Innocent victims of the mafias remembered in Messina on the Day of Memory and Commitment

The 31st Day of Memory and Commitment in remembrance of the innocent victims of the mafias saw various initiatives take place, including the 12th appointment now established and promoted by Dr. Giuseppe Previti, president of Cittadinanzattiva Sicilia-Assemblea Territoriale Giostra/Messina An.Tu.Do. and organized together with the Kiwanis Club Antonello da Messina chaired by Attorney Enzo Messina.

“The national day was born from the pain of a mother - recalled Attorney Giuseppe Previti - who lost her son in the Capaci massacre and never heard his name spoken. An unbearable pain if the victim is also denied the right to be remembered by their name.”

Attorney Silvana Paratore, a legal expert in social policies who moderated the event 

Presenting the event was Attorney Silvana Paratore, a legal expert in social policies and national vice president of Aniomrid (National Association of Recipients of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic and Decorated), who emphasized the value of memory as a tool for concrete and daily commitment against all forms of illegality. “We must repudiate the mafia - emphasized Attorney Silvana Paratore - and its perverse mechanisms that promise benefits to those who allow themselves to be corrupted.”

Several organizations participated in the event, including the Libera Association represented by Rosario Ceraolo, who stated: “Fighting the mafias means nurturing a culture that can serve as a tool for denunciation and civil growth.” For the Legambiente dei Peloritani, which has adopted the flowerbed, Francesco Parisi, the president, clarified, along with Eng. Enzo Colavecchio, who have been committed for years to the culture of green protection; Cisl with secretary Antonio Alibrandi; V Circoscrizione with Vice President Giuseppe Puglisi; San Matteo Parish with the Culture of Charity Commission; Cesv Messina with representative Carmelo Schepisi; Lega Antidroga di Messina; Auser Sempreverdi with President Angela Passeri; Comitato Civico Messina la Città Dimenticata; Fondazione di Partecipazione Antonello da Messina; Associazione Socio Culturale Trapper Sociale with Michele Salvo; Aem (Associazione Europa Mediterraneo); and Anai (Associazione Nazionale Avvocati Italiani, sezione di Messina).

Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino

Among the most symbolic moments of the day was the laying of a wreath of flowers offered by Cittadinanzattiva and the Kiwanis Club Antonello da Messina at the foot of the plaque located in the Roundabout dedicated to the martyrs and victims of the mafia, on Viale Giostra. Following this, there was a spiritual gathering with a prayer officiated by Father Antonio Cugliandolo, parish priest of the Parish of Santa Maria di Gesù Superiore/Ritiro.

The Deputy Prefect of Messina, Dr. Cettina Pennisi, attended the event as a testament to the closeness of the institutions to an initiative that represented not only a duty of memory but also a concrete commitment to spreading the culture of legality.

For the occasion, some expressions from judges Falcone and Borsellino were recalled; significant was the moment of the reading of the names of the 1117 innocent victims and martyrs of the mafia, from 1861 to today and the day concluded with a strong shared message: “Remembering the victims is not just a symbolic act, but a collective assumption of responsibility to build a more just society, free from all forms of mafia.”