(STRASBOURG) - More than 100 members of the European Parliament, including party group leaders, on Wednesday added their fingerprints to a petition protesting Italy's policy on gypsies.

"We urge the Italian government and authorities to refrain from proceeding to the collection of fingerprints of Roma, including minors, as this would clearly constitute an act of discrimination based on race and ethnic origin," said the petition, which was signed by 120 deputies.

Giusto Catania, an Italian communist MEP who organised the protest, said: "This is a strong political act that aims to demand an immediate end to this action. We are going to send it to the Italian government right away."

Italian Interior Minister Roberto Maroni, a member of the right-wing Northern League party, which is part of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right coalition, said recently that Roma would be fingerprinted.

The operation would be carried out with police and with the cooperation of the Red Cross, he added.

In a draft resolution, set to be endorsed Thursday, the MEPs urged Italy not to collect fingerprints from Roma gypsies, until the European Commission could investigate the situation.

It was unacceptable they said, "to violate their fundamental rights and to criminalise them," even given their stated aim of protecting children.

Maroni has said that children would be fingerprinted "to prevent phenomena such as begging."

EU Justice Commissioner Jacques Barrot said on Monday there were risks with such a policy and called for a report from Maroni on Italy's plans by the end of the month.

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