Immigration to Italy

In 2021, Istat estimated that 5,171,894 foreign citizens lived in Italy, representing about 8.7% of the total population. 98 to 99 percent more of Italy's full population is (caucasioid) as 2024. [1][2] These figures include naturalized foreign-born residents (about 1,620,000 foreigners acquired Italian citizenship from 1999 to 2020, of whom 130,000 did so in 2020[3]) as well as illegal immigrants, the so-called clandestini, whose numbers, difficult to determine, are thought to be at least 670,000.[4]

In 2021, around 6,260,000 people residing in Italy have an immigration background (around the 10.6% of the total Italian population).[2][5][6]

Starting from the early 1980s, until then a linguistically and culturally homogeneous society, Italy begun to attract substantial flows of foreign immigrants.[7][8] After the fall of the Berlin Wall and, more recently, the 2004 and 2007 enlargements of the European Union, large waves of migration originated from the former socialist countries of Eastern Europe (especially Romania, Albania, Ukraine, Moldova and Poland). Another source of immigration is neighbouring North Africa (in particular, Morocco, Egypt and Tunisia), with soaring arrivals as a consequence of the Arab Spring. Furthermore, in recent years, growing migration fluxes from Asia-Pacific (notably China,[9] South Asia, and the Philippines) and Latin America have been recorded.

Since the expansion of the European Union, the most recent wave of migration has been from surrounding European states, particularly Eastern Europe, and increasingly Asia,[10] replacing North Africa as the major immigration area.[7]

Romanians made up the largest foreign community in the country (1,077,876; around 10% of them being ethnic Romani people[11]) followed by Albanians (433,130) and Moroccans (428,940).[12] The fourth largest, but the fastest growing, community of foreign residents in Italy was represented by the Chinese; as of 2021 there were 330,495 foreigners holding Chinese citizenship.[13][14] The majority of Chinese living in Italy are from the city of Wenzhou in the province of Zhejiang.[15] As of 2021, foreign citizens' origins were subdivided as follows: Europe (47,6%), Africa (22.25%), Asia (22.64%), The Americas (7.49%), and Oceania (0.04%).[16]

The distribution of foreigners is largely uneven in Italy: in 2020, 61.2% of foreign citizens lived in Northern Italy (in particular 36.1% in the Northwest Italy and 25.1% in the Northeast Italy), 24.2% in the Central Italy, 10.8% in the South Italy and 3.9% in the Insular Italy.[17]

The children born in Italy to foreign mothers were 102,000 in 2012, 99,000 in 2013 and 97,000 in 2014.[18]

Statistics

On foreigners only, for more information dealing with foreigners who have subsequently acquired Italian citizenship refer to Eurostat site.

