Asylum deal with Albania – Rome court calls Meloni’s ‘mini-Guantanamo’

The judiciary has rejected the internment of twelve asylum seekers currently housed in the Italian migration center in Gjadër in Albania. Rome police ordered the measure on Thursday. They are among sixteen migrants (ten from Bangladesh and six from Egypt) who were brought to Albania on Wednesday by the Italian naval ship ‘Libra’. Four migrants are already on their way back to Italy.

Either they are minors or they have significant health problems. According to the court order, the twelve remaining asylum seekers must now also be returned to Italy.

The ruling of the Court of Justice contradicts Meloni’s plan
Due to this order, they cannot remain in Albanian facilities, but they cannot be released into Albania either. “The two countries from which the migrants come, Bangladesh and Egypt, are not safe, even in light of a ruling by the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg last October,” the judges in Rome wrote. It was initially unclear whether the migrants would be returned directly to Italy or whether the process would go to a higher authority.

The judges’ decision is based on a ruling by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) from early October this year. This states that an EU country can only define a third country in asylum law as a safe country of origin if the conditions for this are met throughout the territory of the state, according to the European Court of Justice.

The plan for Albania is on the brink
The court’s ruling in Rome seriously calls into question the basis of the entire Albanian plan, on which the government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wants to spend more than 600 million euros over five years.

The regulations introduced by the Italian government assume that returns can take place through an accelerated procedure (four weeks) if they concern citizens from a list of countries considered ‘safe’ for migrants.

Controversial question: what is ‘safe’?
However, the European Court of Justice has stated that this condition is only met by countries where all categories of people, without exception, are safe from discrimination. Many of the 22 countries that Italy has designated as “safe” would not achieve this status. Therefore, it is not possible to detain foreigners in the refugee camps designated for this “accelerated procedure”.

The judge’s decision led to strong reactions. Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi announced his objection to the judge’s decision. “Pro-immigrant judges can participate in the elections, but they must know that we will not be intimidated,” said an official statement from Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini’s party.

The left-wing opposition party AVS said the ruling jeopardized the Meloni government’s entire Albania plan.

Migrants returning to Italy
Four of the sixteen migrants from Bangladesh and Egypt who arrived in Albania on Wednesday are on their way back to Italy. Two migrants said they were minors and therefore not covered by the Rome-Tirana agreement, which allows the procedure only for adult men. Two other men complained of significant health problems. The four were returned by patrol boat to the naval ship Libra, which was on its way to Italy.

Italy is one of the countries particularly affected by the flow of refugees from Africa to Europe across the Mediterranean. The numbers were especially high last year: almost 160,000 migrants reached the Italian coast by boat. Currently, fewer than half as many people are arriving as a year ago. Yet tens of thousands still leave in boats that are often barely seaworthy. The Italian experiment is being closely followed by other EU countries.