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TITLE:  MALTA HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES, 1994
AUTHOR:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
DATE:  FEBRUARY 1995

                             MALTA


Malta is a constitutional republic and parliamentary
democracy.  The Head of State (President) appoints as Head of
Government (Prime Minister) the leader of the party that gains
a plurality of seats in the quinquennial elections for the
unicameral legislature.

The police are commanded by a civilian commissioner under the
effective supervision of the Government.

The economy is a mixture of state-owned and private industry,
with tourism and light manufacturing as the largest sectors.

The Government is strongly committed to human rights.  An
independent judiciary upholds the Constitution's protections
for individual rights and freedoms.  However, societal
discrimination against women remains widespread.

RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Section 1  Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
           Freedom from:

     a.  Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing

There were no reports of political or extrajudicial killing.

     b.  Disappearance

There were no known instances of political disappearance.

     c.  Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading
         Treatment or Punishment

The Constitution prohibits inhuman or degrading punishment or
treatment.  There were no reports of violations.

     d.  Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile

The Constitution provides for freedom from arbitrary arrest and
detention.  There were no reports of violations.  The police
may arrest a person for questioning, on the basis of reasonable
suspicion, but within 48 hours must either release the suspect
or lodge charges.  Arrested persons have no right to legal
counsel during this 48-hour period.  Persons incarcerated
pending trial are granted access to counsel.  Bail is normally
granted.

The law prohibits political exile.  No cases were reported.

     e.  Denial of Fair Public Trial

The judiciary is independent of the other branches.

The Constitution requires a fair public trial before an
impartial court.  Defendants have the right to counsel of their
choice or (if they cannot pay the cost) to court-appointed
counsel at public expense.  Defendants enjoy a presumption of
innocence.  They may confront witnesses, and present evidence.
They also have the right of appeal.

There are no political prisoners.

     f.  Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
         Correspondence

The Constitution protects privacy of the home and prohibits
electronic surveillance.  The Government respects these
provisions.  Search warrants are issued by police officers of
the rank of inspector or above based on perceived reasonable
grounds for suspicion of wrongdoing.

Section 2  Respect for Civil Liberties, Including

     a.  Freedom of Speech and Press

The Constitution protects freedom of speech and press, and the
Government respects this.  However, the 1987 Foreign
Interference Act bans foreign participation in local politics,
including speechmaking, during a period leading up to
elections.  Three daily, seven weekly, and one biweekly
newspaper freely express diverse views.

Academic freedom is generally respected.

     b.  Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association

The Constitution provides for the right of peaceful assembly.
Police permits are routinely issued for political meetings and
other public activities.

     c.  Freedom of Religion

The Constitution protects freedom of religion, and the
Government fully respects this.  The state-supported religion
is Roman Catholicism.  The Government grants subsidies only to
Roman Catholic schools.  Students in government schools have
the option to decline instruction in Roman Catholicism.

     d.  Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign
         Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation

The Government does not arbitrarily restrict movement within
the country, foreign travel, or emigration.  A court order may
prohibit the departure from the country of anyone who is the
subject of a formal complaint alleging nonfulfillment of an
obligation, such as nonpayment of a debt or nonsupport of an
estranged spouse.

Since 1992 the Government has granted temporary refugee status
to over 900 persons, pending their relocation abroad, and has
provided assistance and counseling in cooperation with the U.N.
High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).  The Government expels
or repatriates persons it deems to be economic refugees.

Section 3  Respect for Political Rights:  The Right of Citizens
          to Change Their Government

Citizens exercise this right in multiparty, secret-ballot
elections held every 5 years on the basis of universal suffrage
for those 18 years of age or over.  In the 1992 election, 96
percent of the electorate voted.

Section 4  Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
          Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
          of Human Rights

Various human rights organizations and persons interested in
promoting and protecting human rights operate freely.  The
Government also places no restrictions on investigations by
international human rights groups.

Section 5  Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
          Disability, Language, or Social Status

The Constitution and law prohibit discrimination based on
gender; they do not address other discriminatory factors.

     Women

The Constitution provides that all citizens have access, on a
nondiscriminatory basis, to housing, employment, and
education.   However, the society traditionally does not treat
women's rights as matters of human rights; reflecting this, the
Government has been passive regarding women's rights.

