ITALY: Detained immigrants use soldier deployment to draw attention to their conditions

Record ID: 348263

  • Title: ITALY: Detained immigrants use soldier deployment to draw attention to their conditions
  • Date: 5th August 2008
  • Summary: (EU) ROME, ITALY (AUGUST 4, 2008) (REUTERS) OFFICERS AT ROME'S ANAGNINA STATION PEOPLE PASSING BY SOLDIERS (SOUNDBITE) (Italian) MARIANNA BONGI, ROMAN RESIDENT, SAYING: "It's a very good thing for us who travel into town every day. It makes us feel safe."
  • Embargoed: 20th August 2008 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Italy
  • Country: Italy
  • Topics: Crime / Law Enforcement,International Relations
  • Reuters ID: LVA7DQFF0A7E4JCDIXJU227KUY2
  • Story Text: While hundreds of troops were fanning out across Italy to help police fight crime a group of detained immigrants protested over their conditions.
    While hundreds of troops fanned out across Italy on Monday (August 4) to help police fight crime, a group of immigrants protested, as soldiers were deployed around a holding centre in the southern Italian city of Bari.
    The protesters said they were aiming to draw attention to their conditions and on delays in their asylum requests.
    Members of the armed forces were sent to cities including Bari, Rome, Milan, Turin and Palermo with tasks such as patrolling streets along with police, and helping to protect "sensitive" sites, ranging from Bari's old town to Milan's Duomo cathedral, embassies, train stations and consulates.
    "The soldier's mere presence is a deterrent to criminals,"
    Italian Defence Minister Ignazio La Russa said.
    "The fact that the soldiers are deployed in the street does not increase a sense of fear but scares those who intend to commit crimes," he added.
    "It's a very good thing for us who travel into town every day. it makes us feel safe," Marianna Bongi, a Rome resident said.
    The soldiers also guarded detention centres processing illegal immigrants, blamed by the government for much of Italy's crime.
    As part of his anti-crime initiative, Berlusconi's government pushed legislation through parliament last month aimed at stemming illegal immigration. It also declared a state of emergency that gave police and local authorities added powers to tackle immigration-related problems.
    But the government's handling of immigration and minority issues -- particularly regarding Roma people -- has sparked criticism from the Vatican, human rights groups and some European bodies over fears it could stoke xenophobia.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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