"Remigration? I think it’s necessary in some cases,” says Roberto Vannacci, a member of the European Parliament from the Lega party, an extreme-right party that sits in the European Parliament within the group known as Patriots for Europe. This was the first time the word remigrazione (remigration) was mentioned in a political broadcast in Italy. It is not the first time this term has been used in public debate. On January 3 of this year, Alessandro Corbetti, the head of the Lega group in the Lombardy Regional Council, wrote on a Facebook post: “Even in Italy, we need to talk about remigration, meaning not only deporting illegal immigrants and criminals, but also foreigners who choose not to integrate.” These statements referred to the celebrations in Piazza Duomo in Milan on New Year’s Eve, where foreign-origin young people insulted Italy and its law enforcement, sparking numerous controversies, especially among members of the center-right coalition currently in power.
Following the events in Milan, the Lega Giovani branch in Como also commented: “We strongly propose the introduction of a remigration plan for all immigrants who commit crimes or show a clear refusal to integrate into our society.” The statement was also shared by Lega Giovani Lombardia, but only about migrants who commit crimes. Later, Lega parliamentarian Rossano Sasso, in a speech in the Chamber of Deputies, stated: “From the Italian Parliament, a message to those who hate Italy and break the law: remigration is the only solution.” Therefore, in a very short time, what was essentially an unfamiliar term in the Italian public debate, previously used by some extra-parliamentary far-right movements, has been legitimized and incorporated into the political discourse.
Currently, remigration has only been supported and promoted by the Lega, the farthest-right party in the government coalition. Gioventù Nazionale, the youth organization of Fratelli d’Italia, a right-wing government party, distanced itself from statements in favor of remigration, calling it an unusual term. Remigration is a term derived from the verb “to remigrate,” used by the famous naturalist philosopher Giordano Bruno in 1584 in Spaccio della bestia trionfante, where the term was employed with the meaning “to return to the place of origin.” The term “remigrazione” has no other entries, and thus has not yet been included in Italian dictionaries; however, the word has gained significant traction within identitarian and nationalist far-right movements, where it is used to mean “forced return to the homeland,” and currently refers to a repressive policy targeting first- and second-generation migrants who commit illegal acts or are simply not fully integrated.
This political perspective has attracted many radical-right parties, especially Alternative for Germany (AfD) in Germany and the FPÖ in Austria. An investigation by the journal Correctiv revealed an encounter between AfD representatives and members of identity and neo-Nazi movements to develop a remigration and deportation plan for the next two years. Alice Weidel, nominated as the AfD’s candidate for the German chancellery in the party congress held on February 11 and 12, stated, “Only remigration can save Germany.” A few days later, 30,000 fake deportation notices were sent to the mailboxes of migrant households. In Italy, issues related to migration and security are also central to public opinion. In the 2022 elections, which saw the victory of the center-right coalition led by Giorgia Meloni, the leader of the far-right nationalist party Fratelli d’Italia, there was much debate over the proposal to establish a naval blockade to stop illegal immigration, a project abandoned after the election campaign; however, in recent years, policies have been implemented in an attempt to reduce migration flows. The most important measure was the signing of a memorandum with Libya in 2017 under the center-left government of Paolo Gentiloni, in which Libyan authorities committed to reducing migration flows with the help of Italian and European funding. The agreement was heavily criticized due to ongoing human rights violations by the Libyan Coast Guard. In 2024, the government led by Giorgia Meloni signed an agreement with Albania, which provides for the installation of migrant reception centers controlled by Italian authorities in Albanian territory, where illegal immigrants would be sent while awaiting regularization or deportation to their countries of origin. Meanwhile, there is also a misperception of migration in Italy: 30% of Italians believe that 50% of migrants arrive by sea (in reality, they represent 15% of the migrants who land in Italy), while 64% think there is poor integration of migrants within neighborhoods."
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