Dramatic increase in police violence against Italian protesters during the Meloni era

According to the report of the international group Tasnim news agency, newspaper “Stuttgarter Nekhristen” wrote in an article: In Italy, cases of police brutality and intimidation against the opposition are increasing; The opposition speaks of a “repressive atmosphere”. The right-wing government of Georgia Meloni is also dealing with many new criminal offenses related to social problems.

It’s rare for Italian President Sergio Mattarella to use his proverbial reserve. But over the weekend, the 82-year-old Italian president opened up again. A memo from Mattarella’s office read: President to Interior Minister He reminded that the authority of the security forces is not measured by the baton, but by their ability to guarantee public security while respecting the guarantee of the right to freedom of expression. The statement said: “Using the baton against the youth is a sign of failure.” /p>

The day before, police officers in Pisa randomly arrested demonstrators, mostly young and of school age, who had taken part in a peaceful demonstration for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. , were beaten. At least 10 underage participants, including girls, were injured. A 25-year-old protester also suffered a head injury.

In Florence, young demonstrators were beaten bloody by the police. Police brutality in Italy has sparked outrage across the country, including criticism from the mayor of Pisa, who leads a right-wing coalition modeled after the nation-state in Rome. “What happened here deeply affected me, also as a father,” explained Pisa’s mayor, Michele Conti. Conditions entered. Eli Schlein, head of the Social Democratic Party, spoke of the unacceptable scenes and criticized the right-wing government of Prime Minister Georgia Meloni for treating the opposition more authoritarian and creating a “repressive atmosphere” in the country. Giuseppe Conte, the leader of the Five Star protest movement and the former prime minister of this country, also emphasized that the events of Pisa and Florence “do not deserve a country like Italy”. In this context, while Interior Minister Matteo Piantdossi, who was blamed by Mattarella, announced an internal investigation into the operation, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni spoke about the excessive violence and also about the criticism of the President and The opposition remained silent.

This article continues: Police attacks on protesters in Pisa and Florence were not the only such incidents in Italy. In recent weeks, security forces have used violence in several pro-Palestinian demonstrations by leftist groups. There are also increasing efforts to intimidate protesters by police forces. When an audience member shouted “Long live anti-fascist Italy” at the opening of La Scala in Milan last fall, he was then forced to provide his personal details and register. Last week, the same thing happened to several other protesters. On the other hand, when hundreds of “fascists of the third millennium” marched in a paramilitary style in Rome in January of this year, not a single police officer was seen at the rally.

The author continued: Of course, Italy is still far from an authoritarian regime: for example, unlike Hungary, the judiciary is still independent and prefers to investigate right-wing politicians, there is a diverse media, and for the most part Demonstrators don’t have to worry about being beaten by the police. But when Eli Schlein, the leader of the opposition, talks about an increasingly authoritarian and repressive atmosphere, it is difficult to disagree with him. Georgia Meloni is reflected among other things in the fact that the government believes that it can solve any social problem and any behavior that deviates from the norm by creating new criminal offenses or increasing punishment.

The number of new sentencing standards the Maloney government has adopted in the 16 months since it took office is more than in any previous legislative term. Among these laws is that anyone who assaults a teacher or medical staff can be jailed for up to seven years. Parents who do not ensure that their children go to school can face up to two years behind bars. Scooters are also at risk of two years in prison. Immigrants can be held in deportation centers for up to 18 months, even if they have not committed a crime. Minors who deal in drugs face five years in prison.

Currently, violent police operations against young people in pro-Palestinian demonstrations have angered Italy. . The president, Sergio Mattarella, and several unions have criticized this approach and are demanding clarification.

The leaders of several Italian unions are demanding the identification of the police officers responsible in a meeting with Matteo Piantdossi , became the Minister of Interior.

As ​​can be seen in the images of this operation that have been broadcasted by many media, a few days ago, the police attacked young people without masks in a protest rally in the university city. Pisa attacked in central Italy and beat them with batons. According to media reports, the public prosecutor’s office in Pisa is now investigating 15 police officers.

Maurizio Landini, head of the left-wing trade union CGIL, after meeting Ba Piantedossi said it was a serious matter that 15- or 16-year-olds “are beaten or beaten because of demonstrations. Pier Paolo Bombardieri, president of the centrist union UIL, also called for a “clear and swift identification of those responsible.”

Giorgia Meloni, the Prime Minister of Italy, has not yet commented on these events.

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