By KUNA,
Brussels : The European Commission, the executive body of the European Union, said here Wednesday that it is still waiting for the “security package” from Italian authorities to see whether it complies with human rights and EU legislation.
The comments came following a report by a European human rights watchdog that measures being taken against Gypsies and immigrants in Italy are violation of human rights.
“Concern about security cannot be the only basis for immigration policy. Measures now being taken in Italy lack human rights and humanitarian principles and may spur further xenopohobia,” said the Strasbourg-based Council of Europe (CoE) in a report published on Tuesday.
The CoE Commissioner for Human Rights, Thomas Hammarberg, voiced strong concern at the “security package” that appears to target Roma immigrants, and at the declaration of states of emergency in three Italian regions He also criticised the decision to criminalise migrants entry and irregular stay in Italy. “We need to see these reports and once we have these reports we will be able to identify clearly what is involved and measure their compatibility with human rights and EU legislation,” a spokesperson for the European Commission, Michele Cercone, told reporters in Brussels. Meanwhile, the Italian government has announced that it will deploy thousands of troops in Italian cities from Monday to help police fight crime.