The G7 in Puglia as a global spot to enhance the beauty of the area. Between the city, the sea and the hinterland, the proposed mix of history and culture will cross local borders to reach an international stage. But it is also an event, the one from 13 to 15 June, which leads to easy trips and which can undermine the positive effect of the coming of the heads of state (with the inclusion of Pope Francis). It is CNN with the article published on the website “Mafia-type violence is increasing in the same Italian region where the G7 leaders will meet” that brings the combination between the mafia and the South back into vogue. Precisely when the Apulian community has been working for some time to reassure the reference market (made up of investors and tourists) and does not intend to back down.
«In the same period in which the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced that the meeting of the G7 leaders would be held in Puglia, in the south of Italy – it is reported in thearticle by Barbie Latza Nadeau – local anti-mafia investigators were focusing on three cases of organized criminal groups allegedly responsible for the increase in violence in the region.” Groups which, «according to the semi-annual report of the Italian Ministry of the Interior published in January 2024», showed «worrying signs of dangerous activities».
Melchiorre: «The government is working for security»
Beyond the imprecision on the geographical location of the crime – «the groups are offshoots of the Sacra Corona crime syndicate, based in the city of Foggia (the Scu is from Salento, ed.)» – it is the return to stereotypes that is annoying. «The State – he states Filippo Melchiorre, senator of the Brothers of Italy and member of the anti-mafia commission – has guaranteed maximum attention to security issues over the years by strengthening the presence of the police. It does not appear that tourists in Puglia move around the area without adequate support. Our community knows how to value the efforts made to make the environment hospitable. The Meloni government is working precisely to support the growth path of the economy by guaranteeing security.”
The reactions of Apulian entrepreneurs
The exit of CNN, world leader in information, does not please sector operators. «I am very disappointed by the words used in the article – he adds Giancarlo De Venuto, president of Assoturismo Puglia (Confesercenti) – because they are imprecise and inappropriate. Yet CNN is a global information giant capable of guiding millions of people, so it would be appropriate to know better what is being described.” According to De Venuto, referring to the mafia and the dangers of crime is out of place. «It does not appear that in our region there are mobility problems at night – concludes the president of Assoturismo Puglia – nor that tourists have to face safety dangers. I don’t know if this is true in every country in the United States. The fact is that operators are moving in synergy with the institutions to provide a service adequate to the expectations of a territory that hosts the G7. As Assoturismo Puglia we have given our availability to welcome the police who are securing the event. This is also why the content of CNN’s in-depth analysis seems unfair to me.” On the other hand, having recalled that “when Italy hosted what was then the G8 summit in 2001 in Genoa, a protester was killed by the police during violent clashes” causes a bit of bitterness.
