There is always a different way

Yusupha Dibassey from Gambia arrived in Malta as an irregular migrant in 2008. He was 23 at the time. Since then, Dibassey has lived, worked, created personal and social ties in Malta and is known in the music scene as DJ Dollarino. Now, at 41, he is being held in detention awaiting deportation.

Dibassey had his asylum application rejected and was in Malta pending his deportation. He was issued with temporary documents that were renewed every year. And as time rolled on, just like people do everywhere, Dibassey started creating a life for himself in Malta. Today, 18 long years later, Dibassey’s contribution to society risks being nullified.

Several organisations led by Dance Beyond Borders Foundation and backed by President Emeritus Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, have called on the Maltese Government to halt Dibassey’s removal and consider allowing him to regularise his status.

MaltaToday joins these organisations in their appeal because there is a perfect logical argument to be made why someone like Dibassey should have his status regularised.

There is no doubt that the decision to deport Dibassey back to his country of origin is legal and within the Maltese Government’s rights. The issue at stake is not a legal one but a humanitarian one; common sense, even.

In a context where Maltese employers keep complaining about the lack of workers; in a framework where government’s own labour migration policy seeks to prioritise worker permanency rather than constant turnover; in a situation where this country has actively sought to grant citizenship to foreign sportspersons to boost national squads; we cannot see any reason why somebody like Dibassey cannot have his residency situation regularised.

Home Affairs Minister Glenn Bedingfield is correct when he says the length of time Dibassey has spent in Malta does not give him a right to remain. We do not expect the length of time on its own to be an argument for regularisation. We also understand the government’s concern that opening the gate for one person risks creating a precedent. But there are mitigating factors to these concerns.

First of all, the government should continue pursuing a policy of fast returns through diplomatic engagement with countries of origin. This will avoid the sensitivity, heartbreak and inhuman nature of returns happening many years later, when the individual would have already integrated in society.

Second of all, in cases like Dibassey’s, if the individual has used the length of time fruitfully by getting a job, integrating socially, making personal connections and staying out of trouble, there is a strong case to be made on humanitarian grounds to grant the person a permanent status, if not outright citizenship.

If anything, Dibassey represents the type of foreign worker the government seeks to prioritise. He is someone who has put down roots in the country even if his arrival here 18 long years ago was irregular.

This leader is not calling for a blanket policy that automatically regularises people who have been in Malta for any length of time. It would be irresponsible and unpractical to do so.

But we are calling for a more humanitarian approach in cases where the length of stay has translated into added value for the country. A case-by-case approach, determined on the basis of clear guidelines, should be applied in cases like Dibassey’s.

We are not inventing the wheel by calling for such an approach. Indeed, Maltese law already grants the minister responsible for citizenship discretion to grant or refuse any application for naturalisation. That same discretion can be used to address situations like Dibassey’s.

But apart from the benefits the country can gain from regularising people like Dibassey, there is also a personal human dimension to these situations.

Removing someone from a country after 18 years upends an individual’s life. It creates turmoil and dashes hope. It is unfair on the person, who after so many years could start calling Malta home.

When asked about Dibassey’s case, Bedingfield acknowledged the “difficult and sensitive situation”, particularly given how long Dibassey had lived in Malta and the connections he had built.

We hope the minister can find it in himself to reconsider his options in light of the circumstances of this case. There is always a different way.