The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Antonio Tajani, participated, on Friday and Saturday, in the main events dedicated to the Remembrance Day, in commemoration of the victims of the foibe and of the Istrian, Fiuman and Dalmatian exodus.
The Foreign Ministry and the entire diplomatic-consular network, as well as the Italian Cultural Institutes participated in the celebrations with the aim of keeping the memory of the tragedy alive in the world.
The Deputy Prime Minister spoke at the commemoration ceremony organised on 9 February 2024 at the Quirinale Palace, in the presence of the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella. Minister Tajani opened his speech – available at this link – by stressing that “on the Remembrance Day, we are in ideal recollection in front of every foiba, every memorial stone or monument. In front of the many simple wooden crosses on the red soil of Istria that mark the places where there are the open wounds in the ground that swallowed thousands of unfortunate people, in what is one of the darkest pages in the history of our country.”
On 10 February, the Deputy Prime Minister – together with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni – also went to the memorial of the Foiba of Basovizza to honour the memory of the victims of the foibe and the exiles of Istria, Fiume and Dalmatia. On the sidelines of the ceremony, he underlined: “We cannot forget what happened at the end of World War II, the many innocent victims who paid only for being Italian”.
At the Minister’s initiative, the writing “Io Ricordo” (I remember) lit up the Farnesina Palace.
