The Asylum System in Italy: A review of the changing flows, fragmented policy frameworks and the key role of civil society organisations

On the 26th of February 2023, the news and images of yet another migrant boat shipwreck on the Italian coast, occupied headlines in the Italian and European media. Five days after having left Turkey, with around 150 people onboard from Syria, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran, a wooden vessel broke apart while trying to land near Steccato di Cutro, a remote town in the southern region of Calabria. The bodies of 86 victims, including 35 minors, have been recovered (Ansa, 2023a). Some were washed up on a tourist beach, while others were found at sea. This was one of the worst shipwrecks in the country's recent history. While debates arose on who was to be held responsible and why the Italian authorities failed to respond to distress signals sent by a plane of the European Union's Frontex border mission (Amante, 2023), the Italian Minister of Interior Matteo Piantedosi caused public outrage for his remark that “desperation can never justify travel conditions that endanger the lives of one's children” (Ecre, 2023).