Ius scholae:the last chance to approve a citizenship reform

https://www.valigiablu.it/ius-scholae-testo-legge/

After months of postponements, delays and attempts at obstructionism, the ius scholae arrives in the courtroom.The discussion in the Chamber on the reform text of the law begins today law 91/92, which regulates the acquisition of Italian citizenship.It provides that a minor born in Italy to foreign parents can apply to become an Italian citizen as long as he or she has attended school for 5 years one or more school cycles at institutions belonging to the national education system. The possibility is also extended to minors who were not born in Italy but who entered the country by the age of 12.Citizenship can be acquired with a declaration of will before reaching the age of majority.One of the parents must request it.The text was closed yesterday evening, with the introduction of some new features:in particular, if the five-year school cycle is that of elementary school, not only attendance is required but also successful completion, therefore promotion.Furthermore, professional training courses must have some essential requirements to be considered suitable for issuing citizenship.

In fact, what the Chamber is preparing to discuss is a reform that only affects minors, or rather the 877 thousand pupils (10% of the entire school population) with a migrant background who attend Italian schools but who are still considered "foreigners". , even though 65% of them were born in our country.Synthesis of three different legislative proposals, filed by Renata Polverini, Matteo Orfini and Laura Boldrini, the text is also the result of mediation between the parties to ensure the widest possible consensus for the reform.For this reason, any reference to the ius soli also temperate, as it was formulated in the proposal approved in the House in 2015 and never discussed in the Senate.

In fact, with the exception of the League, the forces that make up the current government majority have expressed a favorable opinion.Even if yesterday evening, during the final vote, Forza Italia, which initially supported the text, split:Renata Polverini voted in favor, Annagrazia Calabria against.The position of the Forza Italia supporters could become decisive in the coming months.Overall, all positions remain lukewarm.Despite some declarations and the position of individual parliamentarians, no party in recent months has really fought for the measure to advance.Citizenship reform is not in the program of the Draghi Government while it remains one of the themes on which right-wing propaganda is based, which has often spoken of a risk of "ethnic replacement" linked to "easy citizenship".In fact, the opposition of the Brothers of Italy to the ius scholae is clear and considers the reform neither necessary nor a priority.

It is no coincidence that an avalanche of amendments were presented on the text, made up of only two articles:over 728 (of which 484 from the League, 167 from Fratelli d'Italia).In particular, the League aimed to include "Italianness" tests, tests on the country's habits and customs through the knowledge of popular festivals and festivals. Several amendments then focused on the conduct of children at school, such as not having committed bullying or violent acts during school hours, and on performance:an average rating of no less than 8 or for professional qualifications 90/100.The amendments of the Fratelli d'Italia group, however, mainly focused on the duration of the school course for applying for citizenship:for Fdl the minimum period should be at least eight years.In the only amendment signed by the leader, Giorgia Meloni, it is requested that children arriving within the age of 12 attend at least two school cycles (elementary/middle school and high school) at institutions belonging to the national education system and that upon reaching their eighteenth year of age can "acquire" Italian citizenship.Testifying to the party's desire not to change anything with respect to current legislation.

After weeks of discussion in the Constitutional Affairs Commission, the amendments that provided for tests on the festivals were rejected and the basic text was not changed much compared to its original version.The changes from those who asked that the consent of both parents should not be required were accepted, to accommodate single-parent families.The criterion of the permanence of the requesting minor on Italian territory has also been removed, while the requirement of the legal residence of the parents remains. The reform project did not include the transitional rule that would allow the provision to be made retroactive for those who have already completed a cycle of studies in our country.If the text were passed, therefore, the potential beneficiaries would be less than the million and a half born and raised in Italy but still without citizenship, estimated by the Idos research and center.

“We discussed hundreds of amendments, exceeding twenty hours of sitting - states a Blue suitcase the rapporteur of the law Giuseppe Brescia (M5S) -.In recent months there have been various contributions and impulses from civil society, I particularly appreciated the qualified support of educators and paediatricians.It is very difficult to say that those who study with our children are not Italian.With this law, Parliament does something that it too often does not do:simply take note of reality."The Five Star MP underlines that it is now necessary to "pay off a debt with thousands of young people who feel Italian even if they are not recognized as such by the State".But he also warns that the process will not be easy, if a good outcome is predicted in the Chamber, in fact, the stumbling block remains in the Senate where the numbers may not be enough.

According to the movements that are fighting for law 91/92, based on the ius sanguinis, to be reformed after thirty years, the ius scholae is therefore only a very first step.It is not the complete reform law, requested by many, which should have also revised the naturalization part for adults (to date ten years of uninterrupted residence in the area and a minimum income equal to the annual social allowance are envisaged).Yet for everyone it represents the last chance to change the rules for acquiring citizenship.

