Exactly one month ago, on February 22, the Italian ambassador Luca Attanasio he was assassinated in Congo: today the diplomat received a memorial award from Ispi, the Institute for International Political Studies. Romano Prodi, former premier and former president of the European Commission, gave a speech to remember the figure of the young diplomat. A speech that ISPI entrusted to a leader who has always made openness to Africa an important part of his political commitment: “Mine is the memory of a person who understood Africa and gave everything for Africa, ”said Prodi. “I believe that Attanasio has served our country in a complete and masterful way. We must remember him and give him a lot of gratitude for our future policy ”.
Attanasio was shot on February 22 together with the carabiniere Vittorio Iacovacci and the Congolese driver, Mustapha Milambo, north of Goma, in the east of the country. Prodi continued his speech by saying that “Europe has the role of fostering cooperation between African countries. The first task is to help dialogue between these 54 nations. The second is to interact with these countries without imposing models. We from Europe we do not see enough of Africa ”.
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“We are usually led to consider poverty and the low level of health and education as the cause of deep African ills and endless episodes of violence. prevent the development of Africa “, said Prodi.” Africa boasts wealth of all kinds, has mineral resources and extraordinary fertility, but it is also afflicted by hunger and endemic diseases: this has prevented the development bubble from tripping in a continent with so much potential. We thought that with decolonization a virtuous journey would begin for the continent, instead ethnic differences, tribal hatreds and foreign interference have further fragmented the continent which is now largely in the hands of armed groups, terrorists, bandits, common criminals, mercenaries “, continued the former premier, speaking of a” perverse intertwining between these aspects that determines the growing instability “, hence the sense of inc inability to create structures of social cohesion that would give any hope for development.
Before Romano Prodi, the ambassador Giampiero Massolo, president of ISPI intervened: “Luca was very close to Ispi, he was a Ispine, a person who has testified to his commitment to the service of the state. It represented to the highest degree how diplomacy is understood as a mission, not as any job but as the idea that this is an all-encompassing job ”. “Luca was the joy, the curiosity to live – added Massolo – the idea of being healthily subversive and of bringing his fresh vision and his ability to solve problems with a healthy intelligence to all the contexts in which he operated. subversive “.
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