Following a meeting with Tunisia’s President Beji Caid Essebsi, Salvini demanded that illicit migration be “blocked”.
In a joint press conference with his Tunisian counterpart Hichem Fourati, the Italian leader said: “The priority was to block the hundreds of thousands of uncontrolled arrivals that we have received these last years.
“We are working with the Tunisian authorities to… escort to Tunisia those who come from Tunisia,” Salvini added.
Fourati voiced support for Salvini’s plan saying that those who “prove that they are Tunisian and their fingerprints are processed by the Tunisian authorities, they will be repatriated”.
Fourati elaborated on his discussions with the Italian minister. “We have discussed mechanisms for tackling networks implicated in human trafficking, which don’t hesitate to trade in the blood of our young people”, Fourati added.
Italy’s interior ministry says 4 487 Tunisians have arrived clandestinely in Italy since the start of the year, compared to 6 092 in the whole of 2017.
Salvini has also been working to introduce new legislation that would put limitations on the Italian residence permit.
But president of the Italian Catholic bishops’ conference (CEI), Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti, has disagreed strongly with the repatriation policy. “As pastors we are interested in solidarity between people and integration.”
The president of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Holy See (APSA), Bishop Nunzio Galantino, is another prominent Vatican leader to speak out against Salvini.
Last month, the media noted the “unprecedented hostility” toward Salvini from the Catholic establishment in Italy, notably the bishops conference and Catholic journals such as Famiglia Cristiana and Avvenire.
“Honestly I cannot explain it. So much virulence leaves me truly perplexed,” Salvini responded when asked to explain the Vatican’s hostility.
He says however he has been “flooded” with mail from Catholics — even priests and bishops — who encourage him to continue his anti-immigration policies.