Urgent information from Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi on the situation of migrants in the Chamber of the Chamber.
In the Senate Chamber, the information from the Minister of the Interior, Matteo Piantedosion the management of migratory flows.
“The absolute priority is the protection of people’s dignity. This is the lens through which to focus the decisions of the Executive which has the task of governing migratory flows”, said the minister.
About immigration “we act with humanity and firmness: we have no intention of failing in the duties of reception, but Italy is not entered illegally, the selection is not done by human traffickers. We want to govern the flows rather than suffer them”.
There are 100,000 migrants in the reception system and the prefectures report a saturation of places, availability and critical issues, Piantedosi said in the report to the Senate.
In 2022 there were 69,000 asylum requests, 56% more than last year. And 57% of those examined ended in denial; it means that the majority of migrants who arrive in Italy are driven by economic reasons and have no right to stay here: so Minister Piantedosi.
“The presence of NGO ships continues to represent a factor of attraction, a ‘pull factor'” for the flows of migrants and they are also important for “criminal organizations which base their modus operandi on the presence of NGO assets in the area”.
The voluntary form of the mechanism for the redistribution of migrants “cannot take off, we need a new European policy truly based on the principle of solidarity”, added Piantedosi.
“We are to activate humanitarian corridors for vulnerable people, to be used as a lever also for the countries of origin and transit of the flows – explained Piantedosi -. We must create legal entry routes for the countries that collaborate in the prevention of illegal departures and repatriations , with a reward mechanism in favor of the countries most engaged in the fight against illegal immigration”.
“The identification of the ‘place of safety’ should have been made by the competent State of the Sar Malta area in which the ships intervened, Libya and Malta, and then by the flag State. The request for the ‘pos’ must come from the State flag of ships not by NGOs. These ships act autonomously, also compromising the ability to carry out rescue operations. It is therefore legitimate to consider the transit of these boats harmless”.
“There are those who, even from positions today critical of the Government’s action, have supported in the past the need for a rational regulation of entries to promote employment in the working sectors neglected by the Italians; and those who maintained that opening the ports was irresponsible, which risked causing thousands of people to leave that would be difficult to integrate and that we would not have been able to welcome, a statement that also came from those who have defined our position in recent days as a disaster and a drama”. “I understand – adds Piantedosi – that for someone to change their opinion may also always be possible, but I observe that such delicate issues must be tackled with greater inspiration for cohesion between institutions”.
“In the period from 1 January 2021 to 9 November 2022, the NGOs, as part of 91 landing events, brought 21,046 migrants to the Italian coasts, of which 9,956 in 2021 and 11,090 in 2022”. Thus the Minister of the Interior adding that “according to Frontex data, out of the total number of irregular entries into the territory of the Union in 2022, the crossings along the Strait of Sicily represent the main route of direct illegal entries into Europe by sea. These entries are incomparable to land flows for charges, technical-operational methods and complexity of intervention scenarios”. The minister then recalled that the more than 90,000 migrant entries in 2022 show an increase of 60% compared to the same period in 2021, “heavily affecting the national reception system already tested by arrivals from Ukraine, over 172,000 people welcomed in Italy “.
ANSA agency
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On migrants, “we have raised a general problem. It is not a problem that Italy has with France, we pose a political, legality problem”, said Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani in a press conference with Greek Foreign Minister Nikos dendias. The Dublin regulation “seems tired” and now risks being outdated, but European solidarity cannot be ignored”. And “it seems to me that this cry from the southern border countries is starting to be welcomed, there is willingness. Problems are not solved in a meeting, but I have found, starting from Greece, Malta and Slovenia, solidarity”.
On the arrivals of migrants in Italy “we are ready to give support and help in this situation. And I will also have the opportunity to meet the new Italian minister tomorrow in Germany and this is perhaps something I will discuss,” said the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, meeting the press after the meeting of the College of Commissioners. Tomorrow in Germany, Minister Matteo Piantedosi is expected at the G7 meeting on the Interior.