Even though Giorgia Meloni’s government has been the longest since World War II, it has caused many polemics since its start, in October 2022. By being aligned with far-right ideologies, the actions taken by her office like reinforcing the punishments for protesters, weakening the law against the mafia and changing the electoral system cause controversies among the Italians.
Recent measures, like altering immigration rules and prohibiting the use of veils in schools led to new debates about national identity and belonging in the country for those who came from other regions.
Are foreigners welcome in Italy?
Europe has always struggled with migration issues, during World War II people left the continent because of the conflict and searched for a new life in other countries. In 2015, the largest migration flow since WWII hit Europe, with people fleeing from regions like Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan to the EU countries. At the time, there was a divided feeling throughout the continent on the actions to take with the migrants.
Therefore, the European Commission has been more rigorous on the legislation about immigrants and on protecting borders. They have officially implemented the Pact on Migration and Asylum, which includes obligatory screening and identification at external borders and have also made the return and deportation rules stricter, applying fines or criminal penalties, for example, for those who don’t cooperate. Recently, at an informal meeting between Meloni and Denmark’s PM, Mette Frederiksen, and other European politicians, they stated that illegal migrants have a negative impact on the continent, like trafficking drugs, rising of crime rates and sexual violence.
Meloni and Frederiksen affirm that they won’t accept the “uncontrolled immigration to Europe” and are already working on solutions such as an increase on deportations and repatriation centers in third countries. But, according to them that’s not enough to keep the European values that are threatened by the newcomers who want to impose a different lifestyle that is not shared with European common values.
Their affirmation disrespects the other’s values and generalizes the intentions of people coming from non EU countries, affirming they will not respect the local culture, when in the majority of the time that’s not the case.
Outsider’s culture as a threat to the locals
In the last three years of the Brothers of Italy, Meloni’s coalition, leadership, the number of illegal immigrants have dropped. According to the India Global Review news, in 2023, there were 158 thousand arrivals, in the following year, 66 thousand, and from January to July of this year, there were 16 thousand immigrant people. These numbers are a win for the far-right party and coalition, because they have been working on more rigorous border controls and immigration policies. These actions align with their ideology since they are more conservative, defending “traditional” families and Italy’s Christian heritage against culture globalization.
Meloni has recently talked about promoting a cap for immigrant students in Italy. According to her speech on September 20th, at the event promoted by the Fratelli d’Italia’s young wing: “if the number of children who don’t understand the language becomes large – or the majority – that is no longer integration, that’s neglect”. This measure also includes that parents whose children are having difficulties adapting, must learn the official language.
She sets 30% as the maximum percentage of foreign students in each class, assuring that the situation mentioned above won’t happen and every student will be able to learn and integrate with its classmates. This measure reaffirms the far-right coalition’s position of not only trying to keep foreigners out, but if you come to Italy you must live according to our culture and rules. Francesco Lollobrigida, current Minister of Agriculture, made a statement in 2023 saying “Italians are having fewer children, so we are replacing them with someone else. Yes to helping births, no to ethnic replacement”. The opposition linked his speech with ideas spread during Mussolini’s government, one of Meloni’s inspirations.
Italy to ban veils in schools, limit foreign students per class, Meloni says
Is the prohibition of veils in schools culturally acceptable?
One of the most recent causes for debate are the new measures the Prime Minister pretends to apply, which refers to banning the use of burqas and niqabs in educational institutes. She claimed in a public speech at the same event mentioned before that “at schools no one goes with an uncovered face. And because in Italy, no one in the name of a true or presumed tradition can decide that a young woman must hide herself”.
Even though she had a standing ovation for this measure, we should go deeper on this matter, because not every woman uses a veil because she is obligated. In Iran and Afghanistan covering your face and body is demanded by law, but in the other Muslim majority countries, the use of the veil is for a cultural reason and identity. That’s why the prohibition causes controversy, because for some people, the use of the veil refers to the practice of their culture. And if they can’t use it, they are being denied their right of religion, for example, foreseen in the European Convention of Human Rights, Article 9.
Other countries in Europe have already banned the coverage of the face in schools and other public institutions citing national security and public identification. The first to do so was France, in 2004 they banned any religious clothing in schools and in 2011 they banned face covering in public.
Later in 2011, Belgium also banned niqabs and burqas (pieces that cover the face) wearing in public. In the Netherlands full face and body coverage has been prohibited in public spaces (buildings, transport, schools and hospitals) since 2016. The veil ban in Bulgaria, introduced also in 2016, has its exceptions: areas of sport activity, workplace and religious service. The “anti-face veil law” was established in 2017 in Austria. In 2018, Denmark banned the use of veils in all public spaces. The German rules don’t apply equally in every region. The use of veils is authorized depending on profession and state legal framework. Since 2018, in Luxembourg, face covering is prohibited in public spaces. After a referendum, a nationwide ban on full face covering was established in 2025. There is no federal law against the use of veils in Spain, leaving the institutions to decide on the matter. In Portugal there’s also no law against the use of veils, but they permit institutions to decide about dress code, always assuring ideologically neutral places.
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The article above was edited by Ana Rita Rodrigues Fernandes.
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