The celebrations on the occasion of the 78th anniversary of the foundation of the Republic concluded in the morning in a packed University Square in Catania.
Various commemorative initiatives promoted by the Prefect, Maria Carmela Librizzi, which began yesterday, in different and exciting moments which saw the protagonists of the young people who, alongside the institutions of the province, exalted the republican values contained in the Constitution.
The Republic Day ideally began on the afternoon of June 1st, in Piazza Bellini – transformed for the occasion into a splendid open-air theater – with the performance of Mameli’s anthem by the ensemble of “Music together with Librino”, directed by Prof. Alessandra Toscano. The young musicians presented the honors for the “merit of the Republic” to the Lieutenants Antimo Arpaia, Carmelo Bonanno, Salvatore Impieri, Giuseppe Longo and Giuseppe Musumarra, to prof. Pierluigi Catalfo, Dr. Agata Cosentino, Inspector of the State Police Stefano Platania, Dr. Francesco Puglisi, the Fire Brigade Inspector Orazio Rapisarda and Dr. Gennaro Tramontano and Mr. Concetto Gaetano Tati, respectively, Lieutenant Colonel and Brigadier of the Guardia di Finanza.
Led, with the usual skill by the journalist Salvo La Rosa, the boys of Music together with Librino they offered the public the highly acclaimed songs of Leonard Cohen (Hallelujah), Enya(Adiemus), Modena City Ramblers (Centopassi) and Franco Battiato (Permanent center of gravity).
The orchestra and choir of the Teatro Massimo Bellini, directed by the maestros Francesco Di Mauro and Luigi Petrozziello, subsequently performed in the “concert for the Republic“, promoted in collaboration with the Mayor of the Metropolitan City and the Superintendent of the opera institution, making the square vibrate to the notes of Bellini, Verdi, Rossini, Puccini and Mascagni and the songs”Catalog Of sun” by Emanuele Casale – dedicated to Giovanni Falcone, Francesca Morvillo, Paolo Borsellino and the escort agents – and “Hymnus Sidereus – The emblem of the Italian Republic”, by Francesco Muraca, in its first performance.
The day of June 2nd, “Republic Day”, opened today with the honors to those fallen for the country with the laying of the laurel wreath in the Vestibule of the Military Shrine, located in the Church of San Nicolò l’Arena in Catania.
Subsequently, in Piazza Università, the ceremony took place in the presence of the civil, military and religious authorities of the province, of the fighting and weapons associations, as well as students of various Etna schools.
The performance of Mameli’s anthem by the students of the “Vincenzo Bellini” Conservatory of Catania, directed by prof. Salvatore Distefano and accompanied by the splendid voice of the soprano Silvia Alongi, and the flag-raising ceremony preceded the reading of the message from the President of the Republic and the speech of the Prefect Librizzi.
Subsequently, the values of the Republic were expressed in the words of students and representatives of civil society.
Gabriele Tempera, a young student of the “Bellini” conservatory, underlined the extraordinary relevance of the Republic Day, to be experienced not as a memory of a distant event, but as a daily exercise in exalting the values on which our democracy is based.
Angela Raimondo, student of the Lucia Mangano Institute of Higher Education, read the message that Dr. Paola Tricomi, researcher at the University of Siena originally from San Gregorio di Catania, sent to the Prefect on the occasion of the June 2nd celebration, in which it is underlined how the “Repubblica – a reality that could not survive without everyone’s contribution – is called to welcome, in all its aspects, both institutional and civil society, every form of minority and social marginality”.
Salvatore Pappalardo, Deputy Director of the Diocesan Caritas of Catania, instead exalted the value of “solidarity action” which, constantly outlining our Constitution, “contributes to the common good and adds value to the lives of many people, who with their silent work on behalf of the least allow the solidarity to manifest itself in the name of the values of the Republic, ensuring that no one is left behind and thus making the principles set out in the art alive and implemented. 2 of our fundamental charter”.
Finally, Sirya La Spina, a student of the “Rita Atria” Comprehensive Institute, read a passage developed with her classmates Nency Praino, Giulia Montaperto, Francesca Rapisarda on the theme of legality and published in the newspaper “La Sicilia” as part of the “ journalism project”, promoted within the Metropolitan Observatory for the prevention of youth deviance phenomena.
For young students the deepest sense of legality is “understand that behind every rule there is not only an imposition, but also a possibility to be safeguarded, a right to be protected, a freedom to be protected”.
At the end of the celebrations, the Prefect, thanking all those present and, in particular, the young people such as “protagonists of the impulse towards the social and moral renewal of the nation”, he underlined how “the reflections heard on June 2 are positive examples of active citizenship and affirmation of the founding values of the Republic. As the President of the Republic underlined, we can and must all be operators of the Constitution!”.
