Centro Astalli – JRS Italy

Annual Report, 2014

Key points

Growing numbers of asylum applications, same needs

In 2013, asylum applications made in Europe went up by 32%. The main country of origin of asylum seekers arriving in the EU has been Syria. 27,830 applications were lodged in Italy, an increase of 60% compared to the previous year. The discrepancy between the number of people reaching Italian shores in the course of the year (42, 925) and the number of asylum applications lodged is striking. Another statistic giving pause for thought is the gap between the number of Syrian asylum seekers in Italy (just 695) and the number registered in northern European countries such as Sweden (16,317) and Germany (11,851). These figures show that those seeking protection are well aware of the difficulties of doing so in Italy and try to get to another destination by any means possible.

The total number of meals distributed by the soup kitchen in 2013 (102,675) has remained constant in relation to 2012, with a daily average of between 350 and 400 meals served. This figure sadly confirms the inability of the Italian reception system to respond to even the most immediate needs. The most widely represented nationalities correspond largely to the main countries of origin of asylum seekers in Italy: Mali, Ivory Coast, Afghanistan, Senegal, Pakistan, Eritrea, Nigeria and Guinea. Very few are Syrian, confirming the national data.

There has been a net increase in users of the Astalli Centre in Sicily, the region particularly targeted for the arrivals of forced migrants, in particular in Palermo, where an increase in the number of beneficiaries of almost 20% compared to 2012 was registered.

Reception: integration being hampered by an emergency mind-set

In 2013, local authorities have once more had to identify additional reception facilities in their territories, relying on emergency procedures not justified by the number of arrivals. Over the last ten years the trend in asylum requests, despite functional variations from one year to the next, has now settled at a stable order of magnitude and is largely predictable. It is the system for dealing with them which has remained inadequate: the expansion of the national reception system was a step in the right direction, but to talk about a system which genuinely corresponds to requirements, the number of places needs to be gauged against the number of arrivals (a useful point of reference could be average arrivals over the last three years).

Integration measures are still the weak point in a context which is critical in several respects. Many of those entitled to protection find themselves in practice left to their own devices with scarce opportunity to create their own way forward. Squatting, a particularly serious problem in Rome, is growing exponentially: in addition to the long-standing Roman squats (Collatina, Romanin and Ponte Mammolo), there are now the former ISPRA building in Piazza Indipendenza and Colle Oppio. At least 2,500 refugees are reckoned to be living on the margins of society in conditions of utter degradation. The search for work and for rented accommodation are the hardest challenges: the onerous nature of the rental agreements and the deposits required are enough to discourage even those able to rely on regular work. In 2013, the Astalli Centre tried to give concrete support to those entitled to international protection in the difficult path towards autonomy, including by means of specific support programmes envisaging financial assistance.

The crisis shows no signs of going away. Refugees are paying the price...

The effects of the economic crisis are still being felt more strongly than ever. They can be seen in north Italy, getting more dramatic in the south. Stays in reception centres are getting longer. Staff at reception centres still work hard to help guests to settle in, making use of such local networks as there are. Of particular concern is the situation of those who need to find work as soon as possible even to hold on to their right to remain: such is the case of those holding humanitarian residence permits and of the many migrants who have recently attained the age of majority.

The legal picture, with limitations on renewal of certain types of particularly flexible contracts, and the serious lack of incentives for professional training, has in effect made progress much harder for anyone entering the work market exclusively at the lowest and most vulnerable levels, such as refugees. As far as job-seeking advice centres are concerned, many women were still being registered during 2013. These women were mainly Africans, aged between 40 and 50, who had lived in Italy for many years, and were now searching for their umpteenth job looking after elderly people. Long term care work is exhausting, and most of these women reach the age of 50 with serious physical health problems, which hinder the search for a new job, and, more generally, their daily ability to cope.

...and in particular, their families

The situations of those with families to support, or who are involved in family reunion procedures, are more complex still. Particular attention needs to be paid to refugee families, where a multi-faceted approach is required, taking account of a variety of factors. Unfortunately the context is getting increasingly difficult. The problems of finding work and renting an affordable flat suitable for a family are growing. There is a lack of long term reception facilities or of semi-autonomous accommodation where families could be helped to become gradually more self-sufficient. The daily struggle which is hard enough for Italian families, who at least can often count on networks of relatives and friends, is a far greater challenge for a refugee family.

The average stay in the family centre Pedro Arrupe is now more than 12 months.

