NEWS | Wednesday, 21 January 2009

PRINT THIS ARTICLE

Julia Farrugia
The Commissioner of Children Carmen Zammit has taken a stand over the alleged beating of a girl inside the government’s Dar Fejda home.
“Children can never be threatened,” Zammit said, adding that “threats can never be justified.”
Sister newspaper Illum revealed last Sunday that a girl had incurred beatings in the government-run institution which offers with a therapeutic programme for adolescent girls with emotional and behavioural problems.
It is alleged that the director of the home beat a 13-year-old child.
After this incident, a number of children escaped from Dar Fejda and filed a police report. Witnesses claim that upon returning the children back to the home, police officials allegedly warned the children “that if they do not obey” they would end up in Mount Carmel, the hospital for the mentally ill.
On Tuesday last week, two girls were admitted to Mount Carmel at 9:30pm, including the girl who was allegedly beaten.
“In the case of kids with mental problems, all forms of threats will be detrimental to them, even if the kids need to spend some time at this hospital,” Carmen Zammit said.
The government so far failed to answer questions on the incident, with the ministry for social policy saying it was investigating the case. “The police were informed and a doctor from the polyclinic was called on the spot.”
The ministry however failed to state whether the girl was medically examined right after the incident, or after the newspaper brought the case to light.
The government also did not confirm whether a magisterial inquiry was launched.
A former Dar Fejda Director for three years, Commissioner for Children Carmen Zammit insisted it was hard to express an opinion on what happened. “From my experience in this field, the situation can be complicated and it requires a whole study before formulating an opinion.”
Zammit says she was told an investigation will be conducted by people chosen by the social policy ministry, who do not form part of the Dar Fejda management.
The government also kept silent on whether an internal investigation will be held by the ministry to identify the person or persons who leaked Illum’s questions to the person allegedly involved in this case.
On Friday night, the director of Dar Fejda called Illum’s journalist to personally answer the newspaper’s questions instead of the ministry.
Another person, claiming to be a colleague of the director, called in threatening the journalist saying it was “in the personal interest of the journalist” to refrain from publishing the story.
Questions sent a week ago to the Police remain unanswered.

PRINT THIS ARTICLE

Any comments?
If you wish your comments to be published in our Letters pages please click button below.
Please write a contact number and a postal address where you may be contacted.