- Redazione
- Giovedì, 05 Giugno 2025 12:52
GO AND VOTE
Referendums are crucial opportunities for democratic participation, allowing citizens to directly shape the future on issues related to fundamental rights and the direction of Italian society as a whole. These being abrogative referendums, they would require at least 50% plus 1 of the eligible voters to make them work.
On Sunday, June 8, and Monday, June 9, 2025, Italian citizens eligible to vote are called to the polls to express their choice on five abrogative referendums as provided for by Article 75 of the Constitution. The questions, declared admissible by the Constitutional Court concern key issues related to labour and citizenship. The labour referendums seek to restore job reinstatement for workers unfairly dismissed, going beyond the simple financial compensation currently provided. The other question is on reduction from 10 to 5 years of legal residence in Italy required for the non-EU adults to apply for citizenship. This reform would bring Italian citizenship law in line with many European countries, promoting greater social integration for long-term residents. It would also allow faster access to civil and political rights, such as the right to vote, eligibility for public employment, and freedom of movement within the European Union.
This particular referendum has been widely, but mistakenly, confused with earlier debates around ius soli and ius scholae focused on granting citizenship to children born or educated in Italy. In contrast, the current referendum is more narrowly focused: it aims to amend Italy’s 1992 citizenship law by adjusting the timeframe for naturalization and not its foundational principles. We need to remember that in most European and Western democracies, five years of legal residence is the standard requirement for naturalisation. Countries like France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and Ireland adopt this threshold, often alongside integration requirements such as language proficiency and civic knowledge.
As of today, Italy has one of the lowest rates of naturalisation among the long-term foreign-born residents. Comparative estimates show that only 35 percent of immigrants with 20 to 24 years of residence in Italy have acquired citizenship, compared to the EU average of approximately 53 percent. Academic literature shows that access to citizenship has positive casual effects. Immigrants who naturalise and become citizens experience lower unemployment rates, earn higher income, they are less likely to be overqualified for their jobs and experience a stronger sense of belonging, which in turn encourages active participation in the labour market. These ‘’new’’ citizens are less into criminal practices mainly for the sense of belonging and the pride of being integrated. The last Eurobarometer on the integration of immigrants, reports that 87% of Italians believe that acquiring Italian citizenship is an important factor for the successful integration of immigrants in Italy. We only hope that a high number of that 87% would go to the polls on Sunday and Monday to give a sense of purpose to their expressed opinion.
Considering some of the advantages of being citizens; such as faster integration, reduction of crimes and delinquencies, this call for votes should be totally out of the usual debate between the right and the left-wing parties in the country’s polarised political environment of today. There ought not be any tactic urging people to abstain in order to invalidate the vote, for if the referendum succeeds in meeting the turnout threshold, it would mark a significant victory for efforts to modernise Italy’s citizenship legislation to the advantage of the whole country irrespective of the political creed.
Pura Vida
