Sebastian Carlotti

Restrictive migration policies often have a major impact on migrants' access to healthcare services and their capacity to protect their health. During the COVID-19 pandemic, securitised migration policies in Italy led to a severe health divide that exacerbated the already acute living conditions of many migrant communities. This article examines Italy's migration policy with a focus on the Security Decree and its consequences during the COVID-19 statewide lockdown. Over the last decade, the surge in support for anti-immigration parties has fostered the portrayal of migrants as dangerous vectors of disease. In 2018, the Italian government approved the Security Decree which curtailed the already poor medical and sanitary conditions of the state's healthcare services provided to migrants and asylum seekers. This study outlines the characteristics of the Italian health divide during the COVID-19 outbreak and suggests a link between securitised migration policies and increased vulnerability of migrant communities during the pandemic.

The introduction of ‘illegal’ migration in West African countries represented a major con- ceptual policy shift for societies that were historically characterized by intra-regional free movement. However, this transformation went along with severe allegations of racialized profiling of undoc- umented migrants in many West African societies. De Genova’s concept of the ‘border spectacle’ describes how the presumed ‘illegality’ of migrants is made spectacularly visible in Europe, thus producing a criminalized and racialized portrayal of migrants. Nonetheless, this work argues that today’s illegalization through a racialized representation of migrants has been extended beyond Eu- rope’s boundaries and behind the spectacle’s curtain towards countries of migration origin. Drawing on the cases of Mauritania and Mali, this paper considers their fundamentally opposite reaction to the introduction of ‘irregular’ movement and illustrates the inherent problematics of transferring the figure of a racialized migrant into the West African region. Particularly successful in countries with a history of ethnic conflicts, this process essentially externalized European border practices of racialized profiling. On the contrary, this analysis concludes that the presence of established patterns of regional movement and cross-border habits made it undesirable to either introduce the policy concept of ‘illegal’ migration or to adopt its potentially racialized portrayal.

The recent reform of the Italian immigration policy produced a major impact on the health protection available to migrants against the COVID-19 virus. In 2018, the Security Decree determined a deep transformation of the reception system and of the services provided to migrants. As a consequence of these developments, migrants and asylum seekers are now among the most vulnerable subjects to the Coronavirus and receive only limited support from the State. Due to their status, undocumented migrants are generally forced to live in unhealthy and overcrowded spaces. Without the required legal documents, these migrants experience a severe limitation in the healthcare services they can access. Over the last years, as a result of restrictive migration policies, the number of undocumented migrants has significantly increased and has become a potential breeding ground for COVID-19. This article analyses the repercussion of the Security Decree in relation to the outbreak of the Coronavirus. Successively, this work provides an outline of the general situation faced by migrants in Italy and the institutional causes which might facilitate the spread of the Coronavirus in migrant communities. Finally, the regularization programme, as introduced by the Decreto Rilancio, will be the object of an early critical comment and of a discussion on its efficiency against the COVID-19 virus.

Politica Migratoria e Insicurezza Sanitaria. La reazione dell'Italia al COVID-19 e l'impatto del Decreto Sicurezza La recente riforma delle politiche d'immigrazione italiane ha prodotto un forte impatto sulla protezione della salute disponibile ai migranti contro il virus COVID-19. Nel 2018 il Decreto Sicurezza ha determinato una profonda trasformazione del sistema di accoglienza e dei servizi erogati ai migranti. Come conseguenza di questi sviluppi, migranti e richiedenti asilo adesso risultano tra i soggetti più vulnerabili al Coronavirus mentre ricevono dallo Stato solamente un supporto limitato. A causa del proprio status, i migranti senza permesso di soggiorno regolare vivono generalmente in condizioni sovraffollate e malsane. Senza i necessari documenti legali, questi migranti vivono una forte limitazione nei servizi sanitari cui possono accedere. Durante gli ultimi anni, come risultato di queste politiche migratorie restrittive, il numero dei migranti senza permesso di soggiorno è aumentato notevolmente, creando un potenziale focolaio per il COVID-19. Questo articolo analizza le ripercussioni del Decreto Sicurezza in relazione alla diffusione del Coronavirus. Successivamente, questo lavoro illustra la situazione generale dei migranti in Italia e gli atti istituzionali che possono facilitare la diffusione del Coronavirus tra le comunità dei migranti. Infine, il programma di regolarizzazione introdotto tramite il Decreto Rilancio sarà oggetto di un primo commento critico e di una discussione circa la sua efficienza nel contrasto del virus COVID-19.