Total foreign resident population on 1 January[note 1]
YearPopulation
20021,341,209 (2.35%)[19]
20031,549,373 (2.70%)[19]
20041,990,159 (3.45%)[19]
20052,402,157 (4.14%)[19]
20062,670,514 (4.59%)[19]
20072,938,922 (5.03%)[19]
20083,432,651 (5.84%)[19]
20093,891,295 (6.58%)[19]
20104,235,059 (7.14%)[19]
20114,570,317 (7.70%)[19]
20124,052,081 (6.81%)[20]
20134,387,721 (7.28%)[21]
20144,922,085 (8.10%)[22]
20155,014,437 (8.25%)[5]
20165,026,153 (8.28%)[23]
20175,047,028 (8.33%)[24]
20185,144,440 (8.51%)[25]
20194,996,158 (8.35%)[26]
2020 5,039,637 (8.45%)[27]
2021 5,171,894 (8.73%)[28]
2022 5,030,716 (8.52%)[29]
2023 5,141,341 (8.71%)[30]
Foreign citizens (thus not including naturalized Italians and descendants) by country of origin [note 2][31]
Country200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018 20192020 2021 2022[32] 2023 [33] Regions with significant populations
 Romania177,812248,849297,570342,200625,278796,477887,763968,576834,465933,354 1,081,4001,118,7761,151,3951,168,552 1,190,091 1,143,8591,145,718 1,076,412 1,083,771 1,081,836 Lazio
 Albania270,383316,659348,813375,947401,949441,396466,684482,627450,908464,962495,709478,069467,687448,407440,465 423,212421,591 433,171 419,987 416,829 Lombardy
 Morocco253,362294,945319,537343,228365,908 403,592 431,529 452,424 408,667 426,791 454,773 441,104 437,485 420,651 416,531 406,112414,249 428,947 420,172 415,088 Lombardy
 China86,738111,712127,822144,885156,519170,265188,352209,934197,064223,367 256,846 263,659 271,330 281,972 290,681 283,430288,923 330,495 300,216 307,038 Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol
 Ukraine57,97193,441107,118120,070132,718153,998174,129200,730180,121191,725 219,050 222,039 230,728 234,354 237,047 227,867228,560 235,953 225,307 249,613 Campania
 Bangladesh27,35635,78541,63149,57555,24265,52973,96582,451 81,683 92,695 111,223 113,901 118,790 122,428 131,967 131,023138,895 158,020 159,003 174,058 Lombardy
 India44,79154,28861,84769,50477,43291,855105,863121,036118,409128,903 142,453 145,879 150,456 151,430 151,791 147,153 153,209 165,512 162,492 167,333 Lombardy
 Philippines72,37282,62589,668101,337105,675113,686123,584134,154129,188139,835 162,655 167,834 165,900 166,459 167,859 158,049157,665 165,443 158,997 158,926 Lombardy
 Egypt40,58352,86558,87965,66769,57274,59982,064 90,365 66,932 76,691 96,008 103,471 109,871 112,765 119,513 119,864128,095 139,569 140,322 147,797 Lombardy
 Pakistan27,79835,50941,79746,08549,34455,371 64,859 75,720 71,031 80,658 90,615 90,336 101,784 108,204 114,198 116,631121,609 135,520 134,182 144,129 Lombardy
 Nigeria26,38331,64734,31037,73340,64144,54448,67453,61348,220 56,476 66,833 70,775 77,264 88,533 106,069 114,096113,049 119,089 119,435 123,646 Veneto
 Senegal46,47853,94157,10159,85762,62067,51072,618 80,989 73,702 80,325 90,863 93,352 98,176 101,207 105,937 105,227106,198 111,092 110,763 112,598 Lombardy
 Sri Lanka39,23145,57250,52856,74561,06468,73875,34381,094 71,573 79,530 95,007 100,368 102,316 104,908 107,967 104,763107,598 112,018 108,069 109,828 Veneto
 Moldova24,64537,97147,63255,80368,59189,424105,600130,948132,175139,734 149,434 143,442 142,266 135,661 131,814 122,762118,516 122,667 114,914 109,804 Emilia Romagna
 Tunisia68,63078,23083,56488,93293,601100,112103,678106,29182,99788,29197,31793,79595,64594,06493,795 90,61593,350 97,407 99,002 102,422 Lazio
 Peru43,00953,37859,26966,50670,75577,62987,74798,60393,84199,173109,851108,46598,17699,11097,379 91,85991,662 96,546 94,131 98,733 Lazio
 Poland40,31450,97460,82372,45790,21899,389106,608109,01884,74988,83997,56696,28597,98697,06295,727 88,80386,743 77,779 74,981 74,387 Sicily
 Ecuador33,50653,22061,95368,88073,23580,07085,94091,62580,33382,79191,86190,68087,42783,12080,377 74,66172,644 72,193 66,590 63,211 Lombardy
 Brazil22,53325,82330,37534,34237,84841,47644,06746,69037,56739,15743,20241,97243,78345,41048,022 49,44551,790 50,666 47,318 51,125 Lombardy
 North Macedonia51,20858,46063,24574,162 78,090 89,066 92,847 89,900 73,972 76,608 78,424 72,175 73,512 67,969 65,347 60,581 55,816 55,771 53,443 51,090 Tuscany
 Bulgaria11,46715,37417,74619,92433,47740,88046,02651,13442,00047,87254,93255,75958,00158,62059,254 56,59356,645 50,355 49,205 49,518 Lombardy
 Ghana29,25232,75434,49936,54038,40042,32744,35346,89044,36448,57551,60249,96148,63748,13849,940 49,79749,543 50,778 48,280 47,335 Emilia Romagna
 Russia14,31117,18818,68920,45921,52323,20125,78630,50428,60430,94834,48334,70235,79136,36137,384 36,51237,424 39,746 36,982 39,705 Lombardy
 Kosovo 7,625 16,234 22,778 40,475 43,751 46,248 42,550 43,091 41,344 40,371 39,630 38,645 38,860 37,064 36,372
 Germany34,66435,55936,83438,13540,16341,47642,30242,53134,93635,57638,13631,77636,66136,66036,806 35,44235,316 35,091 32,984 34,003 Lombardy
 Serbia 57,826 53,875 52,954 43,022 43,816 46,958 41,708 42,264 39,937 39,690 35,578 33,322 32,898 31,342 30,835 Lombardy
 France26,42826,95128,02129,20530,80332,07932,95633,40023,98525,01629,07827,43628,63429,28129,991 29,00829,721 31,354 28,735 29,942 Lombardy
 Dominican Republic13,90415,28616,72517,89218,59120,58322,92024,52923,02025,40528,62328,27728,20228,00228,451 28,20829,111 30,255 28,812 29,571 Lombardy
 Georgia447569675811 1,012 1,482 2,734 6,520 7,083 9,123 12,124 13,688 14,045 14,603 15,203 15,021 15,667 18,272 22,907 29,222 Tuscany
 Ivory Coast11,43513,22814,37815,63717,13219,40821,22222,66520,87823,56325,95325,17425,05626,15930,271 31,00130,038 29,673 28,385 28,559 Lombardy
 Spain14,01914,83715,50316,29217,35418,25819,09419,88715,12917,02120,68221,00122,59323,82824,870 24,93625,954 32,637 26,417 27,854 Lombardy
 United Kingdom20,97222,31823,32424,67326,44828,17429,18429,56022,83923,74426,37725,52326,63427,20828,168 27,85729,654 30,325 28,355 27,758 Lombardy
 Cuba10,14911,36312,92714,07314,58115,88316,87817,94716,35017,53819,31619,56020,66220,98621,418 21,41722,311 22,958 21,499 23,531 Lombardy
 El Salvador4,2405,0855,5095,895 6,144 6,552 7,213 8,739 9,235 10,443 11,809 12,973 13,007 13,492 14,626 15,437 16,270 20,038 20,608 22,693 Lombardy
 Gambia541628650676 748 825 912 1,033 941 1,244 1,630 3,271 8,016 13,780 19,567 22,075 21,336 22,213 21,826 22,637 Sicily
