Mattarella in Potenza: “Condolences on migrants should be transformed into concrete choices”

Pain is not enough, we must act. It is the warning of Sergio Mattarella who, speaking at the inauguration of the academic year of the University of Potenza, underlined: “Faced with the dramatic event that took place on the Calabrian coast, condolences must be translated into concrete, operational choices on the part of all of Italy and the EU, because this is the real answer”. A reminder of the duty of the government and of Brussels, so that tragedies such as the Cutro massacre never happen again.

“A tragedy occurred on the coasts of Calabria that involved and moved our country”, declared the President of the Republic, who was greeted with applause and a standing ovation at the end of his speech. And a few days before the Council of Ministers convened by the premier Giorgia Meloni in Cutro, the head of state underlined: “Migrants leave their land to seek a future elsewhere”. Words of understanding, those of the Head of State, with which the sentences (contested by the opposition) of the Minister of the Interior clash Matteo Piantedosiwho had spoken of “the irresponsibility of those parents who put their children’s lives in danger”.

The head of state recalled in particular the Afghan roots of many of Cutro’s migrants and victims: “The Afghan refugees reminded us of what our country did two years ago, with the Taliban taking over bring all the citizens who collaborated to Italy. No one was left, everyone was welcomed in Italy. We are reminded of the scenes of citizens begging for a ride at the airport and make us understand why entire families are trying to leave their land to seek a future elsewhere”.

Soups, those who have no home must be welcomed

The words of the president of the CEI and archbishop of Bologna add up to Mattarella’s warning. “Welcome is the only possible message. Whoever has no home must be welcomed”, the cardinal clarified Matteo Zuppi in an interview with Sir. “We must always put ourselves in the shoes of others. Those who have lost everything and have to flee must find acceptance. There are no alternatives – he added – Emigration was a guaranteed right for all men, before walls and fears arose. Especially for those fleeing war, violence or hunger. Contrasting this with our future means not wanting the future. Welcoming opens up to the future, closing also makes us lose the present”.