Italy rushes to pass law to save Albanian asylum centre scheme

Italy’s cabinet passed a decree which would allow the government to amend the list of safe countries from which migrants arrive, removing legal obstacles in implementing the government’s controversial, multi-million-euro migration deal with Albania.

The government was forced on Saturday to return 12 migrants who had previously been taken to Italy’s new migrant-processing centres in Albania, after a court in Rome cast doubt on the scheme.

According to the court, the migrants’ countries of origin (Bangladesh and Egypt) are “unsafe”. The court said that discrimination and prosecution in even one part of a country could make sending the men to Albania illegal.

In a blow to the scheme, which other European countries have expressed interest in, judges found that the men were at risk of violence if repatriated to their countries of origin, so could not be deported.

Following the court ruling, Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni convened her cabinet on Monday to find a legislative solution.

Meloni, who leads the far-right Brothers of Italy party, argued that the government, not the judiciary, should decide which countries are safe.

The Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Justice drafted the new legislation over the weekend, proposing that the list of safe countries could be updated every six months, according to local media.

Increased government powers

The court’s decision upheld a ruling by the European court of justice on the 4 October. Meloni’s far-right Brother’s of Italy party argue that the government’s decisions should take precedent over the judiciary’s.

“The definition of a safe country cannot be left to the judiciary; this is a political decision, albeit within the framework of international law,” said Minister of Justice Carlo Nordio.

As part of a long-running spat between the hard-right government and legal professional in Italy, Meloni said the court’s decision to return the migrants was “biased,” with colleagues in her party claiming the courts were filled with “politicised magistrates” who “would like to abolish Italy’s borders. We will not allow it.”

The scheme between Tirana and Rome set up offshore migrant processing centres in Shengjin, a port town close to Albania’s capital.

Up to 3,000 migrants picked up by the Italian coast guard in international waters each month will be sheltered in Albania under a five-year deal signed last November by Meloni and her Albanian counterpart, Edi Rama.

The deal has been met with interest by several countries, including Austria, Denmark, the Netherlands and Germany, despite Albania’s insistence that it is exclusive to Italy.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen offered her potential endorsement for the scheme, proposing that EU member states develop “innovative solutions” to tackle migration in a letter shared with media last week — a euphemism often associated with the deal.

Not everyone has responded so positively. After Friday’s decision by the Rome court, the Italian opposition (the Democratic Party, the Five Star Movement, and the League of Greens and Leftists) have said that the court ruling showed the scheme was against the law and should be scrapped.