 Mali547642702735 832 992 1,090 1,263 1,252 2,946 4,470 6,098 10,369 14,768 19,134 20,078 19,350 20,015 20,008 21,032 Campania
 Colombia13,98915,84316,81017,640 17,890 18,615 19,573 20,571 17,086 17,880 19,661 18,956 18,777 17,968 17,956 17,539 18,053 19,848 19,025 20,856 Lombardy
 Bosnia and Herzegovina20,15222,43624,14226,29827,35630,12431,34131,97228,01528,99629,83128,12027,19925,79125,034 22,94421,911 21,442 21,234 20,454 Veneto
 Turkey9,13011,07712,35913,532 14,562 16,225 17,651 19,068 16,354 17,711 19,951 19,450 19,388 19,217 19,509 18,780 19,168 20,999 18,930 20,080 Lombardy
 Algeria15,49318,73620,20221,51922,67224,38725,44925,93520,72521,80123,09521,89921,76520,43719,823 18,50718,468 18,538 17,998 18,095 Campania
 Afghanistan172198312442 1,063 2,198 3,372 3,811 3,512 4,813 6,635 7,330 8,574 11,224 11,738 10,600 11,121 12,199 13,547 16,872 Lazio
 Iran6,4056,5506,5666,850 6,913 6,983 7,106 7,444 5,962 7,273 8,995 9,540 10,304 10,794 11,565 11,837 12,866 14,255 14,009 16,490 Lombardy
 United States of America14,13214,15514,43314,904 15,036 15,324 15,708 15,620 12,184 13,165 14,963 14,145 14,512 14,649 15,004 14,966 15,393 18,837 14,496 15,582 Lazio
 Croatia19,89020,71221,23221,360 21,308 21,511 21,261 21,079 16,708 17,051 17,999 17,375 18,052 17,698 17,573 16,591 16,285 17,362 15,754 15,514 Lombardy
 Cameroon3,6824,6725,5296,249 6,940 7,994 9,175 10,324 8,830 10,071 11,880 12,298 12,738 13,308 14,529 15,170 15,329 15,581 15,013 15,443 Emilia Romagna
 Argentina13,17413,72013,90713,422 12,492 11,842 11,338 11,239 7,896 8,025 8,642 8,179 8,270 8,009 8,023 8,169 9,117 9,091 10,522 14,662 Lombardy
 Burkina Faso5,5457,0127,9498,543 8,960 10,493 11,784 13,051 12,752 14,007 15,301 14,797 14,657 14,306 14,435 14,051 13,979 14,236 14,167 14,204 Lombardy
 Venezuela4,2454,5794,9135,114 5,219 5,339 5,580 5,808 4,787 5,138 5,506 5,594 5,849 6,327 7,347 8,981 10,316 12,135 12,033 13,548 Lombardy
 Bolivia2,5083,6374,1274,800 6,043 6,796 8,855 12,268 11,774 12,357 13,919 14,384 14,243 14,076 13,955 13,277 13,141 13,271 12,924 12,930 Lombardy
 Guinea1,2591,6041,8132,014 2,268 2,679 2,991 3,360 3,297 3,896 4,371 4,425 4,928 6,897 11,240 12,728 12,213 12,255 11,796 11,880 Lombardy
 Somalia5,9636,0946,2496,414 6,237 6,663 7,728 8,112 4,586 5,235 6,878 7,677 7,903 8,228 9,102 8,626 8,515 7,629 8,370 9,349 Lazio
 Belarus2,0952,7913,2583,767 4,265 5,062 5,952 6,975 6,654 7,446 8,177 8,195 8,529 8,636 8,885 8,704 8,808 9,269 8,811 9,248 Lombardy
 Netherlands6,7876,9897,3567,752 8,165 8,521 8,651 8,695 7,163 7,378 7,856 7,616 8,106 8,243 8,344 8,184 8,283 10,092 8,367 8,820 Lombardy
 Eritrea4,9005,6347,0908,972 11,386 11,911 12,967 13,368 8,074 8,752 11,187 10,570 9,597 9,394 9,343 8,141 8,035 6,912 6,575 6,404
Rest of Europe118,159119,870128,299132,310143,60280,38186,34287,26169,06663,62262,334 66,817 81,254 84,149
Rest of North Africa and Western/Central Asia15,54016,71917,54318,56519,36620,44921,57222,78616,81244,52647,513 31,296 34,572
Rest of South Asia2663294264665146087018601,5161,630 1,729 1,816
Rest of East and South-East Asia15,35416,70317,50118,66619,35820,36721,38222,21822,89519,877 22,777 23,840
Rest of Sub-Saharan Africa34,10237,59141,01345,63048,56351,61954,09155,27252,59154,501 59,385 51,002 52,056
Rest of Americas13,06613,95414,71315,49215,71616,56717,32418,74618,40620,796 20,103 21,785
Europe904,490 (1.57%)1,111,199 (1.92%)1,249,605 (2.15%)1,380,974 (2.36%)1,771,308 (3.01%)2,067,868 (3.50%)2,251,635 (3.80%)2,422,399 (4.08%)2,134,986 (3.59%)2,601,3132,588,451 (4.28%)2,600,748 (4.31%) 2,609,690 (4.33%) 2,378,907 (4.03%) 2,397,731 (4.06%)
North Africa and Western/Central Asia409,762 (0.71%)479,691 (0.83%)519,325 (0.89%)559,104 (0.96%)593,606 (1.01%)647,829 (1.10%)691,783 (1.17%)730,833 (1.23%)625,532 (1.05%)741,090729,064 (1.21%)735,681 (1.22%) 764,636 (1.30%) 783,766 (1.33%)
South Asia139,614 (0.24%)171,681 (0.30%)196,541 (0.34%)222,817 (0.38%)244,659 (0.42%)284,299 (0.48%)324,103 (0.55%)364,972 (0.61%)474,736488,486 (0.81%)507,553 (0.84%) 579,022 (0.98%) 614,036 (1.04%)
East and South-East Asia174,464 (0.30%)211,040 (0.36%)234,991 (0.40%)264,888 (0.45%)281,552 (0.48%)304,318 (0.51%)333,318 (0.56%)366,306 (0.62%)459,572471,326 (0.78%)478,417 (0.79%) 481,990 (0.82%) 489,804 (0.83%)
Sub-Saharan Africa170,267 (0.30%)195,447 (0.34%)211,283 (0.36%)229,000 (0.39%)244,727 (0.42%)266,965 (0.45%)287,605 (0.49%)309,940 (0.52%)369,567397,309 (0.66%)444,058 (0.74%) 455,620 (0.77%) 465,143 (0.79%)
Americas188,455 (0.33%)230,043 (0.40%)255,661 (0.44%)278,960 (0.48%)293,550 (0.50%)316,676 (0.54%)343,143 (0.58%)372,385 (0.63%)376,556369,555 (0.61%)373,354 (0.62%) 368,061 (0.62%) 388,227 (0.66%)
Oceania2,562 (<0.01%)2,460 (<0.01%)2,486 (<0.01%)2,536 (<0.01%)2,527 (<0.01%)2,547 (<0.01%)2,618 (<0.01%)2,642 (<0.01%)1,821 (<0.01%)1,921 (<0.01%)2,220 (<0.01%)2,015 (<0.01%)2,104 (<0.01%)2,122 (<0,01%)2,170 (<0.01%) 2,120 (<0.01%)2,213 (<0.01%) 2,256 (<0.01%) 1,859 (<0.01%) 1,991 (<0.01%)
Total foreigners1,990,159 (3.45%)2,402,157 (4.14%)2,670,514 (4.59%)2,938,922 (5.03%)3,432,651 (5.84%)3,891,295 (6.58%)4,235,059 (7.14%)4,570,317 (7.70%)4,052,081 (6.81%)4,387,721 (7.28%)4,922,085 (8.10%)5,014,437 (8.25%)5,026,153 (8.28%)5,047,028 (8.33%)5,144,440 (8.51%) 4,996,158 (8.35%)5,039,637 (8.45%) 5,171,894 (8.73%) 5,030,716 (8.52%) 5,141,341 (8.71%)
Italians55,694,841 (96.55%)55,566,843 (95.86%)55,473,486 (95.41%)55,499,078 (94.97%)55,394,349 (94.16%)55,203,705 (93.42%)55,041,941 (92.86%)54,808,683 (92.30%)55,487,919 (93.19%)55,846,279 (92.72%)55,866,915 (91.90%)55,781,563 (91.75%)55,639,847 (91.72%)55,531,972 (91.67%)55,339,560 (91.50%) 54,820,515 (91.65%)54,601,851 (91.55%) 54,064,319 (91.27%) 53,999,417 (91.48%) 53,855,860 (91.26%)
Italy57,685,00057,969,00058,144,00058,438,00058,827,00059,095,00059,277,00059,379,00059,540,00060,234,00060,789,00060,796,00060,666,00060,579,00060,484,000 59,816,67359,641,488 59,236,213 59,030,133 58,997,201
  • Turkey has been counted as an Asian country
  • Sudan and Mauritania have been counted in Sub-Saharan Africa
  • Afghanistan has been counted in South Asia

