The Justice and Peace Commission of the Archdiocese of Malta expresses deep concern at the recent prosecution of 12 homeless individuals, charged with loitering and begging, simply for not having a fixed address.
This distressing episode has laid bare the alarming reality that our system too often punishes those in need instead of offering a helping hand. As Archbishop Charles Scicluna recently said, housing is not merely a commodity but a fundamental human right. By criminalising people who are living in survival mode, we fail to recognise the dignity of people who are already living in severe hardship.
Reports from the courtroom described confusion, distress and tears. What unfolded was not justice but public humiliation for individuals who have nowhere to turn. This moment of neglect and indifference shows how vulnerable individuals, whether facing poverty, addiction, mental health issues, or a combination of these, are treated as problems rather than as human beings deserving of support.
This incident highlights more than a legal shortcoming. It reveals the degree to which society has normalised the marginalisation of people with complex needs, those who are poor, addicted, mentally unwell, and unable to meet social expectations. Far too often, these individuals are seen not as human beings, but as problems, disruptive, inconvenient, and unworthy of empathy. This perception reflects a broader failure to invest in meaningful services, especially specialised low-threshold shelters and mental health support systems.
The Commission calls for urgent action to address this crisis. Laws that criminalise survival behaviours must be reformed. Investments in services that meet people where they are, not where systems expect them to be, are desperately needed. Legal safeguards must be strengthened to ensure fair representation and alternatives to prosecution. And a wider cultural shift is essential: one that fosters compassion and rejects stigma.
The Commission also recognises the tireless work of NGOs, who provide care and accompaniment. Their efforts deserve greater support and wider replication.
The Justice and Peace Commission stresses that this issue is not only about housing or criminal law. It is about a lack of political will to prioritise the needs of the most excluded and an unwillingness, on both societal and personal levels, to see dignity in those who are difficult to love. The people brought before the court are the result of long-standing policy gaps and systemic neglect.
Pope Francis had often spoken out against the “throw-away culture” that devalues the lives of the weak and unwanted. In his Angelus of 29 January 2023, he said:
“The throw-away culture says, ‘I use you insofar as I need you. When I am not interested in you anymore, or you are in my way, I throw you out.’ It is especially the weakest who are treated this way… But people are never to be thrown out; the disadvantaged cannot be thrown away! Every person is a sacred gift.”
This is not only about what governments must do. It is also about how each community, parish, and person responds. Indifference is complicity. The dignity of twelve individuals was placed on trial, but it is the moral conscience of the nation that is now being tested.