'Worrying' as Italy seeks to set age checks, crack down on minor refugees

Italy's hard-right government has issued its second decree in a month on migration, with its latest attempt aimed at minors, giving authorities the right to temporarily house them in adult facilities.

Under a draft law approved by ministers late on Wednesday, local authorities will be given the power to activate temporary housing structures for unaccompanied minors in the case of a surge of irregular refugees arrivals.

But if those become filled, minors over the age of 16 can be housed for up to 90 days in special wings of mainstream reception centres, where the vast majority of adult asylum seekers are housed.

That provision - yet to be approved by parliament - was "worrying," UNICEF Italy spokesperson Andrea Iacomini told AFP.

"They cannot be in the same places as adults," he cautioned.

Normally, unaccompanied minors, mothers with children or pregnant women are housed in local reception centres with social services aimed at integration, including language instruction and work training.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said that the decree better protected women, as all females, and not just those who were pregnant or with children, would now be sent to these centres.

But the draft law seeks to crack down on young people who pretend to be under 18 in order to avoid deportation.

The decree allows authorities to carry out "anthropometric measurements" and checks, including x-rays, to determine the subject's true age.

"With the new rules, it will no longer be possible to lie about your real age," wrote Meloni on Facebook.

Controversial assessment

But such checks have been allowed since 2017 in conjunction with other, non-medical tests.

"From a formal point of view, it doesn't change anything," said Iacomini, who underlined that many minors come from countries where it is impossible to establish age through documentation.

Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said Wednesday that if the presumed minor is found to be over 18 following the tests, he or she could be subject to deportation.

"Deportation could follow only in the event that the minor's true age is disproved by the tests," Piantedosi said, adding that he or she could also be subject to penalties for giving false statements.

Age assessment is controversial, with the Council of Europe calling it "a sensitive and complex task," with no single method guaranteeing accuracy.

The draft law also makes it easier for "dangerous" immigrants with long-term residence visas to be deported, Piantedosi said.

Meloni was elected last year on a vow to stop illegal immigration, but numbers of arrivals into Italy have surged since then, leading her to admit at the weekend that she had "hoped for better".

Piantedosi said the number of deportations was growing, with 20-30 percent more than a year ago.

Still, only about a half of those irregular refugees whom authorities determine should be expelled are actually deported.

More than 130,000 asylum seekers have arrived to Italy via boats from North Africa so far this year, up from 70,000 in the same period last year.