Italy’s Supreme Court has ruled that the government must compensate a group of illegal migrants who were stranded aboard the Coast Guard ship Diciotti from 16 to 25 August 2018, unable to disembark at Catania after being rescued off the island of Lampedusa.
In a joint session the Court of Cassation, the government was condemned for delaying their disembarkation — ordered by then-interior minister Matteo Salvini — and referred the case to a judge to determine the amount of damages for their deprivation of liberty.
The decision on March 6 has reignited tensions between Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s administration and the judiciary, often referred to as “toghe rosse”, or the “red togas”, describing left-wing judges.
Meloni took to X on March 7, calling the ruling “very questionable” for presuming damage in a way she claimed contradicted established legal norms.
“The government will have to compensate people who tried to enter Italy illegally with the money of honest, tax-paying Italians,” she wrote, expressing frustration over what she said was the diverting of scarce resources.
“I do not believe that these are the kind of decisions that bring citizens closer to the institutions and I confess that having to spend money on this, when we do not have enough resources to do everything that should be done, is very frustrating.”
Le Sezioni Unite della Corte di Cassazione hanno condannato il governo a risarcire un gruppo di immigrati illegali trasportati dalla nave Diciotti perché il governo di allora, con Ministro dell’Interno Matteo Salvini, non li fece sbarcare immediatamente in Italia.
Lo fanno…
— Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) March 7, 2025
Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani warned that such precedents could “bankrupt State coffers” if replicated, while deputy federal secretary of Lega, Andrea Crippa, labelled it “stunning” and defended Salvini’s actions.
Salvini himself said the ruling was “yet another disgrace”.
“Let the judges pay and welcome the illegal immigrants, if they care so much,” he added.
The Diciotti incident involved 190 migrants held aboard after Salvini, under then-prime minister Giuseppe Conte (2018 to 2021), refused immediate disembarkation, pushing for European Union solidarity in redistributing them.
Minors and some adults with health issues were eventually allowed off, followed by those remaining once other countries and Vatican structures had agreed to take them in.
Prosecutors in Agrigento and Palermo investigated Salvini for alleged kidnapping but the Italian Senate blocked a trial and Catania’s prosecutor sought dismissal — a request the court of ministers rejected, although no prosecution followed.
The Supreme Court’s latest ruling, still open to appeal, insisted the delay was not a political act, exempt from judicial review, but an administrative decision that was subject to judicial review, bound by international and national laws.
Since taking office in 2022, Meloni’s policies — tightened border controls, agreements with North African nations including Tunisia and stricter NGO rescue-ship regulations — have slashed irregular sea arrivals by around 60 per cent in 2023, according to interior ministry data.
A top Italian magistrate has faced criticism after sending an email where he described Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni as “dangerous” due to her political beliefs. https://t.co/73UXsKCs5H
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) October 23, 2024