Prison population

According to the Ministry of Justice, the Italian prison population in 2019 counted 60,769 and of those 32.7% were foreigners. The largest groups came from Morocco (3,651), Albania (2,402), Romania (2,386), Tunisia (2,020), Nigeria (1,665).

Amongst national origins counting more than 5,000 individuals at national level, Algeria, followed by Gambia and Tunisia, had the biggest proportion of detainees (with, respectively, 25.8, 23.7 and 20.7 inmates per 1,000 residents). On the other hand, Japan, Thailand and the Philippines had the lowest proportion of inmates per 1,000 residents (respectively, 0.13, and 0.50 for both Thailand and the Philippines).[34][35]

Public opinion
See also: Opposition to immigration in Europe

In 2018, a poll by Pew Research found that a majority (71%) wanted fewer immigrants to be allowed into the country, 18% wanted to keep the current level and 5% wanted to increase immigration.[36]

A 2019 poll by Yougov showed that 53% thought authorities should not accept more refugees from conflict areas, 25% were in favour of more refugees and 19% were undecided.[37]

According to poll published by Corriere della Sera in 2019, one of two respondents (51%) approved closing Italy's ports to further boat migrants arriving via the Mediterranean, while 19% welcomed further boat migrants.[38]

In 2021, 77% of Italians thought the current immigrant influx was too high, as underlined by a poll published by La Repubblica and carried out by YouGov.[39]

Mediterranean Sea crossings crisis

Due to the peninsula geographical position and close proximity to the North Africa coast, the crossing of the Mediterranean Sea has historically been the most used route for undocumented migrants. This route has become gradually more prominent, as flow through other routes to the EU gradually faded and political turmoil in Libya caused a general weakening of borders and coastal control, opening opportunities to people smuggling organisations.

The principal destination for sea crossings boats and rafts are the southernmost Italian territories, the Pelagie Islands. These islands are 113 km from Tunisia, 167 from Libya and 207 from Sicily.

The close distance between these islands and the African mainland has caused people smuggling organisations to employ boats and rafts otherwise hardly seaworthy, generally vastly filled above their capacity. Official reports list boats filled up to 2 or 3 times nominal capacity, including the use of rubber dinghies. This has led to several accidents at sea, as in 2007, the 2009, the 2011, the 2013, 2015.[40] These accidents have become harder to document between 2014 and 2017, as people smuggling organisations changed their tactics: instead of aiming for a full crossing of the sea towards Lampedusa, their boats aimed just to exit Libyan territorial waters and then trigger rescue operation from passing mercantile vessels, seek and rescue organisations, Italian and Maltese coastguards and militaries. As per the United Nations Convention of the Sea, of which Italy is a subscriber, people rescued at sea have to be transported to the closest safe harbor: as Libya continues to be in political turmoil this means they are transported to Italy.

