Following a visit to Italy from 12 to 16 January, the Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Michael O’Flaherty, has called on the national authorities, on Monday 19 January to “make progress on eradicating persistent child poverty and to strengthen the country’s human rights architecture, including by establishing an independent National Human Rights Institution (NHRI)”.
“Italy is a real outlier”, he added, “being one of just a few countries that do not have an independent NHRI or are in the process of establishing one. This gap should be filled”.
The Commissioner encourages the authorities to prioritise this issue and recalls that such a body must be independent and have sufficient resources to fulfil a mandate that encompasses all human rights.
He referred to the reforms required by EU legislation, such as the adoption of minimum standards for equality bodies and the designation of independent authorities to monitor the screening of procedures at borders screening procedures and to protect human rights in relation to the use of artificial intelligence.
In his view, these reforms should provide impetus for a review of Italy’s existing human rights structures.
The Commissioner noted that all his Italian interlocutors recognised the importance of the challenge of child poverty and the need for urgent solutions.
He promotes a comprehensive strategy that should address education, health and social security issues by rapidly establishing “Essential Levels of Provision” (Livelli Essenziali di Prestazione or LEP) accompanied by adequate resources, “particularly in territories where poverty is highly concentrated”.
This strategy should also pay specific attention to the needs of the most disadvantaged children, including “non-citizens without long-term residence permits” and “children from Roma communities”.
Link to the press release from the Commissioner for Human Rights: https://aeur.eu/f/kb1 (Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)