Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the 'lost generation', they are part of the so-called 'brain drain' - an exodus of highly
qualified Italian graduates and professionals bidding the
bel paese
(beautiful country) a
bitter-sweet
arrivederci
.
Migrant Challenges
While Italy's unemployment crisis may be weighing heavily on the Italians, it's an even
greater burden for the country's immigrants. Figures released by the Consiglio Nazionale
dell'Economia e del Lavoro (CNEL; National Council of Economy and Labour) showed
the number of unemployed foreigners in Italy increased from 220,000 in 2008 to 385,000
in 2013. By mid-2013, the overall jobless rate for immigrants had reached 14.1%. Accord-
ing to the CNEL, it's a situation expected only to worsen as the number of job seekers
grows.
Immigrants who do have jobs often have their own obstacles to tackle. Wage disparity
between Italians and non-Italians is widening. While the average Italian takes home
€1,304 a month, their immigrant counterparts take home an average of €968. The com-
mon practice of finding employment through personal contacts and acquaintances often
works against migrant workers. Many end up on the black market, leaving them vulner-
able to exploitation from unscrupulous employees.
Italy is becoming increasingly multicultural. Migrants made up 7.9% of Italy's popula-
tion in 2012 - a three-fold increase from 2002. According to the CNEL, the country
would face zero demographic growth and accelerated ageing without migrants. Despite
this, not all Italians are putting out their welcome mats. In 2010, the shooting of an im-
migrant worker in the town of Rosarno, Calabria, sparked Italy's worst race riots in years.
And in 2013, Senate vice-president and Lega Nord politician Roberto Calderoli compared
Integration Minister Cecile Kyenge, Italy's first black minister, to an orang-utan, sparking
international condemnation.
Fighting the 'ndrangheta
It may still be kicking, but Calabria's the 'ndrangheta (an organised crime syndicate) has
been suffering its own series of headaches. The July 2013 arrest of drug-dealing heavy-
weight Roberto Pannunzi in Bogotá, Colombia, delivered a severe blow to the organisa-
tion. It was the Rome-born fugitive who had reputedly forged the ties between the
'ndrangheta and Colombia's Medellín cartels, which transformed the former into Italy's
richest crime organisation. Weeks after Pannunzi's arrest, a major crackdown on mafia-
