Fatshimetrie navale: A new chapter in the European migration crisis
The thorny issue of migration in Europe has recently been the subject of a new controversy with the arrival of an Italian naval vessel carrying eight survivors near the island of Lampedusa, which finally docked at the Albanian port of Shengjin last Friday.
This event marks the second group of migrants to be welcomed in the city under an agreement between Rome and Tirana. Under the terms of the agreement, those intercepted by the Italian coast guard are to be housed in two reception centers in Albania, with a limit of 3,000 people at any one time.
Under the supervision of Italian personnel, the migrants are then examined for any possible asylum applications in Italy. If refused, they will be returned to their country of origin.
However, an initial group of 16 migrants transferred to Albania last month were all quickly moved to Italy, four of them because they were minors or had health problems.
A court in Rome ruled that the other 12 could not be held in the Balkan country because their countries of origin could not be classified as “safe” under European law. Therefore, their asylum applications could not be processed under an accelerated procedure in Albania.
The agreement between Italy and Albania has been heavily criticised by human rights groups, who see it as a dangerous precedent.
The situation highlights once again the complexity and sensitivity of migration issues in Europe, highlighting the challenges authorities face in balancing humanitarian imperatives with security and migration management concerns.
It is essential that European governments find sustainable solutions that respect the fundamental rights of migrants while ensuring the security and integrity of their borders. This naval fatshimetry affair only underlines the urgency of a more united and coherent approach to the migration issue at European level, in order to ensure fair and effective responses to this humanitarian crisis.