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Migrants in Libya, trapped between war and Covid-19

May 5, 2020 - Nancy Porsia

Since the beginning of April, thousands of men, women and children trapped in Libya have been put at sea heading towards Europe. Estimations say that around 800 migrants left the Libyan shores in the second week of April alone. While the government in Tripoli sent thirty doctors to Italy to contribute to the fight against Covid-19, Italy and Malta declared their ports “unsafe” due to the health emergency, closing their borders to migrants on the Central Mediterranean route. Meanwhile, official detention centres refuse migrants, while dungeons run by militias have their doors wide open. Reporter Nancy Porsia describes what it means to be trapped in a country at war during a pandemic.

Doomsayers of the 21st Century

April 22, 2020 - Romina Vinci

Preaching about social distancing is no easy task when you live in a small and cramped space. Expecting the correct behaviours to be followed under poor hygiene conditions can be quite challenging. The foreigners who try and convey this concept to their families back in their home countries know this pretty well. Romina Vinci gives us a glimpse of a class of adults in Lombardy, Italy, in the middle of the Coronavirus emergency.

Is detention actually necessary and effective in the management of migration?

March 18, 2020 - Paola Petrucco

In Italy the practice of immigration detention was normalized in 1998, with the Turco-Napolitano law, in an attempt to manage migration flows, reduce the number of irregular foreigners and increase repatriation rates. Since then, it has been used as one of the main tools for the expulsion of those without a regular residence permit. In 2018, the adoption of the so-called Salvini Decree further exacerbated its use, allowing for an increase in the capacity of detention centres and in the maximum number of days of detention, as well as the suspension of humanitarian protection. Contrary to what has been assumed by governments, these reforms have proven ineffective both in terms of repatriation and integration. We talked about it with Jerome Phelps, former Executive Director of the International Detention Coalition and former Director of Detention Action.

Tensions in Greece showcase the Failure of the EU’s Migration Policies

March 6, 2020 - Marianna Karakoulaki

Rumours about a migrant killed near the border; islanders "welcoming" people on a dinghy with insults and violence; thousands of men, women and children gathered at the border while the authorities deploy riot police. With Marianne Karakoulaki we return to Greece, where the events of the last few hours seem to show yet another failure of European migration policies.

The Story of Anthionia, detained in a pre-removal centre and almost expelled (in spite of the rules)

February 12, 2020 - Gennaro Santoro

In accordance with Italian and international standards, as well as case law of the Court of Rome, only the Territorial Asylum Commission can determine whether a second asylum application based on new facts is admissible or not. A circular issued by the Ministry of the Interior, however, has allowed for the Police to decide upon the repatriation of vulnerable individuals prior to the deliberation of the competent Territorial Asylum Commission on the matter. For many, this entails expulsion and detention in pre-removal centres - facilities that too often have been under public fire due to systematic violations of the human rights of the individuals held there (the latest case was that of a detainee’s death in the centre of Gradisca d’Isonzo). In this article, the first in a series dedicated to alternatives to detention, lawyer Gennaro Santoro reports on some of the cases that have occured in recent months.

Situation on Greek Islands Showcases the EU’s Failure on Migration

September 24, 2019 - Marianna Karakoulaki

In August alone, 102 boats landed on the island of Lesbos and more than 2,800 people were assisted. Thousands more people were received in the Moria camp, already collapsing - it is hosting more than 10,000 people compared to the 3,000 places - which put the already critical conditions of migrants to the test even more severely. The health crisis, the new Greek plan for immigration and the harmful effects of the agreement between the EU and Turkey: Marianna Karakoulaki tells us about the situation on the island.

Tra i migranti senza diritti che attraversano la “necrofrontera”

August 8, 2019 - Lorenzo De Blasio

Arresti e detenzioni senza mandati giudiziari, racial profiling, fermi amministrativi che oltrepassano il limite legale, deportazioni forzate verso le frontiere sud del paese, rimpatri forzati anche nei confronti di minori e donne incinte, violenze fisiche e restrizione di circolazione nelle zone frontaliere. È quanto accade in Marocco, ultimo paese di transito nella rotta occidentale del Mediterraneo e attore privilegiato nel dialogo con l’UE per la gestione di quella frontiera esterna. A denunciare le terribili condizioni di quella che hanno definito "necrofrontiera" è il collettivo Caminando Fronteras, Lorenzo De Blasio parte proprio dal loro ultimo rapporto per raccontarci la situazione.

Al centro della Balkan Route, lontano dal sogno europeo: ecco il Kosovo

July 17, 2019 - Christian Elia

A metà strada tra Berlino e Aleppo, al centro della Balkan Route, ma ancora lontana dai numeri di profughi che passano nei paesi vicini. Siamo in Kosovo dove il ricordo della guerra è ancora vivo, ma sembra non stemperare le diffidenze verso i nuovi migranti e i gruppi etnici minoritari. Tra il timore per il ritorno dei foreign fighters e il sogno dell'Europa, Christian Elia ci fa conoscere lo strano caso della giovane nazione balcanica, dove un terzo della popolazione cerca di abbandonare il paese.

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