Over 100 migrants hosted at a center for asylum seekers in the Puglian city of Bari have complained that they were evicted from the facility last week after being granted international protection and that they are now homeless.
The CARA center for asylum seekers in Bari has evicted over 100 people since January 27 after they were granted international protection, without providing adequate accommodation, according to a letter written by migrants from the facility which was released last week by the local office of the union Fuorimercato Bari.
"Between January 27, 2025 and today, the CARA has evicted more than 100 people who had obtained international protection a few days prior to their eviction, without offering any alternative accommodation. Since we don't have access to SAI (the national hosting system for people who have been granted international protection), we are without lodgings nor food, often homeless, and without real identity papers, only an A4 piece of paper proving our status," wrote the migrants in the letter.
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'Limbo after obtaining international protection'
In the letter, the migrants claim that, "pressure [was] exercised by the prefecture" following the death of "four migrants in five months at the Center for asylum seekers." The deaths sparked protests from the migrants remaining at the center, who wanted to bring public attention to the living conditions at the center, which they claimed were dire. These protests, believe the migrants, then prompted the commission that awards international protection to "accelerate procedures" and grant more of them a protected status, meaning that the center could then evict them, as the accommodation is only available for asylum seekers, not those already granted protection.
Beneficiaries of international protection are asked to leave the CARA within five days of their new status being granted.
The letter complains that many of those granted protection status now find themselves homeless because of a lack of SAI facilities available to them in the area. The SAI centers are managed by municipal administrations, and are, according to the migrants' letter "insufficient and there is no way of completing procedures to obtain [the correct] documents." The migrants also accused central police departments of providing information that is "shady and unintelligible."
"With international protection, without an official residence recognized by local authorities, or municipalities, it is impossible to take any administrative step" such as requesting identity papers or opening a bank account, continued the letter. "And without ID it is extremely hard to enrol in training or to find a safe and legal job," it noted.
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Migrants once again protest 'dire conditions' at CARA center
The migrants asked once again to deal with the "unhealthy and unlivable conditions at the center, including icy running water all winter and overcrowded containers" hosting up to ten people, "flooded bathrooms and showers" and the alleged presence of "cockroaches, rats and bedbugs."
They also asked for "a meeting with the Commission for asylum within a maximum of six months; and support for people who have received a negative answer from the Commission: for example -- the letter said -- CARA no longer takes responsibility for providing legal representation to those who want to appeal" a negative decision.
Finally, they asked for everybody to be able to access documentation including ID and digital fingerprints, "including those who were sent away from the CARA without being able to complete these administrative procedures."
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