Three French volunteers have been charged and are now under investigation for giving sandwiches to some of the many refugees who gather in this city waiting for an opportunity to cross the border and enter France.

'Don't feed the migrants'

In Ventimiglia, there is a municipal decree in force that forbids anybody to supply migrants with food. This decree was issued by the city's mayor, Enrico Ioculano, on August 11, 2016, but had never been enforced until now.

The decree in Ventimiglia is one of many "crimes of solidarity" - that is, the criminalization of solidarity with refugees and migrants - that are being passed in Italy and across Europe.

Contesting an inhumane law

The case has started a political debate. City officials, including the mayor have been criticized by many who find it inconceivable to forbid human solidarity and punish someone for their desire to help others in need.

The mayor defended the decree by pointing out that Ventimiglia has been a troubled hotspot during the refugee crisis: many migrants chose this place as a destination, hoping to get the chance to cross the border and enter France.

In the meantime, they have been gathering in the only reception center of the city, which has proved incapable of coping with the quantity of migrants and their basic needs.

This is why, during last summer, the city council found it necessary to limit food supplies for hygienic reasons, allowing for this service to be handled by a select few humanitarian associations.

Volunteer help is essential

Nevertheless, the situation is now much different, as the reception center has started to implement identification practices, moving refugees to different centers in Italy and forbidding those who refused to be identified to stay within the center.

Associations previously granted the right to work with migrants can take care of those within the center, but for the many who live in the streets, the help provided by French volunteers coming everyday with food and supplies is more than essential.

Considering this, many human rights organizations say this decree is simply indefensible. It offends human nature, going openly against the Italian Constitution and fostering discrimination and hatred.

Patrizio Gonnella, president of Antigone/CILD, said this whole event represented the abandonment of any logic and committed Antigone, an Italian organization advocating for human rights in the penal system, to provide these reported people with legal advisors to help them fight this unjust accusation.