Berlusconi clamps down on Gypsies
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Silvio Berlusconi's new rightwing cabinet, at its first meeting in Naples yesterday, endorsed a package of tough measures aimed at Gypsies and clandestine immigrants. In a move that appeared certain to cause controversy, the interior minister, Roberto Maroni, said local authorities would be empowered to check on the living conditions of citizens from other EU nations before granting them right of residence.
The measure appeared to be aimed at Roma living in encampments, and particularly at the estimated 50,000 Romanian Gypsies who have entered Italy in recent years and who are being blamed for much of the recent rise in crime rates.
The cabinet also decided to make unauthorised entry into Italy a crime.
The measures will make it easier to expel foreigners, including EU citizens, who are convicted of offences, a move that could bring the Berlusconi government into conflict with Brussels if it is judged to breach European law on freedom of movement within the EU.
The measure appeared to be aimed at Roma living in encampments, and particularly at the estimated 50,000 Romanian Gypsies who have entered Italy in recent years and who are being blamed for much of the recent rise in crime rates.
The cabinet also decided to make unauthorised entry into Italy a crime.
The measures will make it easier to expel foreigners, including EU citizens, who are convicted of offences, a move that could bring the Berlusconi government into conflict with Brussels if it is judged to breach European law on freedom of movement within the EU.
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