Aid organizations that bring refugees to Italy without a permit risk fines of up to 50,000 euros in the future. This is stated in a draft law that the Italian governing party Forza Italia has submitted to parliament.
It also provides for the confiscation of the ship, as Maurizio Gasparri of Forza Italia announced on Tuesday. “Aid organizations that break the law can pose a public safety problem,” he said. It is an “urgent and necessary measure to end once and for all the activities of NGO ships in the Mediterranean.” According to the politician, the ships support the “journey of desperate people from North Africa and the illegal activities of the smugglers”.
The new draft law is based on decisions that were already in force from 2018 to 2019. The background is the dispute about a number of NGO ships that sailed to Italy with refugees on board without permission. The Italian authorities initially refused to assign them a port, but then relented after representatives of NGOs and other organizations called for the people to be brought ashore. For example, there was a health emergency and the need for medical attention. Some refugees had gone on hunger strike in protest.
Do NGOs have contact with human traffickers?
Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto has now also leveled allegations against NGOs active in the Central Mediterranean. “The NGOs go beyond all the rules. Some of these aid organizations are informed by human traffickers when the migrant boats leave. Judicial investigations are also underway about this (…)”, said the Minister of Defense. Due to the demographic development of Africa, it is impossible for Europe to take in all refugees.
The Italian government has requested a joint meeting of EU foreign and interior ministers to discuss the matter. There is a will to find a joint solution, said Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani.
Source: Krone
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