Women constitute a growing portion of the work force, but most
either remain in traditional "women's jobs" (such as sales
clerk, secretary, bank teller, teacher, or nurse) or move into
more rewarding jobs only in family-owned businesses or in a
certain few professions (e.g., medicine).  Women generally earn
less than their male counterparts.

There is no widespread pattern of family violence against
women, but a continuing increase in reports of such incidents
has made plain that the problem is not negligible.  A special
police unit and several voluntary organizations provide
assistance to victims of domestic violence.  For women who are
threatened or physically abused, the Government also maintains
an emergency fund, and subsidizes a shelter,

Available data show prosecutions of six rape cases in 1994.
Rape carries a sentence of up to 10 years.  The law treats
spousal rape the same as other rape.   Divorce and abortion are
not legal in Malta.

     Children

The Government views the rights of children within the context
of general family law.  Specific legislation to protect
children's rights has languished in the Parliament for the past
2 years.  Meanwhile, the number of reported cases of child
abuse has grown as public awareness has increased, but it is
not clear whether the actual number of incidents has increased.

     Persons with Disabilities

The law protects the rights of the disabled.  The 1969
Employment of Disabled Persons Act led to greater employment of
disabled persons in government agencies.  The 1992 Structures
Act requires accessibility to public buildings for people with
physical disabilities, but implementation has been slow.

Section 6  Worker Rights

     a.  The Right of Association

Workers have the right to associate freely and to strike, and
the Government respects this.  Only noncivilian personnel of
the armed forces and police are prohibited from striking.
There are 24 registered trade unions, representing about 50
percent of the work force.

Although all unions are independent of political parties, the
largest, the General Workers' Union, is generally regarded as
having close informal ties with one party.  There is no
prohibition on unions affiliating internationally.

Under the Industrial Relations Act of 1976, the responsible
minister may refer labor disputes either to the Industrial
Tribunal (a government-appointed body consisting of
representatives of government, employers, and employee groups)
or to binding arbitration.  The International Labor
Organization (ILO) Committee of Experts objects to a provision
of the Act that permits compulsory arbitration to be held at
the request of only one of the parties, but neither unions nor
employers appear to object to this provision.  In practice, a
striking union can ignore an unfavorable decision of the
Tribunal by continuing the strike on other grounds.  No
disputes were referred to the Tribunal in 1994.

     b.  The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

Workers are free, in law and practice, to organize and bargain
collectively.  Unions and employers meet annually with
government representatives to work out a comprehensive
agreement regulating industrial relations and income policy.

Under the Industrial Relations Act, an employer may not take
action against any employee for participation or membership in
a trade union.  Complaints may be pursued through a court of
law, through a tripartite (union-employers-government)
tribunal, or through the Commission Against Injustices (a
government-appointed body composed of representatives of the
Government and the opposition); but most disputes are resolved
directly between the parties.  Workers fired solely for union
activities must be reinstated.

Malta has no export processing zones.

     c.  Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

The Constitution bans forced labor, and it does not occur.

     d.  Minimum Age for Employment of Children

The law prohibits employment of children younger than age 16.
This is generally respected, but there is some employment of
underage children during summer months, especially as
domestics, restaurant kitchen help, or vendors.  The Department
of Labor enforces the law effectively, but is lenient in cases
of summer employment of underage youth in businesses run by
their families.

     e.  Acceptable Conditions of Work

The legal minimum wage, $103 (40.33 Malta liri) per week,
affords a decent standard of living for a worker and family
with the addition of government subsidies for housing, health
care, and education.  Wage Councils, composed of
representatives of government, business and unions, regulate
workhours; for most sectors the standard is 40 hours per week,
but in some trades it is 43 or 45 hours per week.

Government regulations prescribe daily rest periods of 1 hour.
The law mandates an annual paid vacation of 22 work days.  The
Department of Labor effectively enforces these requirements.

After several years of debate, and amid reports of an
increasing number of industrial accidents, Parliament passed
the Occupational Health and Safety (Promotion) Act in February
1994.  The Act calls for the establishment of an agency to take
over enforcement responsibility from the Department of Labor,
which has been lax regarding these matters.  A date for
implementation has yet to be set.