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Their commitment is more in demand than ever, be it in the transport of valuables, the security of buildings for the homes of asylum seekers or simply in regulating the traffic of works. But the private security companies in Ticino have had a major problem for several months. The hiring or renewal of permits for cross-border travelers as security agents is suspended. Several travelers from Italy work for private security services. They require special authorization for their use.
The responsible police department (Servizio armi ed esplosivi della Polizia) admitted in a letter to security companies on September 17 that no more permits have been issued to Italian citizens since this spring. To be more precise, to Italians who are registered as cross-border travelers or who have resided in the canton for less than five years as annual residents (B permit).
Talks with Italian partners end without result
But what is the reason for this rejection practice? According to the cantonal police, Italy no longer transmits the security-relevant personal information necessary for the issuance of this special permit. For Swiss citizens or annual residents who have resided in the Canton of Ticino for more than five years, the cantonal police authorities are in possession of this additional information. If Italian applicants were admitted without this additional information, this would de facto create unequal treatment with Swiss or foreign residents.
The Movement for Socialism (Mps) denounces the non-granting of permits in a parliamentary issue as “a serious abuse of the rule of law.” The responsible councilor for the Lega government, Norman Gobbi, and the cantonal government firmly reject this accusation. This police information is a kind of “certificate of good conduct” that goes beyond the mandatory extract of the criminal record.
Norman Gobbi, Government Councilor of Ticino (Lega)
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The Chiasso Police and Customs Cooperation Center used to provide this information. But due to a new interpretation of the existing agreement, that no longer happens. The talks with the Italian partners would not have been fruitful.
In a letter signed personally by Gobbi to Ticino security companies, he says literally: “For the moment, it is the Italian authorities that must resolve the deadlock.” This is a serious problem because some applicants have been waiting for approval for a long time.
But it is also problematic for security companies, depending on the proportion of cross-border travelers deployed. At Securitas in Lugano, four renewals of work permits for cross-border travelers have been pending for three months, as director Stefano Moro explains on request: “Let’s hope the problem is resolved soon. A total of 370 people work for the company.
Violent complaints against the immigration office
For the Ticino Security Department, it is currently not the only construction site in terms of permits for foreigners. The head of the department, Gobbi, has been criticized for some time because questionable surveillance methods were used when issuing or renewing annual residence permits and regular cross-border transit, a contribution from Ticino television revealed. In some cases, the Migration Office is accused of disproportionate and humiliating controls. In the case of annual residents, the question was always whether the center of their life is in Ticino, in the case of cross-border travelers, the classification of previous convictions and the consideration of the applicable jurisdiction.
The fall made waves. The SP demanded parliamentary oversight. Meanwhile, the Audit Committee of the Grand Council has taken up the matter. After listening to State Councilor Norman Gobbi, Commission Chairman Matteo Quadranti recently announced that he would like to deepen and expand the file.