The creation of new legal migration channels has been a core pillar of the EU since the Tampere Council in 1999. The framework behind this approach aimed to implement the concept of circular migration, valued as highly beneficial for the European labour market. Since then, the EU encountered a strong opposition of its Member States who refused to cede their sovereignty on migration policy. Eventually, Member States further restricted legal opportunities for migration. This paper focuses on the case of Italy’s migration policy, as its increasingly securitised policies show the harsh reality on the ground twenty years after Tampere.

Il rapporto tra migrazioni e conoscenza è al centro del dibattito scientifico fin dagli albori della riflessione sugli effetti dei processi migratori – e più specificamente delle migrazioni qualificate – sullo sviluppo dei paesi di origine e su quelli di destinazione. L’interpretazione più diffusa di tale rapporto è sempre stata quella secondo la quale lo sviluppo è sostenuto della diffusione di stock di saperi prodotti in territori diversi e trasferiti attraverso lo spostamento fisico dei migranti che si incaricano di esportarli e metterli a valore. Nell’epoca dell’economia basata sulla conoscenza, il tema è tornato centrale con riferimento alle strategie di attrazione del capitale umano più qualificato e, parallelamente, delle politiche di contrasto delle nuove dinamiche di brain drain tipiche dell’era della competizione globale per i talenti. Rispetto a questa interpretazione prevalente e concentrata sui fenomeni di spostamento (e conseguente sottrazione/addizione) delle conoscenze, molta meno attenzione è stata rivolta alla capacità dei processi migratori di generare conoscenze a saldo zero: connettendo persone e saperi localmente dispersi, mobilitando nuove interazioni e apprendimenti a distanza, producendo conoscenze nuove la cui formazione è possibile solamente negli spazi translocali della reticolarità globale. Il saggio affronta il tema della capitalizzazione e valorizzazione delle conoscenze che si formano all’interno delle reti globali di tecnici e studiosi, nelle quali a migrare sono talvolta le persone, talaltra i saperi, talaltra ancora infine entrambi, ma sempre senza vantaggi o perdite nette per nessun territorio. In questa prospettiva sarà presentata e discussa criticamente la nozione di ‘diaspora scientifica’, riferimento sempre più diffuso anche nel nostro paese di politiche di promozione di connessioni translocali produttive di saperi innovativi e determinanti per lo sviluppo.

The recent reform of the Italian immigration policy produced a major impact on the health protection available to migrants against the COVID-19 virus. In 2018, the Security Decree determined a deep transformation of the reception system and of the services provided to migrants. As a consequence of these developments, migrants and asylum seekers are now among the most vulnerable subjects to the Coronavirus and receive only limited support from the State. Due to their status, undocumented migrants are generally forced to live in unhealthy and overcrowded spaces. Without the required legal documents, these migrants experience a severe limitation in the healthcare services they can access. Over the last years, as a result of restrictive migration policies, the number of undocumented migrants has significantly increased and has become a potential breeding ground for COVID-19. This article analyses the repercussion of the Security Decree in relation to the outbreak of the Coronavirus. Suc...

Restrictive migration policies often have a major impact on migrants’ access to healthcare services and their capacity to protect their health. During the COVID-19 pandemic, securitised migration policies in Italy led to a severe health divide that exacerbated the already acute living conditions of many migrant communities. This article examines Italy’s migration policy with a focus on the Security Decree and its consequences during the COVID-19 state-wide lockdown. Over the last decade, the surge in support for anti-immigration parties has fostered the portrayal of migrants as dangerous vectors of disease. In 2018, the Italian government approved the Security Decree which curtailed the already poor medical and sanitary conditions of the state’s healthcare services provided to migrants and asylum seekers. This study outlines the characteristics of the Italian health divide during the COVID-19 outbreak and suggests a link between securitised migration policies and increased vulnerabi...