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Another
voice from Palermo
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Umberto
Santino is the President of the Centro Siciliano
di Documentazione ·Giuseppe Impastato·. He talks
to us about crime-fighting organisations in Palermo.
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 IP:
Umberto, what are the main 'law and order' units
in Palermo? Reference points that promote
a Mafia-free culture?
There are other centres besides the Centro Siciliano
di Documentazione (Sicilian Documentation Centre
- ed.). There's the Terranova Centre, the Costa
Foundation, the Falcone Foundation and the Borsellino
Centre, all financed by public investment. From
time to time the University also organises conventions
and publishes papers on the subject.
Since the 1980s 'legal awareness' activities have
been introduced into schools. However they're not
frequent enough yet. There are also a number of
community centres doing good work: there's the San
Saverio Centre at Albergheria, 'Zen Insieme Centre'
and the 'Padre Nostro Centre' which was founded
by Padre Puglisi in the Brancaccio district. (Padre
Puglisi was murdered in 1993. ed.)
Not forgetting 'Dipingi la Pace', in the Borgo area
and the Arci Youth Club in Borgo Nuovo. As you see
they're nearly all parish centres. There are no
independent community centres. A few years ago there
was one in Montevergini, but it's not operating
now."
IP: What about criminality?
"Palermo is overrun with criminality. Just
look at people getting on a bus, nearly everyone
gets on at the back to avoid paying for a ticket.
Breaking the law is part of the culture here.
Even in everyday life."
“There are often monuments and plaques at
the scene of a crime. However there's nothing to
mark important places such as the headquarters of
the Sicilian Fasci in Via Alloro (the Fasci dei
Lavoratori were a group of ordinary Sicilians who
challenged the power of the Mafia at the end of
the 19th Century). There's not even anything to
commemorate the Fall of the Fasci (1892-1894). There
is, however a monument to Francesco Crispi, the
head of Government who ordered the massacre
of the Fasci. The inscription on the monument now
reads “United in a monarchy …”
since “Divided in a republic” was cancelled!
Intervew
with Paolo Briguglia, co-star of the highly
acclaimed film The Hundred Steps
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ITALIAPLEASE |
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Februry
2001
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THE SURVIVOR'S 