Once in Italy, the EU Dublin Regulation requires migrants to apply for legal residence, protection or asylum permits in the first EU country they cross into, effectively barring them from legally crossing internal EU borders until their case has been processed and positively concluded. As the vast majority of migrant people landing in Italy targets destinations in Central and Northern European States, there is a tendency to avoid filing permits applications in Italy and rather try a northwards land journey.[41]

As a reaction to the gradual increase in migration flows through the Mediterranean Sea, Italian governments stepped up cooperation with Tunisian and Libyan authorities to halt activities of people smuggling organisation on land, as well as to allow boats rescued from the Italian Military in international waters to be towed back to the port where they left from. This policy, enacted in 2004 and 2005, sparked controversies related in particular to the compatibility with Italian and EU laws, as numerous reports documented acts of violence from Libyan authorities on migrant people. The policy was openly criticised by the EU Parliament.[43]

In 2008, Berlusconi's government in Italy and Gaddafi's government in Libya signed a treaty including cooperation between the two countries in stopping unlawful migration from Libya to Italy; this led to a policy of forcibly returning to Libya boat migrants intercepted by the Italian coast guard at sea.[44] The cooperation collapsed following the outbreak of the Libyan civil war in 2011. In 2012 the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Italy had violated the European Convention on Human Rights by returning migrants to Libya, as it exposed the migrants to the risk of being subjected to ill-treatment in Libya and violated the prohibition of collective expulsions.,[45] thus effectively ending the policy.

In 2009, as the flow of migrants picked up again, the overcrowded conditions at the Pelagie Islands' temporary immigrant reception centre came under criticism by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The unit, which was originally built for a maximum capacity of 850 people, was reported to be housing nearly 2,000 boat people. A significant number of people were sleeping outdoors under plastic sheeting.[46] A fire started as an inmate riot destroyed a large portion of the holding facility on 19 February 2009.

In 2011, as Arab Spring rebellions in Tunisia and Libya disrupted government control over borders and coasts, by May 2011, more than 35,000 immigrants had arrived on the island of Lampedusa from Tunisia and Libya.[47] By the end of August, 48,000 had arrived.[48] As migration and asylum policies are exclusive responsibilities of each member State, the increased migration pressure at the EU Southern border sparked tensions between EU States on how to differentiate between people migrating due to economic reasons, which in principle are regarded as unlawful immigrants and thus are forced to leave or deported, and people fleeing violence or persecution for religious, sexual orientation, political reasons, who can be granted asylum rights.[49] As the Libyan authoritarian governments struggled to keep control of the country, it allowed an increase in northbound migrant flows as a tactic to pressure Italy and the EU not to militarily intervene in the country, as Gaddafi feared his regime would be overthrown.[48]

Some Italian towns and cities disobeyed instructions from the national government to house migrants.[50] The Mafia Capitale investigation revealed that the Italian Mafia profited from the migrant crisis and exploited refugees.[51][52] The murder of Ashley Ann Olsen in her Italian apartment by an illegal immigrant from Senegal rapidly acquired political significance in the context of the European migrant crisis. The police chief of Florence addressed safety concerns and "assur[ed] the public that Florence remained safe" in the wake of the Olsen murder.[53]

Since 2014, thousands of migrants have tried every month to cross the Central Mediterranean to Italy, risking their lives on unsafe boats including fishing trawlers.[54] Many of them were fleeing poverty-stricken homelands or war-torn countries and sought economic opportunity within the EU.[55][56] Italy, and, in particular, its southern island of Lampedusa, received enormous numbers of Africans and Middle-Easterners transported by smugglers and NGOs operating along the ungoverned coast of the failed state of Libya.[55][57]

There were 153,842 Mediterranean sea arrivals to Italy in 2015, 9 percent less than the previous year; most of the refugees and migrants came from Eritrea, Nigeria, and Somalia, whereas the number of Syrian refugees sharply decreased, as most of them took the Eastern Mediterranean route from Turkey to Greece.[58]

The first three months of 2016 saw an increase in the number of migrants rescued at sea being brought to southern Italian ports.[59][60][61] In April 2016, nearly 6,000 mostly sub-Saharan African migrants landed in Italy in four days.[62] In June 2016, over 10,000 migrants were rescued in four days.[63] In 2016, 181,100 migrants arrived in Italy by sea.[64]

In April 2017, more than 8,000 migrants were rescued near Libya and brought to Italy in three days.[65] From January to November 2017, approximately 114,600 migrants arrived in Italy by sea.[66] Approximately 5,000 African migrants were rescued in waters off the coast of Libya between 18 and 20 May 2017.[67]

Since 2013, Italy took in over 700,000 migrants,[68] mainly from sub-Saharan Africa.[69]

On September 2023, Boats, carrying roughly 7,000 migrants—more than the total population of Lampedusa—arrived on the island within the span of 24 hours.[70][71][72]

In 2023, 155,754 migrants arrived in Italy, up from 103,846 in 2022.[73][74][75]

Controversies regarding NGOs

After 2015, as an increased use of unseaworthy vessels by people smuggling organisations caused a marked increase in accidents at sea involving loss of lives, several European NGOs have started seek and rescue operations in close coordination with Italian Navy and coast guard units. These operations often happen close to Libyan territorial waters at the same time in order not to unlawfully enter Libyan jurisdictions and yet ensure migrants' safety. As per UNCLOS, rescued people are brought to the closer safe harbor, which is in most cases on Italian shore. This effectively means NGOs vessels are covering most of the distance between Libyan and Italian coast. Right-wing Italian newspapers and activists picked on that to make various claims, among which that NGOs active in migrants' assistance and rescue at sea would reap financial profits from their collaboration with the Italian authorities,[76] or that some NGOs are part of unlawful people smuggling operations in coordination with operatives on Libyan coast, and funded by international criminal groups and financial institutions interested in developing political turmoil in Italy.[77] The Italian Parliament investigated these claims and has found them to be unsubstantiated, with no further actions.[78] Regardless of this, right-wing newspapers have continued campaigning against Italian and foreign NGOs.

