Italy only allows vulnerable people, women and children to disembark NGO boats that have rescued migrants at sea. Italy’s far-right government refuses to welcome men to its territory.
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Only women, children and fragile people are now allowed to disembark in Italy. Migrant men are sent back to NGO ships. They are then summoned to leave the port of Catania in Sicily. Italy’s far-right government said on Friday November 4 that only vulnerable people would be allowed to come ashore for medical checks, after which ships would have to “remove” the remaining migrants from Italian waters. “Maritime law is very clear, protests the head of the mission of Doctors Without Borders Juan Matias Gil, rescue ends only when all survivors have landed in a place of safety”.
“We will not leave with migrants on board otherwise the captain would have legal problems.”
Juan Matias Gil, Head of Mission at Doctors Without Bordersat franceinfo
Médecins sans frontières filed an appeal before the administrative court to be able to disembark all the survivors. But the government of Georgia Meloni justifies its new policy and wants to criminalize NGOs. “These are organized practices, assures the deputy of the League Alberto Bagnai on the Italian television channel Skywe know that these people – who some define as traffickers of human beings, are organizing and meeting up”. “It also looks a lot like an attempt to socially destabilize a country like Italy which honestly don’t need it.” According to the latest figures, barely 15% of migrants are recovered by NGOs, the vast majority arrive on the Italian coasts in makeshift boats.