Opponents of the Italian-Albanian migration agreement argue that it is undemocratic because the peoples of both countries were not consulted.
advertisementA group of activists protested Wednesday as the first Italian ship carrying migrants seized in international waters arrived in the Balkan country.
Protesters gathered at the entrance to Seongjin Port, one of two centers that Italy opened in Albania last week, and held up a banner that read, “The European dream ends here.”
“This is not the first time we have opposed such a deal. We opposed it the moment we found out about it,” said Edison Lika, one of the protesters.
“This agreement is against human rights. More specifically, it concerns the rights of migrants. Such an agreement is not democratic because the people of both countries did not ask for it,” he added.
On Wednesday morning, an Italian navy ship docked at the Albanian port of Sungjin to pick up the first group of 16 male migrants, 10 from Bangladesh and six from Egypt, who were rescued at sea after departing from Libya, a defense ministry spokesman said. .
Last week, Italy officially opened two return hub centers in Albania under Rome’s jurisdiction, where it plans to process thousands of asylum seekers outside its borders.
According to Rome, the center will only house adult men, while in Italy it will accommodate vulnerable people such as women, children, the elderly and victims of illness or torture. Families are not separated.
The first center, located in Shengjin, 66km northwest of the capital Tirana, will be used to screen new immigrants, while another center will accept migrants about 22km east near the former military airport in Gjader. Request for asylum.
Up to 3,000 migrants apprehended by the Italian coastguard on the high seas each month will be protected in Albania under a five-year deal signed by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama in November.
Italy has agreed to welcome those granted asylum. Those whose applications are rejected may face direct deportation from Albania.
The controversial agreement to outsource housing for asylum seekers to non-EU member states has been welcomed by some countries burdened by the refugee crisis, such as Italy, but has also been criticized by human rights groups for setting up a dangerous situation. precedent.
Meloni and her right-wing allies have long called for European countries to share more of the migration burden.
The Italian prime minister has pitched the Albania deal as an innovative solution to a problem that has plagued the EU for years, despite a decline in the number of people reaching Europe along the central Mediterranean migration route from North Africa.
The number of migrants arriving in Italy this year is down 61% in 2024 compared to 2023.
According to the Italian Ministry of the Interior, as of October 15, about 54,129 migrants arrived in Italy by sea this year, a significant increase compared to 138,947 on the same day last year.
