Italy declares state of emergency amid surge in migrant arrivals
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The Italian coast guard carried out a rescue operation of some 1,200 migrants aboard two fishing boats on April 10 in Ionian Sea of the Mediterranean.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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ROME - Italy’s Cabinet on Tuesday announced a state of emergency on immigration following a sharp rise in flows across the Mediterranean, in a move aimed at better management of migrant arrivals and repatriation facilities.
The state of emergency will be backed by initial funding of 5 million euros (S$7.3 million) and will last for six months, the Ministry of Sea and Civil Protection said.
“Let it be clear, we are not solving the problem, the solution can only depend on responsible intervention by the European Union,” said Civil Protection and Sea Policies Minister Nello Musumeci.
The measure will allow Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing government to more quickly repatriate those not allowed to stay in Italy, boosting identification and expulsion orders, a government source said.
The government, in office since October, has pledged to curb mass immigration, but some 31,300 migrants have arrived in Italy so far in 2023, up from around 7,900 in the same period last year, interior ministry data shows.
On Monday, the coastguard led rescue operations involving two boats carrying a total of 1,200 people, with charity groups also joining efforts to save lives at sea.
Following a deadly shipwreck off the southern Italian region of Calabria in late February
“It is right that the interior ministry and the institutions should have special powers to tackle and manage a complex phenomenon which is putting a strain on some southern regions,” Calabria governor Roberto Occhiuto said. REUTERS
