix A.

Within the Civil Protection Department there is also a volunteer unit. In 2012 this unit was made up of 38 volunteers. However, due to its importance, this Unit was strengthened by another 100 candidates during year under review. The scope of this volunteer unit is to carry out support duties during intervention operations both locally and abroad. During 2013, these volunteers assisted the Department in a number of rescue and fire fighting operations. In March during year under review four K 9 volunteers attended an EU funded training course in Croatia on USAR. In October, thirteen CPD volunteers together with seven regular members of the CPD participated in an EU funded training exercise called TWIST (Tidal Wave In Southern Tyrrhenian Sea) which took place in Salerno Italy together with six other EU Countries namely Italy, Spain, Greece, France, Croatia and Portugal. Throughout

113 these exercises, civil protection members had the opportunity to put into practice those skills they had acquired through experience over the years and from other EU training programmes attended. Besides these members had the opportunity to work and test their abilities together with other European counterparts.

As in preceding years, the Department had to respond to a number of calls which turned out to be false alarms amounting to 92. Although there was a considerable decrease over the previous years, mainly due to the better use of systems caller identification, the number still represents a major concern for the Department. Hoax calls do not only contribute to wastage of resources, but may also be detrimental to other ongoing operations due to the fact that vital resources may not be readily available for particular interventions.

Humanitarian Aid

Forming part of a wider European network of civil defence, the Department is committed to provide assistance to other member states of the European Union and third countries. This network facilitates the solidarity process that exists between member states to assist any particular country within the European Union, which is affected by a disaster. During year under review a number of disasters took place around the world. Few of these disasters, which were closely followed by the CPD, were the super typhoon which hit the Philippines, the floods that occurred in Europe and the evacuation of thousands of Syrian refugees to the neighbouring countries.

Training

The Department continued to support training initiatives. A number of training initiatives were launched to ensure the continuous development of both full-time members and volunteers of the Civil Protection Department. An in-house training programme was set for all members of the Assistance and Rescue Force during winter to review best practices in rescue and fire fighting operations.

During year under reference the Department organised a national exercise involving full time members and volunteers of the Civil Protection Department and a number of non- government organisations which usually support this Department. The training objective was to test the interoperability techniques among agencies in events of disasters.

During 2013, twelve volunteers and full-time members of the Civil Protection Department had the opportunity to attend the following EU organised courses in the field of civil protection:

 Community Mechanism Course  Operational Management Course  Assessment Mission Course  Modules Basic Course

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The newly revamped divers section within the Department also intensified its training programme by introducing its members into more advanced technical diving techniques. Regular training in open seas and in indoor pool facilities were also introduced for the divers’ team to increase their skills in life saving and swimming techniques.

Moreover all members of the CPD were given a refresher course in advanced first-aid by the Red Cross.

Furthermore through MCAST, five Latvian firemen trainees were given fifteen days training (attachment) with the CPD. During this attachment these students were also given work experience by attending fire and rescue operations with their Maltese counterparts.

Procurement of Equipment

During year under review in order to enhance its capability to deal with different kinds of emergencies, the Department procured ten new Hyundai vehicles to be used for rapid response and a number of specialised equipment to enhance its present rescue capabilities in situations of collapsed structures, rescue at sea and fire fighting. A tender for the procurement of a new All Terrain Vehicle has also been issued during same year. The Department also managed to give a total overhaul (chassis, body and equipment) to two of its emergency fleet vehicles. Moreover an ex-MOD all-terrain truck and a new fire-fighting module which were procured during 2012 to enhance the capabilities of the Department to deal with bush fires, were refurbished.

EU Funded Projects:

 TWIST - (Tidal Wave in Southern Tyrrhenian Sea) project commenced in January 2012 and ended in November, 2013. The total cost of the project was €1,149,683 of which 85% were EU Funded. Malta took part both in preparatory meetings and in the final training exercise.

 Calypso – (HF Radar Monitoring System and response against marine oil spills in the Malta Channel). This project commenced in May 2011 and extended up to October 2013. This project had a total budget of €1,355,399 and was part-financed by the EU under the ERDF Italia-Malta programme at 85%. The CPD was one of the project partners and received the full amount of the budget of €27,245.

 SIMIT – (Costituzione di un sistema integrato di Protezzione Civile transfrontaliero italo-maltese) This project which deals with seismic movements and its effects on the Maltese Islands particularly in the Gozo Region, commenced in March 2013 and will end in September 2015. This project has a total budget of €2,369,572 and is part-financed by the EU under the ERDF Italia-Malta programme at 85%. This project is being led by the Civil Protection Regione Sicilia and the CPD (Malta) is project partner No. 4, having a budget of €402,219.62.

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Tenders issued during 2013

 Procurement of all-Terrain vehicle valued around €120,000.  Procurement of protective clothing (Fire suits) valued around €23,000  Call for quotations re docking of the Garibaldi vessel approximately €33,000.

Public and Media Relations

Visits by school children at Fire Stations 7 Awareness talks 24 Fire Evacuation Drills 4 Basic fire courses to third parties 2 Assistance to other Govt. Depts. 28 Media Programmes attended 9 Demonstrations given 8 Educational courses received CPD members 22 Familiarisation visits by CPD 9

JOHN RIZZO Head Civil Protection Department

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MALTA FILM COMMISSIONER

Principal activities and business overview

The principal activity of the Malta Film Commission is to market the island in the international industry as a film location and to facilitate the work of productions shooting in Malta. The Malta Film Commission also acts as an advisory body on the audiovisual policy for the promotion, development and support of the audiovisual and filming servicing industry.

Review of activities

In 2013, 7 projects benefited from cash rebates. These included 4 feature films, 1 documentary and 2 TV productions. As a result of these productions, an estimate amount of over €4.5 million was invested into the Maltese Islands.

The Malta Film Commission has continued with its drive to promote Malta’s film industry abroad while driving the development of the indigenous industry, creating business opportunities while investing in training and outreach programmes to develop core skills.

The Malta Film Fund was another success with 20 projects granted funding amounting to €230,500. These projects included 14 development actions and 6 production actions.

The Malta Film Commission, as part of its programme of initiatives to market Malta as a unique and dynamic film location, have attended a number of film festivals and gave a series of presentations to potential film makers, including Berlin Film Festival, Cannes Film Festival and London BFI.

The Malta Film Commission (MFC) announced a call for tenders in relation to funds awarded (€500,000) as part of the European Social Fund Cohension Policy Operational Programme II 2007-2013, which aims to improve employment opportunities in the European Union and aid to develop a skilled and adaptable workforce.

Following the approval of the Government budget for 2012 the financial initiatives scheme for audio visual productions were increased from a maximum of 22% to 25%.

Film Commissioner with Chairman of MFSA explored a proposal reached to MFC by Financiere MIS in an effort to set up an investment dedicated to Maltese Film productions.

A series of interviews were organised to highlight MFC’s work, current initiatives and give an overview of the forth coming productions. Interviews were held with the Film Commissioner and were organised with various local newspapers.

A meeting with Malta Enterprise senior officials was held to discuss possible ways of cooperating on selective markets such as India.

ENGELBERT GRECH Malta Film Commissioner

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