COOPERATION WITH LIBYA In September, Mimmo Lucano, former By the end of the year, 32,425 refugees and mayor of Riace, Calabria, was sentenced by migrants had been captured at sea by Libyan the Locri tribunal to 13 years and two coastguards, supported by Italy and the EU, months’ imprisonment for maladministration and returned to Libya, by far the highest and embezzlement, notwithstanding figure on record. Italy continued to support prosecutors acknowledging he did not profit the Libyan authorities in containing refugees from his conduct. For many years, he had and migrants in Libya, despite widespread organized a welcoming reception system for evidence of continuing abuses against them. refugees, asylum seekers and migrants. The Italy’s evacuation programmes from Libya sentence was nearly double that requested continued to benefit very few asylum seekers, by the prosecutors. with 45 people transferred to Italy in June Court cases against rescue NGOs continued and 93 in November. in Sicily. Prosecutors indicted 21 people The deployment of Italian military and belonging to the crews of Iuventa and of civilian personnel in Libya to assist Libyan Médecins Sans Frontières and Save the border control authorities was extended for Children’s ships for “facilitation of irregular another year in July. The Italian authorities migration” in connection with rescue 2 continued to provide Libya with resources operations conducted in 2016 and 2017. instrumental to maritime interceptions, The authorities continued to use Port State including a new maritime coordination centre Control powers to hinder rescue NGOs’ delivered in December. activities and seize their ships. Despite this, by the end of the year, 67,477 TORTURE AND OTHER ILL-TREATMENT people (including 9,699 unaccompanied children) had reached Italy by sea, mostly Concerns about torture and other ill- from Libya and Tunisia, an increase over the treatment of people in prison and police 34,154 arrivals in 2020. Deaths at sea of custody persisted and several judicial refugees and migrants in the Mediterranean proceedings against suspected perpetrators also increased, reaching 1,553 by the end of were ongoing. the year, compared with 999 in 2020. In September, prosecutors laid charges of In October, a court in Naples sentenced the torture and other ill-treatment against 120 captain of the Asso Ventotto, a merchant prison officers and senior prison ship, to one year’s imprisonment. In 2018, he administration officials for a mass beating in had rescued over 100 people, including the prison of Santa Maria Capua Vetere, children, and unlawfully returned them to the Campania, in April 2020, which affected 177 Libyan coastguard. detainees and led to the death of one of In December, the Cassation Court them. overturned the conviction of two African men who had protested against an attempt by the 1. Italy: Muzzled and Unheard in the Pandemic: Urgent Need to Address crew of the Vos Thalassa, the merchant Concerns of Care and Health Workers in Italy (Index: EUR vessel that had rescued them, to return them 30/4875/2021), 22 October to Libya. The court ruled that their behaviour 2. Italy: A Slippery Slope for Human Rights: The Iuventa Case (Index: was justified by the need to protect EUR 30/4475/2021), 4 August themselves and the other 65 people rescued. CRIMINALIZATION OF SOLIDARITY The authorities continued to suppress the activities of individuals and organizations that assist refugees and migrants at borders, using both criminal law and administrative measures. Amnesty International Report 2021/22 213