In August 2017 the ship "Iuventa" operated by the German NGO "Jugend Rettet" (youth to the rescue) was impounded on the island of Lampedusa on the order of an Italian prosecutor on suspicion of facilitating illegal immigration. Jugend Rettet is one of the six out of nine NGOs which refused to sign a new code of conduct by the Italian government covering migrant rescues in the Mediterranean. The prosecutor alleged that there were "contacts, meetings and understandings" between the boat's crew and the smugglers. No crew members from the "Iuventa" had been charged and the prosecutor admitted that their motive was likely humanitarian.[80] (Five out of eight refused to sign the new code of conduct, according to a Guardian article, the others refusing to sign being MSF, the Germany groups Sea-Watch, Sea-Eye and Jugend Rettet, and France's SOS Mediterranée '[all of whom] abstained'. 'MSF, SOS Mediterranée and Jugend Rettet... called for clarification of the rules' while MOAS and Spanish group Proactiva Open Arms agreed to the conditions, and Save the Children 'backed the measures'.)[81]

The Conte I Cabinet, influenced by hard-line Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, refused to let migrant ships dock in its waters. On 10 June 2018, Salvini announced the closure of Italian ports, stating that "Everyone in Europe is doing their own business, now Italy is also raising its head. Let's stop the business of illegal immigration."[82] The vessel Aquarius, which is operated jointly by Médecins Sans Frontières and SOS Méditerranée and carried more than 600 migrants, was refused a port of disembarkation by the Italian authorities despite having been told to rescue the migrants by the same co-ordination centre. The Italian authority told the vessel to ask Malta to provide a disembarkation port, but Malta has also refused.[83] On the following day, the new Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez accepted the disputed migrant ship.[84] On 12 June 2019, the Sea Watch 3 ship picked up 53 migrants in the Mediterranean off the Libyan coast. Sea Watch 3 rejected an offer to dock at Tripoli, which is considered unsafe by humanitarian organizations, and headed toward Lampedusa. According to a report by the Süddeutsche Zeitung and NGOs this was the nearest safe harbor per maritime law. On 14 June, Italy closed its ports to migrant rescue ships. Salvini refused to allow the ship to dock until other European nations had agreed to take the migrants. Ten of the migrants, including children, pregnant women, and those who were ill, were allowed to disembark. On 29 June, without authorization, ship's captain Carola Rackete decided to dock. The motivation for this was that according to her the passengers were exhausted. Rackete was arrested by the Italian authorities after docking. Matteo Salvini accused Rackete of trying to sink an Italian patrol boat that was attempting to intercept her, calling the incident an act of war and demanding the Netherlands government intervention. However, on 2 July, Rackete was released from house arrest after a court ruling that she had broken no laws and acted to protect passengers' safety.[85]

In August 2019, Salvini announced a motion of no confidence against Prime Minister Conte, after growing tensions within the majority.[86] Salvini's alleged gambit failed, as Conte successfully negotiated the formation of a new cabinet with centre-left Democratic Party, which completely changed the immigration policy of the previous government,[87] returning to receive NGO ships in Italian ports.[88]

Italian naval mission to Libyan waters

On 2 August 2017, Italy's parliament authorized a limited naval mission to Libyan waters aimed at supporting the country's coastguard in the fight against illegal migration. Italy sent two patrol boats at the request of the UN-backed government in Tripoli and insisted it had no intention of violating Libyan sovereignty. However, General Khalifa Haftar, who controls most of eastern Libya, threatened to use his own forces to repel the Italians.[80][89]

See also

Notes
  1. The figures for 2002–2011 have been revised downwards as a result of the 15th General Census of Italy which offered more precise data. The figures since 2012 are calculated adding to the foreign population enumerated by the census the foreign population inflows and outflows recorded in all Italian municipalities during each calendar year.
  2. Since 2013, the European Union foreign nationals are no longer counted in the immigration statistics. This includes the Romanians, the largest minority group in Italy.

