{"id":5859,"date":"2023-04-17T17:03:14","date_gmt":"2023-04-17T17:03:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=5859"},"modified":"2023-04-17T17:03:14","modified_gmt":"2023-04-17T17:03:14","slug":"italy-cracks-down-on-migrants-arriving-on-shores","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/europe\/italy\/italy-cracks-down-on-migrants-arriving-on-shores\/2023\/04\/17\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"Italy cracks down on migrants arriving on shores"},"content":{"rendered":"

ROME<\/span> (AP)<\/span> –<\/span> Italy’s<\/span> right-wing<\/span> government<\/span> has<\/span> advanced<\/span> plans<\/span> to<\/span> crack<\/span> down<\/span> on<\/span> hundreds<\/span> of<\/span> migrants<\/span> who<\/span> arrived<\/span> in<\/span> Sicilian<\/span> ports<\/span> on<\/span> Monday<\/span> after<\/span> a<\/span> coast<\/span> guard<\/span> rescue,<\/span> with<\/span> dozens<\/span> more<\/span> run<\/span> by<\/span> smugglers.<\/span> Brought<\/span> aboard<\/span> a<\/span> charity<\/span> boat<\/span> from<\/span> an<\/span> unseaworthy<\/span> vessel,<\/span> others<\/span> landed<\/span> unaided.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>This<\/span> week,<\/span> the<\/span> Senate<\/span> is<\/span> set<\/span> to<\/span> take<\/span> up<\/span> legislation<\/span> from<\/span> a<\/span> government<\/span> led<\/span> by<\/span> far-right<\/span> Prime<\/span> Minister<\/span> Giorgia<\/span> Meloni.<\/span> This<\/span> will<\/span> make<\/span> it<\/span> more<\/span> difficult<\/span> for<\/span> immigrants<\/span> to<\/span> obtain<\/span> temporary<\/span> residence<\/span> permits<\/span> in<\/span> Italy.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Coalition<\/span> partner<\/span> Matteo<\/span> Salvini,<\/span> who<\/span> heads<\/span> the<\/span> anti-immigrant<\/span> party,<\/span> said<\/span> the<\/span> state<\/span> would<\/span> grant<\/span> what<\/span> is<\/span> known<\/span> as<\/span> “special<\/span> protection”<\/span> status<\/span> to<\/span> many<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> tens<\/span> of<\/span> thousands<\/span> of<\/span> migrants<\/span> who<\/span> have<\/span> landed<\/span> in<\/span> Italy<\/span> over<\/span> the<\/span> years<\/span> on<\/span> smuggling<\/span> ships<\/span> from<\/span> Libya.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>This<\/span> status<\/span> allows<\/span> an<\/span> immigrant<\/span> who<\/span> is<\/span> unlikely<\/span> to<\/span> obtain<\/span> refugee<\/span> status<\/span> to<\/span> stay<\/span> in<\/span> Italy<\/span> for<\/span> two<\/span> years<\/span> until<\/span> renewed.<\/span> During<\/span> this<\/span> time,<\/span> they<\/span> can<\/span> work<\/span> legally<\/span> and<\/span> rent<\/span> an<\/span> apartment.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Salvini<\/span> argues<\/span> that<\/span> the<\/span> possibility<\/span> of<\/span> “special<\/span> protection”<\/span> acts<\/span> as<\/span> a<\/span> “driving<\/span> factor”<\/span> encouraging<\/span> migrants<\/span> to<\/span> leave<\/span> their<\/span> home<\/span> countries<\/span> in<\/span> Africa,<\/span> the<\/span> Middle<\/span> East<\/span> and<\/span> Asia.Many<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> migrants<\/span> live<\/span> in<\/span> sub-Saharan<\/span> Africa.<\/span> ,<\/span> North<\/span> Africa,<\/span> Pakistan,<\/span> Bangladesh<\/span> and<\/span> Egypt<\/span> fleeing<\/span> poverty<\/span> and<\/span> lack<\/span> of<\/span> decent<\/span> jobs.<\/span><\/p>\n

But<\/span> on<\/span> Monday,<\/span> two<\/span> humanitarian<\/span> groups,<\/span> Alarm<\/span> Phone,<\/span> which<\/span> monitors<\/span> migrant<\/span> ships<\/span> in<\/span> distress<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> Mediterranean,<\/span> and<\/span> Emergency,<\/span> which<\/span> operates<\/span> rescue<\/span> boats,<\/span> tweeted<\/span> that<\/span> Malta<\/span> had<\/span> instructed<\/span> cargo<\/span> ships<\/span> to<\/span> come<\/span> and<\/span> rescue<\/span> some<\/span> boats.<\/span> and<\/span> the<\/span> rescued<\/span> passengers<\/span> later<\/span> become<\/span> the<\/span> archipelago’s<\/span> exit.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>On<\/span> Sunday,<\/span> Alarm<\/span> Phone<\/span> said<\/span> there<\/span> were<\/span> about<\/span> 60<\/span> migrants<\/span> in<\/span> total<\/span> on<\/span> her<\/span> two<\/span> wrecked<\/span> boats.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Others<\/span> arrived<\/span> in<\/span> Catania<\/span> late<\/span> Sunday<\/span> night<\/span> on<\/span> a<\/span> ship<\/span> owned<\/span> by<\/span> Frontex,<\/span> the<\/span> European<\/span> Union’s<\/span> border<\/span> security<\/span> agency.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Also<\/span> on<\/span> Sunday,<\/span> an<\/span> Italian<\/span> naval<\/span> vessel<\/span> carried<\/span> about<\/span> 300<\/span> rescued<\/span> migrants<\/span> to<\/span> another<\/span> Sicilian<\/span> port,<\/span> Augusta,<\/span> Italian<\/span> media<\/span> reported.