Human rights group accuses Italy of forcibly returning migrants to Libya

ROME (AP) — A human rights group on Monday accused Italy of forcibly returning would-be migrants to Libya, failing to screen them for possible asylum requests and exposing them to abuse in the North African country.

The Interior Ministry did not have an immediate comment to the 92-page report by Human Rights Watch. But Rome has maintained that possible asylum claims are processed in Libya and that its treatment of migrants is fair.

Under a recent deal with Libya, Italy can intercept migrant boats at sea and send them back to Libya without screening them first for asylum.

The report said Italy fails to determine not only if some might apply for refugee status but also if anyone is sick, injured or if there are pregnant women or children in need of assistance. It says this policy is in violation of Italy’s obligation not to force people back to places where they face the risk of degrading treatment, or worse.

“The reality is that Italy is sending people back to abuse,“ said Bill Frelick, refugee policy director at Human Rights Watch and the author of the report. “Migrants who had been detained in Libya consistently spoke of brutal treatment and overcrowded and unsanitary conditions,“ he said.

The report also urges the European Union and its external borders agency, Frontex, to ensure access to asylum. Frelick said Italy’s fellow EU member states “should refuse to participate in Frontex operations that result in the return of migrants to abuse.“

The report was based on interviews, mostly conducted in May, with 91 migrants and asylum seekers both in Italy and Malta, the group said. One telephone interview was with a migrant being detained in Libya.

The report includes allegations of people whose real identities were kept anonymous who speak of abuse in Libya.

Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, when asked about the immigration policy during a visit to Italy in June, dismissed the issue. He said political asylum is not a concern for the majority of the would-be immigrants, who are mainly attracted to Europe’s wealth and use Libya as a jumping-off point.