The interior minister has ordered migrants in Riace be redistributed across Italy after its mayor was arrested. The mayor's vision was hailed across the globe as a model for reviving towns and integrating refugees.
Image: picture- alliance/Ropi/Mollo
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Italian authorities want to relocate some 200 migrants, starting on Monday, from the small Calabrian town of Riace, according to Italy's Interior Ministry.
Riace gained international fame in the wake of the migration crisis when Mayor Domenico Lucano welcomed migrants to the sparsely populated town in a bid to boost local development. Around 300 migrants came to the town of 2000 inhabitants, where abandoned houses were restored and craft workshops reopened to absorb the newcomers.
However, Italian police arrested Lucano earlier this month on suspicion of mismanagement of public funds and facilitating sham marriages — allegations he has staunchly denied.
Politicians, celebrities and cultural figures, including anti-mafia author Robert Saviano, have spoken out against his arrest, saying it represents a politically motivated action by far-right leader Matteo Salvini in his capacity as interior minister.
Protesters have slammed Italian authorities for arresting Mayor Domenico Lucano, known by many as "Mimmo." The placard on the right says: "If he had stolen €49 million, he would be minister. Instead, he helps people and is arrested."Image: picture-alliance/NurPhoto/C. Minelli
'Irregularities'
But Salvini has hit back at criticism of Lucano's arrest, saying "those who make mistakes must pay" for their crimes.
"We cannot tolerate irregularities in the use of public funds, even if there is the excuse of spending it for immigrants," Salvini said in a Facebook post on Saturday.
Salvini has pushed a hard-line policy against irregular migrants, including economic migrants and refugees. As a front-line EU country, Italy has born the brunt of the migration crisis that erupted in 2015.
Interior ministry sources later denied that the relocations would be carried out by force, according to Italian media. Instead, the migrants would "only be moved on a voluntary basis." But those who chose to stay in Riace would no longer "benefit from the reception system."
Lucano's model for integrating migrants has been hailed across the globe as a way to revive depopulated villages. Many of the migrants living in Riace have learned local artisan crafts.
In 2016, Fortune magazine named Lucano as one of the "world's greatest leaders" in its top 100 list.
Lucano, who is under house arrest, has decried the charges leveled against him, saying: "How is it possible to think of destroying the 'Riace model,' which has been described by innumerable people, politicians, intellectuals and artists, as an extraordinary experience?"
"They want to destroy us," he added. "I am immensely bitter."
Former Italian prime minister Enrico Letta was among those who rejected the move against Riace. "For shame. This is not Italy!" he wrote on twitter.
Naples mayor Luigi de Magistris, who spent nine years as a prosecutor in Calabria, denounced the Italian government's treatment of Lucano.
"If Lucano is the danger in Calabria, it means the mafia is winning," de Magistris said. "If the government decides to deport the oppressed, fragile victims of oppressors from the world's regimes, then Riace must become a stronghold of resistance," he added.
From escalating violence in the Middle East and Africa to incoherent asylum policy at home - DW looks at how the EU has found itself in the midst of a refugee crisis.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Fleeing war and poverty
In late 2014, with the war in Syria approaching its fourth year and Islamic State making gains in the north of the country, the exodus of Syrians intensified. At the same time, others were fleeing violence and poverty in countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Eritrea, Somalia, Niger and Kosovo.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Seeking refuge over the border
Vast numbers of Syrian refugees had been gathering in border-town camps in neighboring Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan since 2011. By 2015, with the camps full to bursting and residents often unable to find work or educate their children, more and more people decided to seek asylum further afield.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
A long journey on foot
In 2015 an estimated 1.5 million people made their way on foot from Greece towards western Europe via the "Balkan route". The Schengen Agreement, which allows passport-free travel within much of the EU, was called into question as refugees headed towards the wealthier European nations.
Image: Getty Images/M. Cardy
Desperate sea crossings
Tens of thousands of refugees were also attempting the perilous journey across the Mediterranean on overcrowded boats. In April 2015, 800 people of various nationalities drowned when a boat traveling from Libya capsized off the Italian coast. This was to be just one of many similar tragedies - by the end of the year, nearly 4,000 refugees were reported to have died attempting the crossing.
Image: Reuters/D. Zammit Lupi
Pressure on the borders
Countries along the EU's external border struggled to cope with the sheer number of arrivals. Fences were erected in Hungary, Slovenia, Macedonia and Austria. Asylum laws were tightened and several Schengen area countries introduced temporary border controls.
Image: picture-alliance/epa/B. Mohai
Closing the open door
Critics of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's "open-door" refugee policy claimed it had made the situation worse by encouraging more people to embark on the dangerous journey to Europe. By September 2016, Germany had also introduced temporary checks on its border with Austria.
Image: Reuters/F. Bensch
Striking a deal with Turkey
In early 2016, the EU and Turkey signed an agreement under which refugees arriving in Greece could be sent back to Turkey. The deal has been criticized by human rights groups and came under new strain following a vote by the European Parliament in November to freeze talks on Turkey's potential accession to the EU.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/A. Altan
No end in sight
With anti-immigration sentiment in Europe growing, governments are still struggling to reach a consensus on how to handle the continuing refugee crisis. Attempts to introduce quotas for the distribution of refugees among EU member states have largely failed. Conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere show no signs coming to an end, and the death toll from refugee sea crossings is on the rise.
