Berlusconi`s Migrant Crackdown Could Boost EU Vote
Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's migrant crackdown could help him in European polls by playing to a popular law-and-order agenda and shifting attention away from his nasty divorce, analysts say.Despite U.N. criticism, Italy last week began intercepting refugees at sea and turning their boats back to Libya before they reach Italian waters, a move legal experts say may allow Rome to sidestep any obligation to receive asylum requests. Viewed together with tough legislation in parliament making illegal immigration a crime, analysts say Berlusconi is reviving the law-and-order campaign that got him elected a year ago -- just in time for June 6-7 elections for the European parliament. "We're seeing a repeat of what happened in last year's elections," said political analyst James Walston. "Berlusconi seems to be managing the agenda. He's moving it away from personal matters ... He's saying 'look at me and look at the wonderful things I'm doing to protect your streets'."
The policy has met opposition from the United Nations, the Catholic Church and human rights groups, who say Italy is undermining access to asylum in Europe, but has won support well beyond Berlusconi's conservative base.
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