Father Rito Julio Alvarez is a hero of the downtrodden in two countries.

In his native Colombia, his foundation helps former child soldiers and children who have been exploited by cocaine producers. In his adopted Italian city of Ventimiglia, he cares for asylum seekers who have arrived from North Africa.

'Please treat me like human being' Standing in the queue of the lunch line at the Red Cross migrant camp in Ventimiglia, 28-year-old Libyan asylum seeker Mohamed wonders when the line will start moving and when he will be able to escape across the border to France. Tall, charismatic and built like a rugby league second rower, you could imagine Mohamed as a salesman or an entrepreneur. Instead, he is stuck in the camp dwelling on lost opportunities and raging at his lack of freedom of movement in Europe. "We are less than dogs, the dogs have more rights here than us," he said. Mohamed said he fled his homeland fearing for his life, paying a people smuggler to get him passage on a boat across the Mediterranean. He said he was not only threatened, but saw Libyan militia groups murder people in front of his own eyes. "Sometimes I just wake up in the night and I see that person, he dies again and I feel I'm responsible because I don't help him," he said, covering his face at the horror of the memory. "All I wish for now is that I get out of Italy." Since the beginning of the year, France, Switzerland and Austria have tightened up their border controls. Under EU regulations the country where you are first finger printed is where you must claim asylum. But the 800 men in this migrant camp in Ventimiglia do not want to stay. The unemployment rate in Italy is high, and so too is the asylum rejection rate. Mohamed wants to study economics in France and make it as a businessman. Already he has tried twice to make it over the border. Both times, French authorities sent him back to Italy. "One time they made me walk back 16 kilometres in bare feet," he said. There is widespread desperation in the camp. Last month, over a 100 asylum seekers broke through a police cordon, climbed over rocks and tried to swim across the border to France. Those who were caught were bussed back to Italy. Despite the setbacks, Mohamed is determined to try again. "I want to study, I want to finish my life," he said, "I have to go to France, any other way, any other place. Please, respect me, treat me like a human being that's all I want."

Already this year, 120,000 migrants have arrived in Italy by boat and United Nations officials fear another 200,000 could land before Christmas.

Towns such as Ventimiglia have become crowded with asylum seekers as they attempt to make it across the border into France.

In recent months neighbouring countries have tightened border controls when it comes to the movement of asylum seekers, increasing the pressure on Italy.

While the Red Cross looks after around 800 men in a makeshift camp in an industrial zone outside of Ventimiglia, Father Rito has taken in the women, children and families.

Mattresses are strewn across the floors of the church. At the moment he is housing and feeding 100 people.

At one stage he and his volunteers were making meals for around 1,000 recently arrived people.

Father Rito said he had no choice but take these people in: "They had no place to sleep, or eat, it was such a shocking and difficult situation.

"We had a duty from a Christian point of view to welcome these people who had no home."

The asylum seekers arriving in Italy come mostly from Sudan, Libya, Eritrea and Ethiopia.

A report released this week by Doctors for Human Rights said 90 per cent of the 1,000 African migrants it had interviewed in Italy had been the victims of extreme violence, torture or inhumane treatment.

Around 40 per cent of the asylum seekers living in Father Rito's church are Muslim.

At one stage that figure was over 90 per cent when he was housing more Sudanese people.

So how does his Catholic parish deal with its church being taken over by Muslims?

"The reaction is conflicting," he said.

"[There are] many people who come here, who see the faces of the children, and realise that we cannot close our doors because we are all brothers, we are all equal when we are in need.

"Others do not accept it due to their prejudices, also due to the shocking incidents that have occurred in Europe, in Paris, in Nice or wherever.

"They have a bit of difficulty welcoming these people, who are really in need, because they think that among these migrants are people who may possibly infiltrate with evil intentions."

Father Rito is urging neighbouring countries to do what he has done, and open their doors and share the responsibility of caring for the asylum seekers.

"We can understand the reasoning of the neighbouring countries but we do not share it," he said.

"Italy finds itself in a disadvantaged situation, and in my opinion the problem of immigration is not only Italian but should be a problem shared with all European countries."

Father Rito is particularly concerned about the growing number of unaccompanied minors coming from Africa who might be vulnerable to sexual exploitation.

"The European Union has to pay more attention to this situation because otherwise we could find ourselves facing a shocking situation — a really abhorrent and sad situation for these children," he said.