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The Refugees (Amendment) Act, 2005 (Bill No. 52)

A BILL

entitled

An Act to amend the Refugees Act (Cap. 420)

Be it enacted by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the House of Representatives, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows>-

Short title and commencement.

Amendment of Article 2 of the Principal Act.

1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Refugees (Amendment) Act, 2005, and shall be read and construed as one with the Refugees Act, hereinafter referred to as “the principal Act”
(2) This Act shall come into force on such date as the Minister responsible for immigration may by notice in the Gazette appoint and different dates may be so appointed for different provisions and different purposes of this Act.
2. Article 2 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows> (a) immediately after the definition of “asylum seeker”
therein there shall be inserted the following new definition>
“ “the Board” means the Refugee Appeals Board established by article 5 of this Act<”<
(b) the definition of “the Commissioner” therein shall be substituted by the following>
“ “the Commissioner” shall mean any person appointed as Commissioner for Refugees under article 4 of this Act, and includes to the extent and authority given, any other person temporarily authorized in that behalf by the Minister<”<
(c) immediately after paragraph (j) of the definition of “manifestly unfounded application” therein, there shall be inserted the following new paragraph>
“(k) which is substantially the same as one already submitted by the applicant or by another applicant and which was, after examination, refused by a Commissioner<” and
(d) immediately after the definition of “safe third country”
there shall be inserted the following new definition>
““the Secretary” means the Secretary to the
Commissioners appointed under article 4(4) of this Act<”.
3. In Title I of Part II of the principal Act, the words “The Refugee Commissioner” shall be substituted by the words “Refugee Commissioners”.
4. Article 4 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows>
(a) sub-article (1) thereof shall be substituted by the following>
“ (1) There shall be a number of persons who shall be known as Refugee Commissioners.”
(b) in sub-article (2) thereof, for the words “The Commissioner shall be appointed” there shall be substituted the words “Refugee Commissioners shall be appointed”
(c) for sub-article (4) thereof there shall be substituted the following sub-articles>
“(4) There shall be a Secretary to the Commissioners who shall be a person appointed as such by the Prime Minister or a public officer designated by the Prime Minister to perform the functions of Secretary.
C 365

Amendment of Title I of Part II of the Principal

Act.

Amendment of

Article

4 of the principal

Act.

C 366

Amendment of article 10

of the Principal Act.

Addition of new article 19A

to the Principal Act.

(5) The Commission shall also have such other staff as the Prime Minister may deem necessary and appoint or designate as aforesaid.
(6) Applications shall be assigned by the Secretary to Commissioners on a rotation basis or as may be prescribed under this Act, such that each Commissioner shall, in relation to a case assigned to him, enjoy all powers granted by this Act to a Refugee Commissioner.”
5. In sub-article (1) of article 10 of the principal Act, the words “and to receive state medical care and services.” shall be substituted by the words>
“and to receive state medical care and services>
Provided that, saving the provisions of article 46 of the Constitution and of article 4 of the European Convention Act, when the Refugee Commissioner declares in his decision that an application is manifestly ill founded the applicant may be immediately removed from Malta notwithstanding any appeal under article 7 of this Act>
Provided further that where the Board finds in favour of the applicant and the applicant has in the meantime been removed from Malta, the declaration of the Minister under article 7(10) of this Act shall also state that the person so removed is entitled to return to Malta without the need of any visa”.
6. Immediately after article 19 of the principal Act there shall be inserted the following new article 19A>

“Regulations establishing

a detention service.

19A. The Minister may also make regulations to establish a body corporate or unincorporate which shall be responsible for keeping in detention, persons liable to be kept in detention under the provisions of this Act or under regulations made thereunder and without prejudice to the generality of the aforesaid, such regulations may make provision for any matter whatsoever concerning the functions, funding, staffing, organization and administration of such body as well as for any other matter deemed necessary or expedient by the Minister to enable that body to carry out its functions under the regulations and for any other purpose consequential or ancillary to the aforesaid.”.
7. The Immigration Act shall be amended as follows> (a) article 15 thereof shall be amended as follows>
(i) immediately after sub-article (2) thereof, there shall be added the following new sub-articles>
“(3) At the request of the Principal Immigration Officer the carrier shall also return, as specified in sub- article (2), a third country national in transit through Malta if the carrier which was to take him to his country of destination refuses to take him on board or the authorities of the state of destination have refused him entry and have sent him back to Malta.
(4) A carrier which cannot return a person as laid down in sub-articles (2) and (3), shall find the means of onward transportation immediately and bear the costs thereof, or, if immediate onward transportation is not possible, he shall assume responsibility for the costs of the stay and return of the person concerned.”< and
(ii) sub-article (3) thereof shall be renumbered as sub- article (5), and in the said sub-article as renumbered immediately after the words “five thousand liri” there shall be added the words “for each person carried”< and
(b) article 25A thereof shall be amended as follows>
(i) immediately after paragraph (b) of sub-article (1)
thereof, there shall be inserted the following new paragraph>
“(c) The Board shall have jurisdiction to hear and determine appeals or applications in virtue of the provisions of this Act or regulations made thereunder or in virtue of any other law.”<
(ii) in sub-article (10) thereof, for the words “there is no reasonable prospect of deportation within a reasonable time.” there shall be substituted the words>
“there is no reasonable prospect of deportation within a reasonable time>
Provided that where a person, whose application for protection under the Refugees Act has been refused by a final decision, does not co-operate with the Principal Immigration Officer with respect
C 367

Amendment of the Immigration Act, Cap. 217.

C 368
to his repatriation to his country of origin or to any other country which has accepted to receive him, the Board may refuse to order that person’s release.”< and
(iii) in sub-article (12) thereof, for the words “that there exists a reasonable prospect of deportation” there shall be substituted the words “that there exists a reasonable prospect of deportation or that such person is not co-operating with the Principal Immigration Officer with respect to his repatriation to his country of origin or to another country which has accepted to receive him,”.

Objects and Reasons

The main purpose of this Bill is to accelerate the process of repatriation of asylum seekers whose case for protection is declared to be manifestly unfounded by the Refugee Commissioner, and of those who by a final decision have been declared not to enjoy any protection under refugee law. Another purpose is to impose an obligation on carriers to take back passengers in transit who are not allowed to proceed to their country of destination.

Ippubblikat mid-Dipartiment ta’ l-Informazzjoni (doi.gov.mt) — Valletta — Published by the Department of Information (doi.gov.mt) — Valletta

Mitbug[ fl-Istamperija tal-Gvern — Printed at the Government Printing Press

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