The centres built by the Italian government in Albania are ready to host migrants rescued in the Mediterranean, eleven months after the agreement between the two countries was signed.
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00:00Reception centers built by Italy in Albania are now ready to host migrants, 11 months
00:08after the agreement between the two countries was signed.
00:11At a first stage, a maximum of 400 people are being sent there, only men rescued by
00:17Italian ships in the Mediterranean Sea and transported to Albania.
00:22Italian staff are running the center, with interpreters, medical visits and the possibility
00:26of applying for asylum guaranteed.
00:28In these centers, migrants will be identified, cured if necessary, but there will be only
00:36the time strictly necessary for the identification procedures, a few hours before being transported
00:43to the other center.
00:45The village of Yadr is a 30-minute drive inland.
00:49Here the major center is located, divided into six parts.
00:53It is supposed to host up to 3,000 people in the future.
00:57The main section is meant to house asylum seekers while their requests are being processed.
01:04Applications must be answered within 28 days, according to the accelerated procedure foreseen
01:08in Italian law.
01:11During this time, applicants will be able to meet lawyers and staff from international
01:15organizations.
01:17Those who are not entitled to asylum end up in another part of the camp.
01:22This is the center of permanent resettlement, the place where people will be accommodated
01:28who will be refused their asylum applications.
01:31There are dozens of places and if the capacity is fulfilled, these migrants will be transferred
01:37to Italy, waiting to be resettled in their countries of origin.
01:42There is also a prison with a capacity of 20 places for migrants who commit crimes.
01:47But in fact, the entire center of Yadr is a place of forced detention, fenced off and
01:52monitored by Italian police officers.
01:55Nobody is allowed to leave it.
02:17To build these structures, tens of millions of euros have been spent, but the authorities
02:22are not able to quantify the total cost of the procedures for the five years of the agreement
02:29between Italy and Albania.
02:31Vincenzo Genovese, Euronews, Yadr.