A group of around 370 illegal immigrants who are being kept at the Safi barracks left the detention centre at around 1000 CET in a protest march to Luqa. The immigrants’ aim was to reach Valletta to speak to the Prime Minister and ask him for liberty.
The protest was not an entirely peaceful one as attacks were made on police officers as they attempted to regroup the immigrants back to the barracks. Superintendent Raymond Zammit was hit in the chest by a rock; a sergeant and a police constable were also injured and all were taken to St. Luke’s Hospital for medical care, although their condition was not serious. In turn, another policeman was overturned whilst on his motorcycle.
Sources told MaltaMedia that on their way these illegal immigrants also clashed with Maltese civilians who happened to be on their way, some of whom had to receive treatment in hospital.
Members of the Armed Forces of Malta and the Police were informed about the incident and attempted to keep the situation under control. Roads were closed in order to restrain the immigrants.
The immigrants were eventually rounded up and taken back to the barracks where they kept on with the violence and set alight skips, mattresses and other items of the detention centre. The situation calmed down by around 1200 CET.
Meanwhile, the Institute of Maltese Journalists and the Journalists' Committee in separate statements condemned the treatment of journalists, photographers and cameramen by Maltese security personnel during the protest.
in a press release issued by the Journalists’ Committee, members of the committee were disillusioned by the way in which journalists and photographers reporting the morning’s events were treated by the police, who insisted that the reporters stay back.
A The Malta Independent reporter was allegedly pushed by police and needed medical attention.
"The Council of the IGM calls on the police commissioner to investigate the actions of these police officers and take disciplinary action against those who acted abusively," Charlot Zahra, Education and Information Secretary of the IGM, said in a statement.
The Committee stated that despite the understandable control efforts that were needed during the riot it is unacceptable that the press is viewed by people in authority and public officials as a hindrance, when it is in the public interest that it covers these issues, even more so when the incidents happened in the public domain.
In turn, a boat carrying about 200 illegal immigrants has been spotted west of Malta on Tuesday afternoon. A Spanish trawler is helping the immigrants amongst whom are two dead bodies. The vessel of the illegal immigrants is currently in Maltese waters and therefore falls under the responsibility of the Armed Forces of Malta.
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