‘Italy Won’t Ink Migration Compact’ Says Giuseppe Conte

Rome: Italy will not take part in the intergovernmental conference in Marrakech next month to adopt the United Nations global compact on safe and orderly migration, populist premier Giuseppe Conte said on Wednesday. “The Global Migration Compact is a document that raises issues and questions that many citizens have strong feelings about,” Conte said. “Therefore, we consider it right to put the debate in parliament and subject any final decision on the outcome of that debate,as Switzerland has done,” he said. “So the government will not participate in Marrakech, reserving the option to adopt the document, or not, only once parliament has expressed its opinion,” Conte said. Poland, Hungary, Austria and the United States are among countries which have already said they won’t support the non-binding compact, which is due to be formally approved at a 10-11 December meeting in Marrakech, Morocco. The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration was finalized under UN auspices in July. (IANS)