Policies

- Spain sealed off the southern border and so Lampedusa got the first place to go for refugees 

- Refugees offshore get a signal to reverse but there is the codex for maritime salvage

-Brought to the transit camp for a few days and flew out to other camps in Italy and Sicily

-Co-operation within the EU: border control Frontex

-One out of three refugees asks for asylum, one out of five gets asylum and the rest has to leave àmany refugees escape, live illegally in Italy and do the work the Italian do not want to do

  

Italy

-2004 Silvio Berlusconi: “Zero tolerance” à  agreement with Libya

- Failed because of Libya’s lack of engagement and the EU’s protest because of the refugees’ deportation to Libya

 -Berlusconi wanted a law which punishes illegal immigrants with up to 4 years prison, the EU wanted a defusing and now Italy wants monetary penalties

 -Italy needs more refugee camps but no city gives permission

 

   

European Union

- 2005 a journalist smuggled himself in the camp and revealed the concentration camp- like conditions

-After long negotiations the European Parliament visited Lampedusa but there were only 11 refugees in the camp left à cover-up

 -2005 a journalist smuggled himself in the camp and revealed the concentration-camp-like conditions

 - In December 2005 the European Commission adopted measures to solve the problems with illegal immigration in the Mediterranean area

  

 

Effects on Lampedusa

- coastguard and finance police care for the rescue of the refugees

-the rescue is so well organized that the inhabitants and tourists do not face them and mostly just get to know the news about newly arrived refugees by TV

  -the reports bring problems for Lampedusa along: many tourists think about dead bodies at the beaches and a crowded island

 - the tourism decreased by 50% compared to 2007

 -so on the one hand the inhabitants sympathize with the refugees and their situation but they have to think of themselves because Lampedusa is dependent on tourism

 -they need support but Rome just gives money for the camp and the rescue

 -Lampedusa as a very small island is short of space: although the camp was meant for 400 people and there is no hospital and there are problems with the drinking water supply, mostly there are living 1700 refugees

 

 

Conclusion

-Lampedusa is a good example for the refugee problem

 -Shows the Italian problem of refugee politics: tried to displace the problem to Libya and give Libya money in return instead of research into the problem

 -without the intervention of the EU the refugees situation in Italy would  be worse

 - helpnessness of the government

 -Lampedusa shows the conflicting views: sympathy with the refugees but also problems because of the stream of refugees and it is not possible to give asylum to every refugee

 The first part of our presentation can be seen on Marens page

 

Sources 

http://www.migrationsrecht.net/nachrichten-asylrecht/410-bootsfluechtlinge-ceuta-melilla-lampedusa-malta-eu-kommission-hampton-court.html

http://www.focus.de/politik/ausland/italien-drama-vor-lampedusa_aid_334737.html

 http://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/fluechtlinge140.html

 http://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/939/303918/text/3/

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lampedusa

http://no-racism.net/article/1384/

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,1718149,00.html