The social tensions recorded in Trieste in recent days have resulted in a political clash fueled by the statements of the mayor of Forza Italia, Roberto Dipiazza, who, commenting on the violent clashes that occurred last Friday in Piazza della Libertà, used very uninstitutional words: "The Constitution provides for the right to demonstrate, but the demonstrations must be peaceful, if they continue to use violence then we will behave accordingly: they cannot think of occupying my house and if they throw paper bombs in my city, then I will shoot them in the head."
The tragedy at the Porto Vecchio and the genesis of the protest
To understand the origin of the tension it is necessary to take a step back to the late evening of November 1st. A violent fire broke out in one of the abandoned and dilapidated warehouses in the Old Port, used as a makeshift refuge by several migrants in precarious sanitary conditions. Two young people were trapped in the blanket of smoke and suffocated to death: a boy from North Africa and a girl of the same age from Friuli. The tragedy triggered a reaction from opposing movements and support networks, who expressed their anger through a leaflet, accusing local institutions of not wanting to resolve the reception emergency.
The clashes in the square and the wounding of an official
The protest broke out on Friday in Piazza della Libertà, an area historically linked to the meeting and assistance of migrants from the Balkan route. Around 200 protesters, who also came from Veneto and Lombardy, gathered in the area. The situation worsened when a group attempted to force entry into the unused premises of the former market, with the intention of occupying them to use them as a low-threshold reception centre. This resulted in violent clashes with the police: on the one hand, charges of lightening and truncheons, on the other, throwing of fire extinguishers, stones and a paper bomb. The bomb hit the deputy of the police station, Leonardo Boido, in the head, fortunately exploding only after falling to the ground. The official was hospitalized for checks, while the total toll is that of five policemen and two protesters bruised.
The political reactions and the request for resignation
The weekend saw an impressive preventive deployment of mobile units in the square which effectively canceled a second demonstration, but the debate shifted entirely to the words of the mayor. The opposition unanimously condemned Dipiazza's exit. Debora Serracchiani (Pd) defined the fact that an institution calls for a summary execution as very serious, while Peppe De Cristofaro (Avs) invited the mayor to apologize or resign, considering his sentences incompatible with a public office. Criticisms also came from the secretary of Più Europa, Riccardo Magi, who attacked Forza Italia's communication methods, and from Osvaldo Napoli (Action), who dismissed the episode by recalling the value of silence.
