Migrants decree, the government tightens its grip: the amendments are coming to the Senate

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The goal is to give further tightening on the rules now in force on immigration – in particular on the special protection that acts on asylum seekers and on the repatriation of illegal immigrants – so that they are a real deterrent against the arrival of migrants in Italy. The government is working on this after announcing that it will present its own amendments to the decree passed after the shipwreck of Cutro and to be examined by the Senate.

Shared amendments

In short, no step backwards. Instead, the executive would aim to strengthen the squeeze announced by Prime Minister Meloni after the Calabrian tragedy in which 93 people died, shared by the League and openly claimed by Minister Matteo Piantedosi. And he chooses to do so through amendments bearing the signature of the government – all, not just a part – perhaps also to give a signal of unity of the majority beyond national borders.

Surgical fixes

So on Tuesday at 6 pm the Senate Constitutional Affairs Commission will meet again. In addition to the executive’s opinions, which are still lacking, the focus will be entirely on the government amendments announced by the Undersecretary of the Interior, Nicola Molteni. The Northern League justified them as follows: “We will present them to address the further issues that have arisen after the issuance of the decree, taking into account the particular importance of the migratory flow in progress”. As sources close to those who follow the migrant dossier report, there will be few corrections to the decree, almost surgical, but capable of strengthening the ‘stop departures’ line and the fight against smugglers. All the more reason with the increase in small boats on the Italian coasts in recent days, and which will not stop in the coming months.

Opposition on the barricades

The oppositions, lined up in the Senate with a hundred amendments and protagonists of a protest, days ago, against a reformulation of the government introduced to guarantee the repatriation of illegally arrived migrants, in exchange for greater shares of the decree on flows with countries interested.

To file the amendments of the League

The bulk of the Lega-branded changes will not be touched but will be filed from a technical-formal point of view and put in order. For example, the limitations for obtaining special protection will remain but probably, in some cases, they will be stricter than today. On the other hand, the League’s proposal to create a mission structure, called its own ‘Structure’ and active in the Ministry of the Interior “with consultative and guiding tasks” for the integration of migrants, could fail. The risk – we reason in majority circles – is that it is redundant with respect to what already exists and works. Just as it may not be necessary to adjust the extension of detention times within the CPR (Repatriation Detention Centres). The League is asking for it, going from the current 90 days which can be extended by another 30, to 180 days which can be extended by 30.