COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION STARTS EXAMINATION OF REPORT PRESENTED BY ITALY

CERD
59th session
30 July 2001
Afternnon


Discusses its Contributions to Preparations for
the World Conference against Racism



The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination this afternoon started its consideration of the twelfth and thirteenth reports of Italy on how that country was implementing the provisions of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.

The reports, presented in one document, were introduced by Claudio Moreno, Ambassador and Chairperson of the Inter-Ministerial Committee for Human Rights of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who said that his country was undergoing a profound change in its social composition, and could now be considered to have a multi-ethnic society. He said that the main concern of the Government was that the enlargement of the resident population should be carried out with respect to national and international rules. There was a tendency to grant to legal foreign immigrants a status with rights exactly the same as the ones benefited by nationals.

Mr. Moreno further said that the phenomenon of illegal immigration was one of the main concerns of the Italian Government. Apparently, the number of non-European Union persons entering Italy was decreasing because of the new legislation that considered illegal entry a crime punishable by heavy penalties.

Marc Bossuyt, the Committee Expert who served as country rapporteur to the report of Italy, said that there were reports that some foreigners had been victims of prostitution gangs and violence. He asked about the impact of the 1993 legislation on the protection of foreigners; in addition, he said that the number of foreigners detained in Italian prisons had increased two fold, and the Italian Government should take measures in order to tackle this problem.

The Italian delegation was also made up of Luigi Citarella, General-Secretary of Inter-Ministerial Committee for Human Rights; Massimo Pierangelini, a Deputy at the Ministry of Interior; Donatella Pavone, Magistrate in the Ministry of Justice; Maurizio Stefaniili from the

Army of the Carabinieri; Giorgio Alessandrini, Chairperson of the Organization of the National Coordination for the Policy of Integration; Maria Marta Farfan, from the same organization; and Angela Melciorre from the Inter-Ministerial Committee for Human Rights.

Other Committee members who took the floor also made comments addressing the issue of the Roma people who were not recognized as a minority by the Italian Government. Several Experts focused on the situation of irregular immigrant workers and underlined that they should not be exploited by their employers due to their status.

Participating in the debate were the following Committee Experts: Luis Valencia Rodriguez, Ion Diaconu, Francois Lonseny Fall, Patrick Thornberry, Regis de Gouttes, Raghavan Vasudevan Pillai, Gabriele Britz and Mario Jorge Yutzis.

Italy is among the 157 States parties to the Convention and as such it is obligated to submit periodic reports on its performance in implementing the provisions of the treaty.

Before adjourning its afternoon meeting, the Committee briefly discussed its contribution to the forthcoming World Conference against Racism, with Committee Chairperson Michael E. Sherifis highlighting the contributions of the Committee in the preparations for the Conference.

When the Committee reconvenes at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, 31 July, it will hold a discussion with the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson. It will listen to the response of the delegation of Italy to its questions at 10:45 a.m.

Summary of Report of Italy

The twelfth and thirteenth periodic reports of Italy (document CERD/C/406/Add.1), presented in one document, provide information on the presence of foreigners in the country; racial-related programmes; racial discrimination in labour; and the treatment of foreigners in detention, among other things. It says that foreign immigration in Italy represents an important dimension of the social changes of the last decade. Besides autonomous migratory projects linked to the search for a job, family reunions and the presence of minors are on the increase. The estimate of the number of foreigners residing regularly in the country, as of 1 January 1999, is 1,126,000, or 2 per cent of the total population.

Italy is characterized by a model of "diffused immigration", with a highly fragmentary foreign presence coming from all over the world, the report says. The Italian model is profoundly different from that in countries of historic immigration, where, as a result of more selective policies, there is a higher ethnic concentration of the immigrant population. Women constitute 41.9 per cent of immigrants who have been present on Italian territory for more than 10 years.

The report says that children born of mixed marriages mainly have a foreign mother and an Italian father. The proportion of those born to European Union citizens remains quite high, 30 per cent, but the number of children born to Eastern European women is increasing very quickly, 63 per cent between 1992 and 1995.

Between 1991 and 1997, the percentage rate of foreigners accused of crimes increased from 4.2 to 9.8 per cent, the report said. This increase is also found for the same period, in the number of the convicted with a final sentence recorded in the central judicial register and even more in the number of foreigners present in the prison system, where they represent 31.6 per cent.

Presentation of Report by Italian Delegation

CLAUDIO MORENO, Ambassador and Chairperson of the Inter-Ministerial Committee for Human Rights of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Italy, said that his country was undergoing profound changes in its social composition and could now be considered to have a multi-ethnic society. At the same time, the demographic development of Italy needed a larger participation of persons coming from other countries.

