As Europe migration debate rages, Bologna businessman’s death highlights human cost

BOLOGNA, Italy – When tens of thousands of would-be migrants crossed from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta last week, Italy’s rightwing prime minister Giorgia Meloni promptly said she would suspend ⁠a free-movement accord with Spain, even though Ceuta is excluded from the pact.

And when a distressed Moroccan businessman who feared repatriation despite having lived in Italy for 36 years died after being stopped by police two weeks ago in Bologna, with viral footage showing two officers sitting on him to restrain him, the government jumped to the law enforcers’ defense.

Rightwing media depicted the man as another disorderly migrant causing trouble, highlighting drug convictions in his youth, while opposition politicians accused the government of racism and condoning police brutality.