Italy has started sending the first group of immigrants to Albania.

Under the agreement signed last year between Italy and Albania, which was approved by the parliaments of both countries at the beginning of 2024; the agreement foresees Italy establishing two migrant centers on Albanian territory and transporting irregular migrants with asylum requests to these centers, and as of today, it has come into effect. According to reliable sources cited by the Italian ANSA agency, the Libra ship belonging to the Italian navy has set sail to transport the first group of irregular migrants to the centers in Albania. Other reports in the media also indicated that the Libra ship departed from Lampedusa Island in the Mediterranean, which is the point that receives the most irregular migrants in Italy, and it is expected to arrive at the first reception center established at the Port of Shengjin in Albania on Wednesday.

The migrants will first be transported to the Port of Shengjin in northern Albania, where their initial control and registration processes will take place, and their asylum requests will be examined. They will then be taken to another center established in an old military camp belonging to the Albanian Air Force in Gjader, which has a capacity of approximately 1,000 people.

MIGRANTS WILL STAY IN THIS CENTER UNTIL THEIR APPLICATIONS ARE PROCESSED

Under the agreement, healthy male irregular migrants who attempt to reach Italy by sea and are rescued by Italian security forces are expected to be transported to these centers managed by the Italian Ministry of the Interior. Meanwhile, the Italian branch of Amnesty International expressed strong concerns in a written statement today regarding the activation of the Italian migrant centers in Albania, stating that there are risks of human rights violations, such as the violation of the right to asylum and related guarantees, the risk of arbitrary detention, and the violation of personal freedoms, in the measures foreseen in the protocol between the two countries.

HAS SPARKED CONTROVERSY

The agreement that has sparked controversy has drawn comparisons to "Guantanamo" for the centers established. The agreement signed by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama on November 6, 2023, foresees the transfer of a portion of irregular migrants rescued by Italian security forces in the Mediterranean to Albania and their stay there while their asylum requests are processed. The agreement does not cover migrants rescued by search and rescue ships of European-centered civil society organizations, including minors, pregnant women, and vulnerable individuals. Under the agreement, Italy established the first reception center at the Port of Shengjin in northwestern Albania and created facilities and a return center in the Gjader region for subsequent procedures. This protocol between Italy and Albania is the first agreement that regulates the sending of irregular migrants arriving in an EU country to the territory of another country that is not an EU member.