Illegal migrants in Italy

COLOR OF WATER

By Malou Guanzon-Apalisok
Cebu Daily News Inquirer.net
First Posted 11:43:00 07/10/2009

Cause-oriented groups are up in arms against a new law in Italy which is expected to unleash a broad crackdown against undocumented migrants in that part of Europe. The Network on Undocumented Migrant Workers, a federation of grassroots organizations in the Asia Pacific region, called on the Italian government to abolish the law.

In a statement published by the Inquirer, the group slammed Italy’s tougher law on undocumented migrant workers. Stiffer fines and detention, formation of citizen’s groups to report undocumented migrants, and mandating parents to present documents of their legality before registering a child, are among the tough consequences of the law. In other words, illegal migrants are considered criminals under the new Italian statute, prompting the federation of non-government organizations to call it “the most repressive yet of all policies in the European Union”. An earlier provision that would penalize employers of illegal immigrants was allegedly set aside for political reasons.

Italy used to be tolerant of illegal immigrants but politics and the obtaining economic situation redefined the policy. First of all, the conservative government under Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi made an election promise to reset the country’s immigration laws because of the increase in crimes attributed to illegal immigrants from sub Saharan Africa and eastern European countries like Romania. Reports of violence have made Italians wary of their presence.

Last year, illegal immigrants from Romania, called gypsies or Romas have caused quite a stir after a teenage Roma girl allegedly kidnapped a baby in Naples. The local community used to treat the gypsies with leniency but after the incident, the locals got so angry that they resorted to violence. Roma camps in Naples in particular had to be cleared after an angry mob burned the makeshift houses. Fear swept across Italy after vigilante groups chased out the illegal immigrants from the camps.

When politicians and law enforcers talk of these incidents in the context of a negative response to integrate by “people who import crime” it is not surprising Italians become anxious of illegal immigrants. Because the problem also puts a heavy pressure on the country’s social services, Berlusconi’s stance enjoys popular support. I guess this is one election promise he delights in accomplishing because the surveys tend to sustain his decision. It is a policy that works well because he also scores cheap points at this time when the foreign media is scrutinizing his alleged dalliance with young women and prostitutes.

The short term benefits for a politician notwithstanding, I think migration has become a convenient scapegoat for lazy, ineffective and over conservative governments. They seem to overlook the fact that their countries have a graying population and migrant workers have filled the labor gap, a key factor in the efficient economies of the Euro zone. Despite the benefits they reap, they can only respond to the complexities of the situation with knee jerk solutions.

Reports published in the digital newspaper, Telegraph.co.uk, say there are currently 618,000 illegal immigrants in the United Kingdom. Of this number, an estimated 442,000 are staying in London. With such a large concentration of illegal immigrants in the capital city, a local chief executive would have already gone crazy, but listen, London Mayor Boris Johnson is advocating amnesty for illegal immigrants!

Johnson’s stance is sustained by facts. Based on a study by the London School of Economics, “an amnesty of illegal immigrants would boost the economy of Great Britain by £3billion and raise tax revenues by £842 million.”

Of course, this projection does not come cheap because the United Kingdom would need £1 billion a year from additional demands on public services and benefits caused by the presence of illegal immigrants. That is a problem for government administrators to sort out, that is, if they are willing to think and work hard.