The Italian Minister of the Interior, Matteo Piantedosi, had no choice but to appear yesterday to condemn the shameful fascist rally that was held in Rome on Sunday to commemorate the murder of two militants of the Italian Social Movement (MSI) in 1978 in front of party headquarters in Acca Larentia. “There is no doubt that it arouses indignation, and the indignation is transversal”, assured the Italian minister, in an extraordinary commission to analyze the fight against the phenomena of intolerance, racism, anti-Semitism and incitement to hatred and violence.
Italy continues to be ashamed of the scene that repeats itself every January 7, in the memory of these events during the turbulent years of lead in front of the former headquarters of the MSI, the party that brought together the admirers of Benito Mussolini. Two young people were killed by an extreme leftist group. At the demonstration protesting the deaths, a third militant died in clashes with the police. The participants are always the same, members of the residual Roman neo-fascist universe, convened by groups such as Casapound and Forza Nuova, the same ones who go every October to Predappio, Mussolini’s hometown, to pay tribute to the March on Rome .
But this time, the images of a thousand nostalgic people doing the Roman salute in unison to the cry of “Present!” have generated a political storm, for which the opposition demands that the Government open an investigation. Also because for now the party in power is Brothers of Italy, the political heir of the Italian Social Movement. The Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, has for now chosen to remain silent in the face of these facts.
“Brothers of Italy has nothing to do with what has happened. Our parliamentarians and representatives were and always will be at the official commemoration made by the City Council of Rome”, defended yesterday the head of the organization of the party, Giovanni Donzelli, very close to the Prime Minister. The same one who defined those who made the fascist salutes as “100 or 200 morons” who end up being “useful for the left”.
The question is how can it be that these images are seen every year without the concentration being banned. According to Davide Conti, a historian specializing in fascism, the reason is that “Italy has never held to account either with historical fascism or with neo-fascism in democracy, with a party, the MSI, which openly declared itself the heir of fascism”. “The Roman salute is prohibited as an apology for fascism, but the problem is applying the laws, and neither the law enforcement nor the justice system have the drive to apply them. The demonstration is authorized, but the fascist gestures are not”, explains Conti. “And the real problem with the Roman salute is that there is no shared culture of anti-fascism as the cement of democracy, and therefore part of public opinion and the right-wing ruling class do not condemn it”, he continues the expert
“Prohibiting and not observing is counterproductive. Whoever manages public order must do what they can so that no incidents are recorded”, replied Minister Piantedosi, and argued that these demonstrations have been taking place for years and in the past the participation was even greater. At the moment, the division of general investigations and special operations (Digos) of the Italian police will send the analysis of the recordings made by the scientific police to the Prosecutor’s Office in Rome in the coming days with the aim of identifying the participants of the rally , which could lead to the opening of an investigation. The 5 Star Movement (M5E) has also announced that it will report the facts to the Prosecutor’s Office to clarify whether the videos that embarrass Italy can constitute a crime of apologia for fascism.