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Arriving<\/span> unaided,<\/span> dozens<\/span> of<\/span> other<\/span> immigrants<\/span> landed<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> tiny<\/span> island<\/span> of<\/span> Lampedusa.<\/span> Among<\/span> them<\/span> were<\/span> some<\/span> who<\/span> found<\/span> residents<\/span> of<\/span> a<\/span> small<\/span> tourist<\/span> and<\/span> fishing<\/span> island<\/span> strolling<\/span> along<\/span> the<\/span> beach.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Separately,<\/span> Emergency<\/span> said<\/span> rescue<\/span> vessel<\/span> life<\/span> support<\/span> rescued<\/span> 55<\/span> migrants<\/span> from<\/span> a<\/span> smuggled<\/span> vessel<\/span> on<\/span> Saturday.<\/span> She<\/span> lamented<\/span> that<\/span> Italy<\/span> had<\/span> allocated<\/span> ports<\/span> on<\/span> Italy’s<\/span> northwest<\/span> coast<\/span> to<\/span> carry<\/span> passengers.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Allocating<\/span> far-flung<\/span> disembarkation<\/span> points<\/span> is<\/span> part<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> Meloni<\/span> government’s<\/span> strategy.<\/span> Salvini<\/span> points<\/span> out<\/span> that<\/span> the<\/span> charity<\/span> boat<\/span> essentially<\/span> acts<\/span> as<\/span> a<\/span> “taxi<\/span> service”<\/span> for<\/span> smuggling<\/span> operations,<\/span> encouraging<\/span> more<\/span> people<\/span> to<\/span> attempt<\/span> the<\/span> dangerous<\/span> crossing<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> central<\/span> Mediterranean.<\/span> As<\/span> of<\/span> Sunday<\/span> evening,<\/span> the<\/span> center<\/span> housing<\/span> migrants<\/span> in<\/span> Lampedusa<\/span> was<\/span> holding<\/span> about<\/span> 800<\/span> people,<\/span> almost<\/span> double<\/span> its<\/span> supposed<\/span> capacity.<\/span> Migrants<\/span> are<\/span> housed<\/span> there<\/span> and<\/span> then<\/span> transferred<\/span> to<\/span> other<\/span> parts<\/span> of<\/span> Italy<\/span> while<\/span> their<\/span> asylum<\/span> claims<\/span> are<\/span> processed.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> Meloni<\/span> government<\/span> last<\/span> week<\/span> responded<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> influx<\/span> of<\/span> migrants<\/span> by<\/span> cutting<\/span> back<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> time<\/span> it<\/span> takes<\/span> to<\/span> fund<\/span> and<\/span> set<\/span> up<\/span> new<\/span> shelters<\/span> and<\/span> repatriation<\/span> centers<\/span> for<\/span> those<\/span> who<\/span> have<\/span> lost<\/span> asylum<\/span> claims,<\/span> mainly<\/span> by<\/span> reducing<\/span> the<\/span> time<\/span> it<\/span> takes<\/span> to<\/span> set<\/span> up<\/span> a<\/span> state<\/span> for<\/span> six<\/span> months.<\/span> declared<\/span> a<\/span> state<\/span> of<\/span> emergency.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>As<\/span> of<\/span> Monday,<\/span> about<\/span> 33,000<\/span> migrants<\/span> have<\/span> arrived<\/span> so<\/span> far,<\/span> compared<\/span> with<\/span> about<\/span> 8,500<\/span> each<\/span> during<\/span> the<\/span> same<\/span> period<\/span> over<\/span> the<\/span> past<\/span> two<\/span> years.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Valerio<\/span> Valenti,<\/span> a<\/span> longtime<\/span> interior<\/span> ministry<\/span> official<\/span> who<\/span> heads<\/span> the<\/span> immigration<\/span> service,<\/span> was<\/span> appointed<\/span> commissioner<\/span> to<\/span> lead<\/span> the<\/span> emergency<\/span> response<\/span> on<\/span> Sunday.<\/span> Governors<\/span> of<\/span> four<\/span> left-leaning<\/span> regions<\/span> immediately<\/span> rejected<\/span> the<\/span> appointment,<\/span> saying<\/span> they<\/span> would<\/span> not<\/span> cooperate<\/span> with<\/span> his<\/span> plans<\/span> to<\/span> open<\/span> new<\/span> shelters<\/span> and<\/span> return<\/span> centers.<\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ROME (AP) – Italy’s right-wing government has advanced plans to crack down on hundreds of migrants who arrived in Sicilian ports on Monday after a coast guard rescue, with dozens more run by smugglers. Brought aboard a charity boat from an unseaworthy vessel, others landed unaided. This week, the Senate is set to take up […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5860,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[2465,562,1568],"tags":[4009,4010,4011,4012,4013,4014,4015,4016,4017,551,780,2729,2738,4006,4007,4008],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/italy.webp","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5859"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5859"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5859\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5861,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5859\/revisions\/5861"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5860"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5859"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5859"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5859"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}