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| Monument to the Martyrs of the Foibe in Marghera, Venice Vandalized by left-wing hooligans |
VENICE — On January 25, 2016 a monument to the martyrs of the Foibe Massacres in Marghera, a suburb of Venice, was vandalized. The perpetrators desecrated the monument with Communist symbols, painting a hammer and sickle and red stars over the plaque and stone. This happened just two weeks before the National Memorial Day of the Exiles and Foibe (Giorno del ricordo) – instituted to preserve the memory of the victims of the Foibe and the Exodus of the Istrians, Fiumans and Dalmatians after World War II – a national holiday that takes place every February 10.
Unfortunately this is not the first occurrence. Not only has this same monument been vandalized several other times in the past, but so have many other monuments and memorial plaques in other Italian cities. These cowardly and shameful acts of vandalism occur several times a year, committed by Communists, anarchists, Titoists, Slavs, Yugoslav sympathizers and left-wing groups.
The victims have already been persecuted once and had their lives taken away, now they wish to persecute them again by dishonoring their memory and painting symbols of suffering and death. They intentionally disrespect the victims of the Foibe genocide and try to deny their rightful place in our memory. The tragedy of the Foibe and the Exodus from Istria, Fiume and Dalmatia – for too long culpably forgotten and ignored – is now recognized as a historical truth. No amount of vandalism will ever be able to erase that memory again.
