Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, the secretary of the Pontifical Council
for Justice and Peace, argues that children of migrants in Italy should
be recognized as citizens.“Young people born in Italy or who came to Italy as children and are integrating very well, need to be given the chance to be legally recognised as Italian citizens,” said Archbishop Tomasi - who was previously the Vatican’s representative at UN offices in Geneva.
He contrasted an open attitude toward immigrants with the prevailing attitude in the Middle East, where the refusal of governments to give right rights of citizenship to ethnic and religious minorities “perpetuates the structural discrimination problem for people who are not part of the majority.”
The archbishop acknowledged that many people in Italy are worried about admitting a large number of immigrants from the Middle East, but he said that the dangers are minimal. “Current fears are caused by a lack of information,” he said.