Italian courts are sending migrants
who have commited crimes back to Italy from two new centres for
processing and repatriation (CPRs) in Albania, Premier Giorgia
Meloni told question time in the Senate Wednesday, criticising
the magistrates' actions.
The CPR was originally intended to be a centre for migrants
picked up at sea and act as a deterrent for migrant departures
from Africa but the government was forced to repurpose it as an
ordinary centre for migrants in Italy after courts nixed the
detention of the first three batches of migrants sent to the
Balkan country ruling their countries of origin, Egypt and
Bangladesh, were not wholly safe.
"We have decided to use the centers built in Albania as ordinary
CPRs, so we have started to transfer irregular migrants awaiting
repatriation," Meloni said.
"Following this new provision, some Courts seem to be ordering
the retransfer to Italy, where the migrant makes an application
for international protection even when it is manifestly
unfounded.
"Now I don't want to create controversy but I feel obliged to
share with you the curriculum of these people to whom we should
consider giving international protection: almost all the
migrants transferred to Albania have committed very serious
crimes, including theft, robbery, illegal possession of weapons,
attempted murder, sexual violence, child pornography,
solicitation of a minor, obscene acts in the proximity of a
minor.
"Some people want to keep these people in Italy at all costs,
but we want to repatriate them".
She added that by the end of this week more than 25% of the
migrants processed in Albania will have been sent home.
"By the end of this week, over 25% of migrants held in Albania
will have already been repatriated in very short time,
demonstrating how the strategy and procedures we have
implemented, despite attempts to block them for clearly
ideological reasons, are working.
"We want an Italy that is finally capable of enforcing the
rules, of being uncompromising with those who commit crimes and
of defending the safety of honest citizens".
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