References
  1. "Indicatori demografici, anno 2020" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 May 2021. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  2. "Population on 1 January by sex, country of birth and broad group of citizenship". Archived from the original on 21 January 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  3. "Acquisition of citizenship by age group, sex and former citizenship". Archived from the original on 21 January 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  4. Elisabeth Rosenthal, "Italy cracks down on illegal immigration Archived 21 August 2013 at the Wayback Machine". The Boston Globe. 16 May 2008.
  5. "Cittadini Stranieri. Popolazione residente e bilancio demografico al 31 dicembre 2014". ISTAT. 15 June 2015. Archived from the original on 26 October 2019. Retrieved 16 June 2015.
  6. "Bilancio demografico nazionale". ISTAT. 15 June 2015. Archived from the original on 23 December 2019. Retrieved 16 June 2015.
  7. "Resident foreigners on 1st January - Citizenship". dati.istat.it. Archived from the original on 28 January 2022. Retrieved 7 February 2023.
  8. Allen, Beverly (1997). Revisioning Italy national identity and global culture. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. p. 169. ISBN 978-0-8166-2727-1.
  9. "Milan police in Chinatown clash Archived 10 October 2017 at the Wayback Machine". BBC News. 13 April 2007.
  10. Willey, David (13 April 2007). "Milan police in Chinatown clash". BBC News. Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 28 August 2013.
  11. "EUROPE: Home to Roma, And No Place for Them". IPS ipsnews.net. Archived 5 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  12. Lanni, Alessandro (27 December 2015). "From Morocco to Romania: how immigration to Italy has changed over 10 years". Open Migration. Archived from the original on 16 March 2016. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  13. "Cinesi in Italia". Archived from the original on 9 November 2022. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  14. "Società Stranieri in Italia, 5,2 milioni i residenti regolari. Romania e Cina le provenienze con i maggiori incrementi negli ultimi 8 anni". Il Fatto Quotidiano. 20 September 2019. Archived from the original on 15 May 2021. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
  15. Chang, Angela (24 February 2012). "20th Century Chinese Migration to Italy: The Chinese Diaspora Presence within European International Migration". ResearchGate. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  16. "Tuttitalia". Archived from the original on 14 February 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  17. "XXIX Rapporto Immigrazione 2020" (PDF) (in Italian). Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 December 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  18. Programma, Integra (12 February 2015). "Istat: nel 2014 oltre 90mila i nuovi nati stranieri". Archived from the original on 6 April 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  19. "Ricostruzione della popolazione residente per età, sesso e cittadinanza nei comuni". ISTAT. 26 September 2013. p. 9. Archived from the original on 18 June 2015. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  20. Statistics for 2011 at istat.it Archived 9 March 2013 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 30 October 2017
  21. Statistics for 2013 at istat.it Archived 31 March 2017 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 30 October 2017
  22. Statistics for 2013 at istat.it Archived 30 July 2015 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 30 October 2017
  23. Statistics for 2015 at istat.it Archived 13 June 2016 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 30 October 2017
  24. Statistics for 2017 at istat.it Archived 7 July 2017 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 4 April 2018
  25. "Statistiche demografiche ISTAT". Archived from the original on 6 August 2017. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  26. "5.255.503 cittadini stranieri in Italia". aise.it (in Italian). 24 October 2019. Archived from the original on 26 November 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  27. "Tuttitalia". Archived from the original on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  28. "Tuttitalia". Archived from the original on 14 February 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  29. https://www.tuttitalia.it/statistiche/cittadini-stranieri-2022/
  30. https://www.tuttitalia.it/statistiche/cittadini-stranieri-2023/
  31. "Population on 1 January by age group, sex and citizenship". Archived from the original on 21 January 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  32. "Stranieri in Italia al 01 Gennaio 2022". Archived from the original on 31 January 2023. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  33. https://www.tuttitalia.it/statistiche/cittadini-stranieri-2023/
  34. "Detenuti stranieri presenti - aggiornamento al 31 dicembre 2019". Archived from the original on 9 November 2022. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  35. "Detenuti italiani e stranieri presenti e capienze per istituto - aggiornamento al 31 dicembre 2019". Archived from the original on 9 November 2022. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  36. Connor, Phillip; Krogstad, Jens Manuel. "Many worldwide oppose more migration – both into and out of their countries". Pew Research Center. Archived from the original on 10 December 2018. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
  37. "Inmigración y medio ambiente centran la inquietud de los europeos". El País (in Spanish). 13 May 2019. ISSN 1134-6582. Archived from the original on 13 May 2019. Retrieved 14 May 2019.
  38. Pagnoncelli, Nando (1 November 2019). "Le colpe dell'emergenza migranti? Il 60% punta il dito contro l'Europa". Corriere della Sera (in Italian). Archived from the original on 12 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  39. "Sondaggio YouGov sull'immigrazione: "Per il 77% degli italiani è troppo alta"". 23 December 2021. Archived from the original on 9 November 2022. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  40. "Italy's illegal immigrants: Tidal wave". The Economist. 5 July 2014. Archived from the original on 25 October 2017. Retrieved 1 September 2017.
  41. Grant, Harriet; Domokos, John (7 October 2011). "Dublin regulation leaves asylum seekers with their fingers burnt". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 23 October 2015. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
  42. "Migranti, gli sbarchi in Italia dal 1997 al 2022: i dati del Viminale". Fondazione Ismu. Archived from the original on 9 November 2022. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  43. European Parliament resolution on Lampedusa Archived 1 March 2017 at the Wayback Machine, 14 April 2005
  44. "Pushed Back, Pushed Around". Human Rights Watch. 21 September 2009. Archived from the original on 8 June 2021. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  45. "Italy: 'Historic' European Court judgment upholds migrants' rights". Amnesty International. 23 February 2012. Archived from the original on 10 March 2016. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  46. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. "News". Archived from the original on 8 November 2016. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  47. "Hundreds more migrants reach Italy from Africa". Reuters. 14 May 2011. Archived from the original on 17 May 2011.
