Corruption in Malta

GRECO, the Group of States against Corruption of the Council of Europe, produced a report that examines the level of corruption in Malta. During their visits, the delegation experts met senior officials from the State institutions, judges, prosecutors and police officers specialised in the fight against corruption, as well as representatives of various national institutions and journalists.
The report includes a list of recommendations to make Malta comply more fully with the standards laid down in the Council of Europe texts on the fight against corruption. Malta should have reported to GRECO within eighteen months on the measures taken and was asked to submit a report by June 2004. It is unclear what the Maltese government has reported in terms of progress on the recommendations. From the report:

The GRECO Evaluation Team (GET) noted that Malta - a tiny, densely populated group of islands with a rich and colourful history - is more or less a ”closed” society, with strong links between its inhabitants. This can cause special problems when it comes to dealing with corruption efficiently. Indeed, corruption is normally a crime without any specifically identified victim. It might be particularly difficult in a ”closed” society to bring corrupt practices to the authorities’ knowledge. These factors also complicated the GET’s ability to assess the level of corruption in Malta.

The GET noticed that press articles and representatives of political parties – maybe also because of the strong polarisation of the Maltese society - expressed the opinion that Malta suffers from corruption, a serious phenomenon which is not dealt with by appropriate means and as a priority matter. The way to deal with the problem is to raise the awareness among the inhabitants about the negative results of corruption such as higher prices on products and services. The GET was also aware that a privatisation process had just started in Malta. Such a process often raises a risk of corrupt practices. It makes it even more important to raise the awareness among the public. The GET therefore recommended that the authorities raise the awareness among the population about the negative effects of corruption, and encourage them to co-operate with the law enforcement authorities in the investigation and detection of these crimes.

The Media and Access to official documents:

The GET is of the opinion that transparency is a very important tool to discover and fight corrupt practices. Therefore, the GET recommended the Maltese authorities inform/train the public and public officials about the conditions required to obtain access to documents and files
held by the local and state authorities.

GRECO addressed the following recommendations to Malta:

i. that the authorities raise the awareness among the population about the negative effects of
corruption, and encourage them to co-operate with the law-enforcement authorities in the
investigation and detection of these crimes;

ii. to strengthen the training of the Police investigative skills, putting emphasis in specialised
and regular training in the field of corruption;

iii. that the Maltese authorities consider legislation giving Police the authority to seek and
obtain wiretaps in the investigation of at least serious corruption offences, empowering the
judicial authority to authorise wiretap, and making wiretap evidence admissible in court, in
the light of the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. Moreover, it should be
made clear to all authorities involved in the investigation of corruption that wiretap evidence
is, under certain conditions, admissible evidence in court;

iv. that the oversight of the Department of Customs at the Freeport continue to be enhanced,
thereby discouraging corruption and other potential criminal activity within the Freeport;

v. to ensure an appropriate oversight of the exercise of licensing powers of the Local
Councils;

vi. that the local wardens undergo regular training with regard to corrupt practices;

vii. to use the Commission for the Administration of Justice in its advisory capacity on
appointments to the posts concerned in the Judiciary, thus contributing to the objectivity of
appointments;

viii. to offer specialised training for members of the Judiciary and the AG’s Office in economic
and financial matters and to introduce a particular in-service training programme, including
for the fight against corruption;

ix. that, in cases of corruption, where the Commission for the Administration of Justice
recommends dismissal, the decision be made known to the public, and in cases where the
Commission does not recommend dismissal, the complainant is made aware of this
decision; it also recommended that the Commission makes appropriate changes to the
Code of Ethics for the judiciary when the cases before it so warrant;

x. that when granting a certificate exempting a person from criminal proceedings, as provided
for by law, such decision should be motivated, given in written form, be included in the file
and, to the extend possible submitted to public scrutiny;

xi. that as a general rule, cases of corruption committed by certain categories of persons,
such as police officers or members of the judiciary, should be in the exclusive competence
of the Criminal Court;

xii. that the Maltese authorities consider the opportunity to establish a system of co-ordination
between existing institutions responsible for the fight against corruption;

xiii. that the PCAC: i) be empowered to make use of means of compulsion; ii) be given the
possibility to appoint, on its own capacity, persons with special knowledge when it is
necessary to assist the PCAC in its investigations; iii) publish the results of its
investigations on its own, without prejudice to pending Court proceedings; and iv) be
empowered to present its reports before Parliament;

xiv. the introduction of a more independent procedure/authority when it comes to dealing with
public procurements and tenders;

xv. that the Maltese authorities inform/train the public and public officials about the conditions
required to obtain access to documents and files held by the local and state authorities.

Moreover, GRECO invites the authorities of the Republic of Malta to take account of the
observations made by the experts in the analytical part of this report. Finally, in conformity with article 30.2 of the Rules of Procedure, GRECO invites the authorities of the Republic of Malta to present a report on the implementation of the above-mentioned recommendations before 30 June 2004.


The Council of Europe Group of States against Corruption - 1st Evaluation of Malta dec 2002- Full report

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