Italian immigration bill sails through parliament
Agence France-Presse
First Posted 21:45:00 07/23/2008
ROME -- Controversial measures to fight illegal immigration proposed by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's center-right government were set to become law after being approved by the Senate Wednesday.
The measures were voted in the upper house by 161 to 120 with eight abstentions, eight days after they were adopted by a vote of 322 to 267, with eight abstentions, in the Chamber of Deputies.
It took the form of a vote of confidence, a legislative strategy used to cancel out amendments to a bill. The center-left opposition had proposed around 1,200 amendments to the immigration bill as a way of stalling its passage.
The measures are opposed by the left, Roman Catholic groups and human rights organizations as well as some European bodies.
For the first time, illegal immigration will be a custodial offence in Italy, punishable by between six months and four years in prison. The new legislation also facilitates deportation.
Among the more draconian changes is the extension of the allowable detention of suspected illegal immigrants from two months to 18 months.
In addition, non-Italians convicted of crimes will face penalties one-third stiffer than those handed down to Italians.
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