More than 3,000 Egyptian children have fled to Italy in line with their parents’ wishes, Minister of Immigration and Expatriate Affairs Nabila Abdul Shaheed said on Sunday.
Egyptian children often make the illegal sea journey without their parents, in many cases taking no travel documents apart from a birth certificate. Makram said in a televised interview there were cases reported of children throwing their shipmates into the sea in order to steal their travel documents.
The minister described meeting a seven-year-old illegal immigrant in Italy who was threatened with death by his father if he attempted to return to Egypt.
Egyptian children arriving in Italy are often unable to return to Egypt because their parents refuse to take them back. In such cases, the children must struggle to make a new life for themselves, including seeking education, food, shelter and work, all without the support of parents.
The Italian government provides food and shelter for minors arriving illegally, but they face an uncertain future and racial discrimination from the local community.
In September, the EU Ambassador to Egypt James Moran said more than 60% of Egyptian migrants to Italy were children and minors.
In 2014, Italy received about 4,000 Egyptian migrants, including 2,000 minors without any of their family members, according to the International Organization for Migration’s Egyptian office.
