Thousands of young people protest in Milan against the cost of living while the Police identify more than 200 people in Rome

Thousands of young people demonstrated this Saturday in Milan against the rising cost of life and the extensive police deployment ordered by the Government of Giorgia Meloni, while in Rome the Police identified more than 200 people and transferred 63 to police stations after intercepting them with balaclavas, masks and aerosols in different parts of the capital.

The mobilizations occur a week after the riots and looting of businesses in Milan and Bologna, carried out by groups of young people outside the citizen protests, which have led the authorities to reinforce security in the main Italian cities.

In Milan, protesters marched through the streets chanting slogans such as "Meloni vaffanculo" ("fuck you") and "we are all anti-fascists." Among their demands were criticism of the high price of rents and living conditions in the economic capital of the country.

"Today we are protesting against the rising cost of life and against a Government that allocates money to weapons, but not to education, to peripheral neighborhoods or to people who really need help," Davide, a 23-year-old student, told EFE.

The young man also criticized the security device deployed in the city, which he described as "totally militarized." In his opinion, the police presence reflects the Executive's response to social unrest. "The only response that the Meloni Government is capable of giving to the protests, the social movements and the people's unrest is this," he stated.

Along the same lines, Michele, another of the gathered students, denounced the "lack of alternatives" and criticized the policies of the Italian Executive. "The country is experiencing a situation of political paralysis, with extreme right-wing movements, or even more radical ones, in power," he told EFE.

The center of Milan remained armored with 1,400 security personnel, including 500 soldiers from the Folgore brigade deployed by order of Meloni. The march began in the Lanza area, next to the Sforzesco Castle, and advanced towards the outskirts.

Police checks in Rome

Meanwhile, in Rome, agents deployed checkpoints in different parts of the center and in metro stations after the organizers of the mobilizations canceled the fixed meeting points initially planned.

Among the areas monitored were Piazza della Repubblica, Via Einaudi, Via Cavour, the Circus Maximus, Piazzale Ostiense and Via Napoleone III, as well as the Colosseo and Laurentina metro stations.

According to the Police, the agents found among the belongings of the young people taken to police stations material that they considered compatible with the "operational instructions disseminated on the internet" for the protests.

The authorities are evaluating the application of a preventive detention measure approved by the Meloni Government, which allows action against people considered a threat before the development of a public demonstration. The operation included agents from the Investigation and General Information and Special Operations Division (Digos), citizen security patrols and metro surveillance units.

Tightening of sanctions

The controls occur after the Italian Government approved a decree law this week to toughen sanctions against violent acts committed during demonstrations.

The regulations contemplate penalties of up to five years in prison and fines of up to 20,000 euros for violent participation in a group, aggravate the penalties for acting with their faces covered and allow the preventive detention of adolescents between 14 and 17 years old. It also establishes the civil liability of parents for damages caused by their minor children, in addition to possible fines.

The reinforcement of security and the tightening of police measures are thus at the center of a day marked by protests against the cost of living and the response of the Italian Executive to the riots registered last week.