The European Parliament on
Monday voted against Socialists and Democrats (S&D) deputy
leader Maria Joao Rodrigues's proposal to have a plenary debate
on the case of Riace, a Calabrian town repopulated with migrant
help, where Mayor Domenico Lucano has been arrested for
allegedly abetting illegal immigration via marriages of
convenience and other means.
Lucano, named one of Forbes' 50 greatest world leaders in
2016, appeared in a sympathetic interview on a prime-time TV
talk show on State broadcaster RAI Sunday night prompting
Interior Minister and anti-migrant League leader Matteo Salvini
to say he should not be turned into a "martyr".
On Tuesday night Lucano was released from house arrest
imposed over allegations he was aiding illegal immigration and
left the southern town early on Wednesday to comply with an
court order banning him from staying there.
However, Lucano's partner, Tesfahun Lemlem, who is under
investigation for the same allegations regarding involvement in
marriages of convenience to obtain resident permits, is staying
in Riace.
She has been ordered to regularly sign in with the
authorities.
Central government is set to scrap the 'SPRAR' projects to
help migrants in Riace, citing alleged "serious anomalies".
The government has been accused of dismantling the Riace
model, which saw migrants help revive the small town in Calabria
whose population was dwindling, by several critics.
On Tuesday Lucano said that he was ready to continue the
southern town's widely lauded model to integrate migrants
without public money.
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