ENSACT STATEMENT OF CONCERN 29 APRIL 2009

ENSACT: Statement of Concern 29 April 2009

Xenophobic direction of new proposals approved by (a branch of) the Italian Parliament

The Italian government is heading in the regrettable direction of promoting xenophobic legislation by approving a new law entitled ‘safety measures’ that criminalises undocumented migrants, the homeless and the needy in general. Under the new law, health and even public officials such as social workers are expected to inform authorities when undocumented clients seek public health and social services.

This law not only carries the danger of turning social challenges into problems of public order, it undermines professional intervention by placing a ‘policing’ duty upon health and social practitioners . As it is now, the law puts forward a position that contradicts the social professional code of ethics and professional conduct, including client confidentiality.

ENSACT supports the protest of the President of the EASSW, the Secretary of AIDOSS (Italian Association of Social Work Teachers) and of the association of the Professional Register of Italian Social Workers against the new Italian legislation and, as such, strongly opposes the direction of the Italian Parliament, requesting it to retract its intention to obstruct the indispensable work of health and social professionals with needy populations and, essentially, avoid an escalation of xenophobic tendencies in Italy.

Nol Reverda