Numerous Italian associations on July 22 made a joint call for the closure of the Ponte Galeria migrant repatriation center (CPR) in the Italian capital, following repeated complaints about alleged violations of migrant rights within the facilities.

The associations supporting the immediate closure of Ponte Galeria are: The Buon Diritto, ActionAid, Antigone Lazio, ARCI, ASGI, Baobab Experience, Casa dei Diritti Sociali, the Rome and Lazio branches of the CGIL trade union confederation, CILD, Cittadinanzattiva, Doctors Without Borders (MSF), Nonna Roma, Oxfam Italia, Progetto Diritti, Psichiatria Democratica, Società Italiana di Medicina delle Migrazioni (SIMM) and Spazi Circolari.

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'Violates rule of law'

"The recent sentence n. 96/2025 of the Constitutional Court reiterated what the legal and civil society sectors have been speaking out about for years: CPRs are a serious breach of the rule of law and constitutional principles," the joint statement said.

"In Ponte Galeria, the only Italian CPR that detains women as well [as men], we are seeing on a daily basis situations of lack of treatment, psychological suffering, and harm to human dignity."

"We decided to intervene in this specific battle for the closure of the Ponte Galeria CPR, since in this black hole -- in addition to a long list of horrors that are seen in all centers -- there is an even more serious issue: the presence of female detainees and the lack of treatment for those with psychological vulnerabilities," the statement said in explaining the reasons for their joining the call to close the center.

The call is being promoted by several Rome-based figures active in the academic sector.

"We believe that the closure of the CPR is not only a legal battle, but that it is also urgent at the political and civil levels. Administrative detention in opaque facilities outside the control of judicial authorities and closed to civil society monitoring is unacceptable in a country that claims to be based on respect for human rights."

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Ponte Galeria CPR 'open wound in the heart of Rome'

"The Ponte Galeria CPR is an open wound in the heart of our city. It is no longer tolerable that there is a space where basic rights are being trampled on, without any sort of legal guarantees, without adequate hygienic conditions, with sufficient medical assistance, where the dignity of people is not respected," the statement said.

"As organizations and associations involved in the safeguarding of rights, we do not accept that in Rome there is a place of this type, in stark contract with the constitutional principles and the Statute of Roma Capitale," it added.

The associations noted that the "Azione Popolare, the first hearing of which has been set for October 16, 2025, represents an important opportunity to bring the illegitimacy of CPRs to the center of public debate as well as the issue of institutional neglect of those with psychological vulnerabilities, as well as to curb institutional racism and discrimination against those with a migration background."

"Thus, we invite all citizens of Rome, organisations, and social and cultural networks to support the initiative, officially and publicly," it continued.

"The closure of the CPR of Ponte Galeria is a duty. The time has come to restore justice and humanity to a city that wants to be considered open and welcoming."

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