  48. "Gaddafi planned to turn Italian island into migrant hell". AsiaOne. Archived from the original on 27 September 2016.
  49. "Canadian Press". Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  50. Legorno, Giovanni (28 April 2015). "Italian Towns Push Back on Growing Burden of Europe's Migrant Crisis". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 18 August 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  51. "Italy's Mafia learns to profit from the migration crisis Archived 18 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine". Financial Times. 24 July 2015
  52. "'Bigger than drugs': how the Mafia profits from the Mediterranean migrant crisis Archived 9 October 2017 at the Wayback Machine". ABC News. 29 June 2015
  53. Pianigiani, Gaia (14 January 2016). "Italy Arrests Suspect in Death of American Woman". New York Times. Archived from the original on 28 August 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2019.
  54. "Libya's people smugglers: inside the trade that sells refugees hopes of a better life | World news". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 28 August 2021. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  55. Scammell, Rosie (7 June 2015). "Mediterranean migrant crisis: number of arrivals in Italy in 2015 passes 50,000". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 15 August 2015. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
  56. Daunt, Joe (22 April 2015). "Video: The EU migrant crisis explained in 90 seconds – Telegraph". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 25 August 2015. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  57. "Mapping Mediterranean migration". BBC. 15 September 2014. Archived from the original on 27 August 2015. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
  58. "Statistiche immigrazione". Italian Ministry of the Interior. Archived from the original on 28 March 2016.
  59. "EU sees 'alarming' migrant buildup in Libya, warns Italy Archived 28 August 2021 at the Wayback Machine". Reuters. 13 April 2016.
  60. "Tensions Mount Between Austria and Italy as Migrant Numbers Rise Archived 28 August 2021 at the Wayback Machine". The Wall Street Journal. 15 April 2016.
  61. "German warship rescues 615 from the Mediterranean Archived 29 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine". Naval Today. 17 March 2016.
  62. "In the last four days, 6,000 migrants have arrived in Sicily by boat Archived 28 August 2021 at the Wayback Machine". Quartz. 16 April 2016.
  63. "Italian coastguard and navy rescue 3,300 migrants off coast of Libya Archived 25 February 2021 at the Wayback Machine". Deutsche Welle. 27 June 2016.
  64. "Italy boat migrant numbers surge 20% in 2016 Archived 3 August 2021 at the Wayback Machine". The Local. 6 January 2017.
  65. "More than 8,000 migrants rescued in Mediterranean and brought to Italy over Easter long weekend Archived 28 August 2021 at the Wayback Machine". The Daily Telegraph. 18 April 2017.
  66. "Italy: 1,100 migrants rescued from Libyan coast in one day Archived 9 November 2020 at the Wayback Machine". Al Arabiya. 23 November 2017.
  67. "5,000 refugees rescued on route to Italy from Libya Archived 8 September 2020 at the Wayback Machine". Al Jazeera. 20 May 2017.
  68. "What will Italy's new government mean for migrants?". The Local. 21 May 2018. Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  69. "African migrants fear for future as Italy struggles with surge in arrivals". Reuters. 18 July 2017. Archived from the original on 2 April 2019. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  70. "What's behind the surge in migrant arrivals to Italy?". AP News. 15 September 2023. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  76. De Lorenzo, Giuseppe (12 July 2017). "Le 15 coop dalle "uova d'oro": 100 milioni lucrati sui profughi". ilgiornale.it. Archived from the original on 14 July 2017. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  77. "Nomi, finanziatori e intrighi. Ecco tutti i segreti delle navi Ong". ilgiornale.it. 10 July 2017. Archived from the original on 16 July 2017. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  78. "DOCUMENTO CONCLUSIVO APPROVATO DALLA COMMISSIONE SULL'INDAGINE CONOSCITIVA SUL CONTRIBUTO DEI MILITARI ITALIANI AL CONTROLLO DEI FLUSSI MIGRATORI NEL MEDITERRANEO E L'IMPATTO DELLE ATTIVITA' DELLE ORGANIZZAZIONI NON GOVERNATIVE (Doc. XVII, n. 9)". Senato.it. 16 May 2017. Archived from the original on 25 June 2017. Retrieved 26 July 2017.
  79. "Aquarius in Valencia: Spain welcomes migrants from disputed ship". BBC News. 17 June 2018. Archived from the original on 23 June 2020. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
  80. "Italy impounds German NGO migrant rescue ship, lawmakers boost support for Libyan coastguard". DW. 2 August 2017. Archived from the original on 6 August 2017. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  81. Reuters in Rome, 31 July 2017 "Aid groups snub Italian code of conduct on Mediterranean rescues: Five of eight groups operating migrant rescue ships refuse to agree to new measures, citing concerns over operational effectiveness and neutrality" at theguardian.com Archived 6 September 2017 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 24 October 2017
  82. "Migranti, l'Italia sfida Malta. Salvini: chiudiamo i porti". LaStampa.it. 11 June 2018. Archived from the original on 2 April 2019. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  83. "Malta and Spain offer safe port to stranded migrant ship". Sky News. Archived from the original on 23 July 2019. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  84. "Spain to accept disputed migrant ship". BBC News. 12 June 2018. Archived from the original on 21 August 2019. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  85. "Sea Watch captain Carola Rackete released, but controversy rages on". EuroNews. Archived from the original on 10 July 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
  86. "La Lega presenta al Senato una mozione di sfiducia a Conte. M5S attacca Salvini: "Giullare"". rainews. Archived from the original on 20 August 2019. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  87. "Migranti: tutta la disinformazione politica del 2020" (in Italian). Archived from the original on 25 June 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  88. "L'Europa già volta le spalle a Conte sui migranti" (in Italian). 16 September 2019. Archived from the original on 31 May 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  89. "Libyan military strongman threatens Italian ships trying to stop flow of migrants". The Telegraph. 3 August 2017. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 5 April 2018.

Further reading
  • Cusumano, Eugenio, and Kristof Gombeer. "In deep waters: The legal, humanitarian and political implications of closing Italian ports to migrant rescuers." Mediterranean Politics 25.2 (2020): 245–253. online
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.