The Prime Minister of Italy, Giorgia Melonimaintains its intention to continue with his plan to deport migrants to Albaniadespite the recent judicial setback that frustrated the first transfer attempt.
This week, 12 of the 16 asylum seekers who had been deported were returned to Italy after the Court of Rome ordered their return – as had already been done with the other four –, arguing that Albania cannot be considered a safe country for them according to European legislation. Despite this defeat, the internment camp in Albania remains empty and the Italian Executive remains determined to carry out its plan.
The migrants, of Egyptian and Bangladeshi origin, had been sent to a camp in Gjader, in Albania, but were returned after the Court of Rome applied a recent ruling of the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU).
This sentence reduces the list of countries considered safe for quick deportationslimiting transfers to seven countries with low migration rates. Meloni now faces the difficulty of moving forward with its deportation model to Albania under these new legal restrictions.
The far-right has harshly criticized the Italian judiciary for its decision, supported by several ministers of her Government. The head of Justice, Carlo Nordiohas described the ruling as “abnormal” and has suggested that politics must intervene to define which countries are safe, something that has generated Tensions between the Executive and the Judiciary. Meloni has called a Council of Ministers to approve new regulations that attempt to circumvent the legal limitations imposed by the court ruling.
The main problem lies in defining which countries are safe to deport migrants. According to the European ruling, the list of safe countries is reduced, which limits Italy’s options to apply its controversial protocol of rapid deportations to Albania. This is a blow to Meloni’s plan, harshly criticized by anti-racist movementswhich now faces a legal crisis that threatens to dismantle the basis of its immigration model.
Meloni seeks to protect his plan to deport migrants to Albania through a decree law
Despite the difficulties, the Italian Government does not give up. There is a possibility that another attempted deportation to Albania in the coming days, this time with a more solid legislative framework to avoid new judicial blockages. Meloni seeks to strengthen its position with a decree law that defines which countries are safe according to Italian criteria, although this could generate more confrontation with the judiciary and the opposition.
Legal experts have pointed out that The Italian Constitution does not allow migrants to be detained abroad. The far-right plan contradicts both the Magna Carta of the country as well as European legislation itself and jurists consider that the president and her party seek to frame judges as the enemy in a strategy of polarization.
In this sense, the vice president of the Executive, Matteo Salvinihas blamed the magistrates for block your initiative for aligning with the left. This was done this Sunday during an interview on the news of Italian public television, RAI.
The leader of the Democratic Party, Elly Schleinhas accused Meloni of ignoring European laws and provoking an unnecessary institutional clash with Justice. He has also criticized the public broadcaster for serving as a loudspeaker for Salvini’s xenophobic speeches.
Furthermore, Schlein has stressed that the agreement with Albania “does not hold” and that the Government should respect the decisions of the CJEU instead of trying to evade them with legislative maneuvers.
Meloni’s deportation model has shown flaws since its implementation, since only a small number of migrants can be deported under the conditions established by law.
On the other hand, the high costs of mobilizing military ships to transport a small group of people and the difficulties in selecting deportees have highlighted the practical and legal limits of the plan.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has also revealed flaws in the process of selecting migrants for deportation, pointing out that many of those deported were in vulnerable conditions that were not detected at the time. Despite everything, Meloni seems willing to continue with her plan, using the conflict with Justice as part of her political narrative.
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