Personal liberty under the constitution and other related laws

Abstract

In this thesis I have tried to give expression to the legal concept of personal liberty and restrictions thereto as seen through the Constitution of Malta, our Criminal Code and the European Convention of Human Rights. In particular I have examined Article 34 of the Constitution and related it to Article 5 of the European Convention of Human Rights taking also into account that the said convention in virtue of the European Convention Act is part of the municipal law of Malta. I have considered the restrictions to personal liberty both in terms of Article 34 of the Constitution as well as under Article 5 of the Convention. In determining such restrictions I examined the concept of liberty both in its philosophical and in its legal concepts and made a detailed comparative study on the rights of the individual under arrest. I have given particular attention to right to counsel for persons in custody. In this context I ventured into the American approach governing same. I have examined in detail bail and its evolving notion. This thesis has given me the opportunity of also examining new provisions introduced in the Criminal Code governing both arrest and bail. I have also looked into the concept of house arrest and how this effects the right of the individual. In the course of these studies I had to make ample reference to case law both Maltese and foreign as well as the thinking of jurists.