Amnesty International again today expressed concern about the agreement between Italy and Albania for migrants from North African countries, which envisages keeping them in Albanian territory, pending the examination of asylum requests. As the protocol between the two countries began to be discussed today in the Chamber of Deputies, the well-known organization for the protection of human rights called on the Italian parliamentarians to oppose it.
The agreement signed on November 6 of last year in Rome, between the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, provides for the establishment of two centers, the first in Shengjin where the procedures for the verification of migrants will be carried out and the second in Gjadër, where they will be kept in isolation, until the end of the procedures for accepting or not accepting asylum.
According to Amnesty International's statement today, "the scheme to build migrant detention centers in Albania is part of a wider international trend to shift border control and asylum processing to third countries: a move that threatens human rights of migrants and refugees and may lead to greater suffering".
Matteo de Bellis, Migration and Asylum researcher at the organization, estimates that "this agreement represents another shameful attempt by Italy to circumvent international and EU law, with potentially serious consequences for people seeking asylum." According to him, "this unworkable, harmful and illegal proposal would subject people in need to lengthy and unnecessary transfers by sea and end up in automatic and potentially prolonged detention, in violation of international law .”
According to the protocol between the two countries, migrants caught in the open sea will be transferred to Albania. "With hundreds of miles of distance between the central Mediterranean, where most crossings and shipwrecks occur, and Albania, the agreement clearly violates Italy's obligation to disembark rescued people at sea as soon as possible after their rescue. It can also weaken the wider search and rescue system, which is likely to jeopardize the safety of people in need of rescue at sea," notes Amnesty International's statement.
According to the agreements, Albania offers only its territory, while the responsibility, including the jurisdiction over the two centers, remains only with Italy. "While the implementation of Italian jurisdiction appears to promise access to procedural guarantees and asylum rights in accordance with Italian and EU law, in reality access to such guarantees can be severely hindered", Amnesty points out, as according to it "to all persons brought to the centers in Albania, including asylum seekers, would be automatically detained. The automatic ban is inherently arbitrary and therefore illegal. Combined with recent changes to Italian law, the deal could lead to the banning, on a permanent basis, of platforms for more than 18 months."
The statement of the organization for Human Rights comes while the text of the agreement was reviewed in principle today in the Chamber of Deputies of the Italian Parliament. The vote is expected over the next two days. "Instead of ratifying this harmful deal, Italian MPs should support measures to ensure adequate reception in Italy, access to an effective asylum procedure and safe and regular access routes, especially for people seeking international protection," concludes Amnesty International.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who comes from the nationalist right, came to power promising to curb migration, but in fact the flows increased. The Italian opposition raised many questions about the agreement and is strongly opposing it, emphasizing the risk of violating international norms and conventions, or the very usefulness of this act.
In Albania, the opposition has also expressed serious concerns. According to her, the agreement is estimated to have such elements that go beyond a document between two governments, and as a result, authorization from the president of the Republic should have been requested. Likewise, the recognition of Italian jurisdiction over the territory where the centers will be established is seen as a violation of sovereignty and territorial integrity. Precisely for these issues and the claims that the protocol between the two countries contradicts the international conventions to which Albania is a party, 28 right-wing deputies have addressed the Constitutional Court. In December, this Court decided to suspend the ratification procedures in the parliament. The case is being judged behind closed doors only on the basis of documentation. After last week's session, the Court will probably come out with a decision in two days, he writes VOA.