Supporting the most vulnerable is an increasingly necessary task

Overall, 713 people in particularly fragile situations – torture victims, and victims of deliberate violence or sexual abuse – have been supported by Centro Astalli through action co-ordinated by its medical service and the legal advice centre, including both new and regular users. 206 torture victims have made visits to obtain a forensic medical certificate for presentation to Local Commissions.

The fact which causes greatest concern is that these people, who have already suffered so much, often fail to get access to appropriate reception facilities: almost half the torture victims dealt with by the legal advice centre said they lived on the street (15%), were squatting, or were being intermittently hosted by friends or acquaintances (34%). Often the anguish of these people also comes out in the reception centres: at La Casa di Giogia a high number of guests were found to be afflicted with mental health problems, including serious conditions, the consequence of trauma or violence suffered, and to be in need of care and specialised assistance.

Given the huge cuts to the health budget, the ability of the local authorities to provide assistance to people whose mental health has been severely strained by past and present trauma has been greatly reduced. Public funding for mental health is now woefully inadequate. Yet specific, targeted support could in most cases prevent problems from becoming acute or chronic, thus avoiding the creation of paradoxical and dangerous situations of exclusion: in practice, a refugee who suffers from a serious mental problem rendering him or her unable to live in a community often ends up being left entirely to his or her own devices.

The most worrying form of poverty is ignorance and lack of values

In 2013, Centro Astalli increased its information, awareness raising and communication activities aimed at confronting prejudice, superficial judgements and unjustified scaremongering and promoting awareness and the rediscovery of fundamental values such as solidarity and hospitality. More than 18,700 students have been involved in educational projects on the right of asylum and inter-religious dialogue prompted by the Astalli Centre in 13 Italian cities.

An annual awareness campaign, The sea unites; the land should not divide, has been dedicated to the Mediterranean, the historic crossing place which today is all too often a graveyard for refugees in search of protection. The aim of the photographic exhibition Sanctuary and Sustenance, promoted by the Jesuit Refugee Service International for the World Refugee Day in June, was to emphasise the grave international crises in Syria and the Congo: safe corridors, an end to refoulement, and ‘reception’ worthy of the name for the innocent victims of war have been the main advocacy themes which Centro Astalli has been taking forward during the year.

More people getting involved

There are still plenty of people who choose to dedicate time, energy, skills and professionalism to asylum seekers and refugees. In 2013, in the 8 cities where Centro Astalli operates (Rome, Palermo, Catania, Trento, Vicenza, Naples, Milan and Padua) 486 volunteers have made the services described in this report possible with their commitment. As Pope Francis underlined, Centro Astalli volunteers are people who do not simply give something, or some of their time, but who seek to engage with the refugees, recognising them as people and struggling to find concrete responses to their needs.

The Mayor of Rome, Ignazio Marino, wanted to recognise the valuable work carried out by the volunteers of Centro Astalli over the years, awarding the association the Rome Prize for Peace and Humanitarian Action, which had previously been awarded to eminent figures such as John Paul II, Muhammed Yunus, Ingrid Betancourt and Aung San Suu Kyi among others.

Pope Francis at Centro Astalli

On Tuesday, 10 September 2013, Pope Francis kept the promise he made to Father Giovanni La Manna the day after his election and came to meet the refugees. The pontiff arrived at the soup kitchen of Centro Astalli and with warmth and simplicity greeted those who, like any other day, were queuing up for a meal. Then he went in to meet a group of refugees and chatted with them.

At the end of his visit to the soup kitchen, the Holy Father proceeded to the Church of the Gesù where 350 refugees and 300 volunteers from the reception centres and the services provided by Centro Astalli were waiting for him. Carol, a Syrian refugee, and Adam, a Sudanese refugee from Darfur, greeted Pope Francis. The Pope then paid his respects at the tomb of Father Pedro Arrupe, founder of the Jesuit Refugee Service, together with a family of Egyptian refugees.

In his speech, the pontiff called for people not to be afraid of differences and to engage in the cause of the common good and human dignity. In particular, he called on the church to carry out concrete and courageous acts of welcome: “Empty convents shouldn’t be turned into hotels to make money: they exist for the flesh of Christ, they exist for the refugees”. Following this direct and courageous appeal, some religious communities have made themselves available to be involved in the reception of refugees in Rome. During 2014, through the new programme “Communities of hospitality”, Centro Astalli is going to try out some new models where responsibility for reception is shared between religious communities and local citizens.

Centro Astalli in numbers
Beneficiaries 2013: 37,000, of whom 21,000 in Rome
Volunteers: 486
Staff: 49
Number of torture victims assisted: 713
Associations in Centro Astalli network: 8