Mr. Moreno said that the main concern of the Government was that the enlargement of the resident population should be carried out with respect to national and international rules, in the interest of legal immigrants. There was a tendency to grant to legal foreign immigrants a status with the same rights as the ones benefited by nationals.

The phenomenon of illegal immigration was one of the main concerns of the Italian Government, Mr. Moreno said. Apparently, the number of non-European Union persons entering Italy was decreasing. The tendency was in line with the new legislation that considered illegal entry into the country as crime, punished with heavy penalties. Criminal organizations who smuggled people from abroad after taking large amounts of money from them transported these persons in conditions which did not comply with minimum humane standards . A consistent number of casualties among illegal immigrants was registered every month, outside and inside Italian territorial waters.

Mr. Moreno recalled that the political elections held last May had shown a change in the set up of the wide range of Italian political parties. The new Government had committed itself to pursue the general political tendency of Italy in the field of the respect and implementation of all human rights, and the full compliance and respect of all international conventions and treaties.

Discussion

MARC BOSSUYT, the Committee Expert who served as country rapporteur to the report of Italy, said that the present report contained more ample information than the previous ones. After considering the previous reports, the Committee had expressed concern about the situation of persons of African origin and Roma in Italy.

The report had provided information on the number of foreigners living in the country and progressively, more women were being admitted as immigrants. The number of irregular immigrants had been estimated to be high in the country and it was reported that there was a wide range of nationalities living in the country. What was the criteria used to allow immigrants to come and settle in Italy? Were they provided with visas before they entered the country or did they enter illegally? Did they live in clandestine conditions once their visas expired?

With regard to racial tolerance, there were reports that some foreigners had been victims of prostitution gangs and violence, Mr. Bossuyt said. He asked about the impact of the 1993 legislation on the protection of foreigners. In addition, the number of foreigners detained in Italian prisons had increased two fold between 1991 and 1997. There was also a major problem in Italy with regard to asylum seekers. How many centres of reception were there for asylum seekers? Could the situation of illegal residents be regularized? The entire domestic labour forces was composed of non-European Union origin persons and the majority were women. The situation might cast a doubt that they were exploited without due respect to international labour norms.


Mr. Boussuyt said that Albanian and Italian criminal groups had been responsible for the smuggling of Chinese immigrants into Italy. The activities of the Albanian groups included smuggling in arms and drugs, as well as trafficking in women for the purpose of prostitution. People from African and other countries were trafficked into Italy through Sicily.

Mr. Boussuyt said that only 35 per cent of the Roma children went to school where they spent only 100 school days. What measures were taken by the Government of Italy to improve the situation of these children?

More information was needed on the recent sentence of the Supreme Court of Cassation of 23 June 1999 on the expulsion of foreigners, Mr. Boussuyt said.

Other Committee members also commented on the contents of the report. They said that the distinction of immigrants as coming from European and non-European Union countries might be a tentation for segregation. Jobs in hotels, bars and in homes were given to persons coming from non-European Union countries. The Italian Government was asked to take measures in order not to segregate immigrants from non-European regions.

The Italian Government recognized that irregular workers made up 30 per cent of the entire workforce, an Expert said, adding that they should not be left at the mercy of their employers because of their status. It was also recognized that the demand for irregular workers was accepted and that their number was increasing. What legal provisions were made available for the protection of immigrants working in irregular situations? Why did Italy not recognize linguistic and other minorities in the country as did Germany and Spain, which recognized the Roma as a minority. Referring to the Roma people as nomads was a sign of discrimination. How did the Government try to solve the problem of Roma who lived in camps without schools and health services made available to them.

An Expert said the report did not provide adequate information on the racist manifestations directed against football players of African origin which was on the increase in Italian football tournaments. In addition, the situation of the Roma people remained a matter of concern to the Committee. It was hoped, however, that the adoption of draft legislation, which was in the hands of the Senate, would contribute to the protection of minorities.

World Conference against Racism

The Committee briefly discussed its contribution to the forthcoming World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance to be held in Durban, South Africa, from 31 August to 7 September.

Committee Chairperson Michael E. Sherifis said that the Committee had made its contributions to the preparations for the Conference, particularly through a number of amendments of specific paragraphs of the draft declaration and programme of action. Those amendments had been sent to the regional groups and members of the Committee had met with the conveners of the regional groups to discuss the matters concerning the Committee's contributions. In the preparatory committee meeting in May, the Chairperson of CERD had introduced the work done by the Committee and had discussed it with individuals. It was expected that a group of Committee members would be going to Durban to represent the Committee.



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