San Ferdinando migrant camp demolition begins in Gioia Tauro

Early on a Monday, demolition crews started dismantling the San Ferdinando migrant camp in the industrial area of the Gioia Tauro port. The operation was overseen by Deputy Minister to the Presidency of the Council of Ministers Alfredo Mantovano, with Prefect Fabio Ciciliano and Calabria regional president Roberto Occhiuto also on site.

The camp, erected in 2010 after the Rosarno riots, has housed roughly 100‑200 seasonal agricultural workers for sixteen years. Authorities plan to relocate the occupants to refurbished apartments in Contrada Serricella, Rosarno, and to provide a medical centre and social services. The demolition is part of a broader redevelopment scheme that includes the creation of a “Fattoria Solidale” – a three‑hectare solidarity farm intended to offer sustainable agriculture jobs with proper rights and dignified housing.

The Union of Italian Carabinieri (USIC) praised the operation, calling it a decisive step toward legality, safety and human dignity, and highlighted earlier investigations that had uncovered criminal networks exploiting the camp’s conditions. The demolition fulfills provisions of the Caivano decree and marks a shift in Italy’s migrant‑labour policy after years of criticism that the settlement represented a failed model of migrant integration.