“Memory is commitment”. Honoring those who paid with their life for the right to the dignity of being human, opposing the inhumanity of the mafias, violence, oppression against their family, the community in which they live. Memory is a reminder against indifference, to signal that fear is defeated with the affirmation of legality. Because fighting the mafias means fulfilling the promise of freedom on which the life of the Republic is founded, and which organized crime tries, in every way, to trample and oppress ». This was declared by the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, on the occasion of the 5th National Day of Remembrance and Commitment in memory of the innocent victims of the mafia.
“The National Day of Remembrance and Commitment in Remembrance of the Innocent Victims of the Mafia – strongly desired by Libera – responds to a profound need for truth and justice, and constitutes a precious call for the whole of society, especially for young people , who have the right to a future free from the aggression of crime and who are called to build it starting from their daily lives ”, continues the Head of State. “Speak the names of those who were killed by Mafia criminal gangs because they opposed their bullying – were they servants of the state, defenders of the common good, witnesses of threatened values, innocent and defenseless citizens who found themselves in the path of ferocious killers – reminds all of us of the risks deriving from the presence of evil infrastructures that carry all kinds of crimes, pretending to take our lives hostage. Defeating the mafias is possible: the results of the relentless action of the police forces, the judiciary and civil society testify to this. The mafias are changing their skin, business centers, organizational methods. They insinuate themselves into legal activities, and any undervaluation can open doors for criminal penetration. Institutions, economic and social forces, territorial communities, individuals: all are called to make a commitment to oppose it and defeat it in order to protect the spaces of civilization ». «I would like to express my closeness to those who will meet in the national demonstration in Naples and in the other Italian squares to repeat simple and exemplary gestures. Civil growth and the affirmation of rights are affirmed with the consolidation of citizen participation “, concludes the President of the Republic. And in the same vein the president of the Senate, Maria Elisabetta Alberti Casellati. «The National Day of Remembrance and Commitment for the innocent victims of the mafia is a warning not to forget in order not to surrender to illegality. To recall – continues the President of the Senate – the sacrifice of the more than two hundred children, women and men who, from the second post-war period to today, have lost their lives due to organized crime means to give back a name and a face to many blameless martyrs. Only through their memory can we feed a new culture of legality. A culture founded on the determination to always be vigilant guarantors of the values of justice, democracy and freedom against any attempt at prevarication based on the use of intimidation and force. This is the meaning of the anniversary that we celebrate today and that we must share especially with the younger generations “.