Italian Interior Minister Roberto Maroni on Monday pledged tougher measures to deal with illegal immigrants entering Italy by sea, after hundreds of such people landed on the small island of Lampedusa over the weekend.
According to Italian News Agency ANSA, Maroni said anyone illegally arriving at the island would no longer be sent to processing centers in other parts of Italy, but would instead be returned to their point of departure directly from Lampedusa within a few days.
Discussing the arrival of nearly 2,000 illegal immigrants since Christmas in a radio interview, the minister said the current situation was "an emergency, and as such, requires emergency measures."
"I have given orders to open a center on Lampedusa tasked with identifying and expelling arrivals," he added.
The minister also promised patrols of the Libyan coastline, the point of departure for many African migrants, by the end of January.
Libyan patrols designed to intercept migrant boats were originally part of a December 2007 deal between the Italian and Libyan interior ministries, but a series of disagreements since then have blocked the process.
On Monday, Maroni said the areas of contention in the December 2007 deal were being ironed out, while a separate bilateral agreement signed in August would be ratified by parliament shortly.
"I am optimistic," the minister said. "An Italian government delegation is currently in dialogue with the Libyans and I have received assurances from Foreign Minister Franco Frattini that the patrols will get under way in January."
Source:Xinhua
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