Italy wants to send migrants back to safe countries of origin via asylum centers in Albania. But not all cases were handled correctly, a court ruled.
Following a court ruling, Italy has returned the migrants who were transferred to Albania. A coast guard ship picked up the twelve migrants from the port city of Shengjin on Saturday. A court ruled on Friday that they had to be brought to Italy because their countries of origin were not safe.
Italy has set up two reception centers in Albania where asylum applications will be processed. The first group of migrants was brought there by the Italian navy on Wednesday. It originally consisted of 16 people – ten from Bangladesh and six from Egypt. Four are already back in Italy, either for health reasons or because they were minors.
In making its decision, the court referred to a ruling by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) regarding countries of origin of migrants that were classified as safe. Meloni’s government recently expanded the list of what it considers to be safe countries of origin to include states where the conditions are not met in some parts of the country. According to the ECJ, it is not possible to classify individual parts of the country as safe areas of origin, but only entire states.
Italy’s government is defending itself against the verdict
Even after the verdict, the Italian government stuck to the controversial plans for asylum procedures. Italy’s Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi announced that his government would appeal the decision. He was optimistic that the verdict would be overturned. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wrote on the online service X that “the Italians have commissioned me to end illegal immigration and I will do everything possible to keep my promise.”
She scheduled a cabinet meeting for Monday to coordinate further action. During a visit to Lebanon on Friday, she said the government may need to clarify what is meant by safe countries of origin. The opposition has called for the regulation to be deleted.
Human rights organizations criticize Italian asylum policy
A year ago, Italy and Albania agreed to set up Italian-operated reception centers for asylum seekers in Albania. The asylum centers are operated according to Italian law and with Italian staff.
The agreement only applies to adult male migrants. The asylum applications of migrants who are classified as at risk should continue to be processed in Italy.
Human rights organizations sharply criticize the agreement. It remains to be seen how Italy will ensure that human rights are respected in reception centers outside the EU.
Source: Stern
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