Judicial Review
The Foundation was invited to provide feedback on the Judicial Review Act bill, drafted by Għaqda Studenti tal-Liġi (GħSL) and tabled in Parliament in November 2023.
The intention behind the bill was to clarify and streamline the judicial review process in Malta, which is currently somewhat cumbersome and convoluted.
Judicial review is a powerful legal tool which allows the courts to review administrative acts performed by public bodies. Administrative acts performed by Maltese public bodies would include, for example, decisions taken by the Malta Planning Authority, the International Protection Agency, and Identità.
As proposed, the bill would allow NGOs legal standing in cases of judicial review, meaning that an NGO can initiate judicial action demanding the annulment of an act performed by a public body on certain legal grounds, e.g. when the act emanates from a public authority which was not authorised to perform it, or where the public authority has failed to observe the principles of natural justice.
Once annulled, the decision is sent back to the public body which must take the decision afresh.
Campaign for Justice for Jean Paul Sofia
The PILN supported Jean Paul Sofia’s family in the campaign to initiate a public inquiry into his death. Jean Paul Sofia’s body was found under tonnes of rubble following the partial collapse of a multi-storey building whilst work was being carried out thereon. It took at least 14 hours to find his lifeless body. He was 20 years old and an only son.
Dr Eve Borg Costanzi and Dr Therese Comodini Cachia supported Jean Paul Sofia’s family in the public inquiry. It was concluded in February 2024, and it found the State responsible for his death. It also highlighted a multitude of shortcomings in the regulation of the construction industry.
The PILN believed that only a transparent and public process of inquiry could bring about justice for Jean Paul Sofia, for his family, and for society in general. The setting up of a public inquiry was essential to answer questions such as whether Jean Paul’s death could have been prevented; were there and are there failures in the system that are contributing to fatalities and injuries on construction sites; and how can reasonable action be taken to prevent avoidable fatalities and injuries on construction sites.
The initiation and conclusion of the public inquiry into Jean Paul’s tragic death is a crucial first step towards safeguarding the right to life of construction workers, who are too often victims of the exponential growth taking place within Malta’s construction industry.
Statement calling for a public inquiry into Jean Paul’s Sofia death.
Statement by civil society organisations calling for a parliamentary vote for a public inquiry.
Victims of Malta’s Construction Boom
The Foundation, through the PILN project, began research work related to construction site fatalities in 2022, when there was a clear trend of lack of accountability linked to construction fatalities – as was then confirmed by our findings in this report. Our efforts doubled a few weeks later, following the death of Jean Paul Sofia, the 20-year-old killed in a building collapse in Corradino.
Deaths in Prison
Following the surge in the number of deaths, specifically suicides, in Malta’s Corradino Correctional Facility (CCF), we wrote to Professor Nils Melzer, the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment at the time, addressing the 14 deaths in prison between 2018 and 2021 and the degrading treatment by prison authorities inside the facility.