Meloni's plan for Italy's schools: quota of foreigners and ban on veils

rtr | Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wants to ban the wearing of face veils in schools and limit the number of foreign students per class. A measure to this end should soon be presented to the cabinet, she said on Sunday at a youth event for her Fratelli d'Italia party. The planned law is intended to ban burqas and niqabs in schools. “You have to go to school with your face uncovered,” said the Prime Minister. “And in Italy no one can decide, in the name of a real or perceived tradition, that a young woman must hide.” The integration of migrants is a highly controversial issue in Italian politics and society.

In addition, parents of foreign students who have major integration difficulties should be obliged to learn Italian. “If there is only one child in a class who doesn't understand Italian, he or she will probably be able to learn the language quickly,” Meloni said. “However, if the number of children who do not understand the language becomes large – or even becomes the majority – it is no longer integration, but neglect.” The right-wing politician did not name an exact upper limit for the classes.

Due to its location in the central Mediterranean, Italy is one of the countries in Europe most affected by the arrival of migrants. According to the research institute Fondazione ISMU, ‌currently almost 12 out of ‌100 students in Italy are not Italian citizens.