“It's the last call at the station, if this train doesn't pass it will be difficult to start the battle all over again.We have been wasting energy for years, more and more people are going to other countries, because they feel like illegitimate children, sometimes completely orphaned, of a country that does not recognize them.There are over a million and a half young people who have been waiting too long, there is great disillusionment and tiredness even in their movements", he tells Blue suitcase Marwa Mahmoud activist of the Italians without citizenship movement and municipal councilor in Reggio Emilia.Born in Alexandria, Egypt, she arrived in our country at the age of two and twenty years later became an Italian citizen.“I was the first of foreign origin to join the city council of my city.I entered a battlefield where no one else had represented the difference before - she says -.Without citizenship you cannot participate in a public tender and you can neither vote nor be voted for.And the others, not seeing us within the institutions, think that those who come from other contexts do not have the dignity to be representative.This is also due to the fact that we have a political class that struggles to recognize the enormous heritage it has in the territories:there is a generation that grew up at school, trained and educated in this country, which is not invested in but ignored.Many of us now go abroad because they feel like illegitimate children of a country that does not recognize them."For Mahmoud, citizenship is also linked to a gender issue.Too many women and girls of foreign origin struggle to emancipate themselves from their family of origin or from their husband/partner because they are tied to a family status that determines their permission to stay in Italy.The most emblematic case of recent years was that of Saman Abbas, killed by her family for refusing an arranged marriage.The girl, of Pakistani origin, who called herself on social media italian girl, she had moved away from her family and then returned under the blackmail of not having her identity document returned. “Emancipation and independence are closely linked to legislation - adds the councilor -.The right to mobility, to assert oneself, to no longer be subordinated to the will of the family is linked to the possibility of being recognized as full citizens.Not having citizenship is an aggravating factor for the emancipation of the female condition in many communities".

For Andreea Girleanu, a 23-year-old student, born in Romania, who arrived in Italy at the age of 3 but is still waiting for citizenship, "Italian politics is now very distant from its citizens, even more so from Italians without citizenship".“It is difficult for me to hope for a good outcome of the reform - he confesses -.But thinking that, for the umpteenth time, nothing will change seems impossible and unacceptable to me in a context like the one we live in today.I can't imagine Italy stopping once again."Girleanu is part of the “On the right side of history” movement which organized on June 28th in Rome a fake wedding in Piazza Capranica with the slogan #Italiadimmidisì to draw the attention of political forces to the need to conclude the process in the courtroom soon.

“Everything will depend on how the center and center-right parties will line up - adds Manuel Bustamante, 33 years old, waiting for the final verification of documents before taking the oath -.We know that their voters are absolutely in favor of reform.We hope that the decision will be based on attention to our rights and not on the basis of pre-election positioning games." According to a survey carried out by Quorum/Youtrend for ActionAid, In fact, the front of consensus for the citizenship reform goes beyond party affiliations and also crosses the center right:48% of Lega voters agree with the Ius Scholae, as do 35% of those who declare themselves voters of Fratelli d'Italia and 58% of Forza Italia respondents.According to the answers of the interviewees, therefore, there would be a strong openness to the reform even among those in Parliament who oppose the text.

Ius scholae: among Italians there is a transversal front in favor of recognizing the right to citizenship for boys and girls who live in Italy and attend school. The data from our survey carried out with @you_trend @AgenziaQuorum⤵️https://t.co/vMObrDRdQQ #mewe #makethechange pic.twitter.com/8xu6VREJy0

— ActionAid Italia (@ActionAidItalia) June 24, 2022

“The ius scholae, as it is formulated, is a reform that we do not like in its entirety because it is a downward compromise, different from what we have proposed over the years.But it is still a first step forward.Its approval would be important for the many families and children who have been waiting for too long - underlines Filippo Miraglia of Arci, one of the associations that filed with the Chamber in 2011 the popular initiative bill I am Italy too -.The center-left must find the courage to approve it.If in the past, in better conditions they were unable to go all the way, in the future we expect a certain worsening, with the right advancing.So the time is now, this is the last call.And it would be appropriate for all progressive forces to really commit themselves, at least to give a signal that there is someone in the country who really cares about rights and equality."

Meanwhile, the case of Khaby Lame, 21 years old, the most famous TikToker in the world, born in Senegal and arrived in Italy when he was only one year old, has caused discussion in recent days.In an interview with Riccardo Luna on Republic he recalled that he was still waiting for citizenship, despite having submitted the documentation for a year:“It is not right that a person who lives and grows with Italian culture for so many years and is clean, still does not have the right to citizenship today.And I'm not just speaking for myself,” he said.“The visa and maybe citizenship would make things easier for me, but I wouldn't be happy thinking about all those other people who maybe were also born in Italy and don't have the same right.”

Immediately after the interview was published, the undersecretary of the Interior, Carlo Sibilia, reassured the boy in a tweet by saying that the citizenship decree was issued in early June by the Ministry and that he will soon be called to take the oath.But this has reignited the controversy over the right to citizenship as a prize or merit, granted only to those who excel or stand out for their popularity.And not as a right for those who live, work and study in the country.It's not the first time this has happened, the theme has often the world of sport involved.The proposal, put forward by CONI, has been criticized from many quarters a sporting ius soli to allow children to participate in international competitions and sports federations to have a wider pool of athletes to draw from.For many it would mean a form of discrimination for all the other kids who do not have particular competitive abilities but remain Italian in fact and not in law.Again on merit, this time civil, citizenship was granted to Adam and Ramy, the two "hero" boys who in 2019 in San Donato Milanese had foiled the attack on a bus.Also in this case, many have criticized the risk of access to rights only in particular cases.

“There is an idea that becoming an Italian citizen is an exceptional step, which should not be given to everyone and which involves extraordinary and heroic performances.The boundaries of reality are shifting - underlined the sociologist Maurizio Ambrosini in an interview -.It is the coding of a country in which there is a double residence permit:there are residents who are also citizens and there are millions of people who reside, pay taxes, go to school but are not full citizens.It seems unfair and unrealistic to me.School is the institution that builds citizens.Recognizing this is an aspect to be valued.A narrow conception of citizenship produces, however, unnecessary divisions in society."

Preview image:photo by Eleonora Camilli

Licensed under: CC-BY-SA