Vincenzo Di Dio is the director of the nature reserve – managed by LIPU – which includes Isola delle Femmine. After the illegal birthday party organized by two twins, doctors Vito and Antonio Triolo, he made an inspection of the islet where a hundred or so guests had landed for sunset. And he uses one word to describe what he observed: “Destruction”. Cigarette butts everywhere, cans, bottles, plastic decorations. Furthermore, the night between Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 June – when these exponents of Palermo’s upper class were called back to the islet – it was the nesting period of protected species. “There are signs that clearly state that it is a protected area, where entry is absolutely forbidden – explains director Di Dio -. Even guided tours are suspended”.
The assault on the islet
«From 1998 to yesterday, no one had thought of storming the islet also because in this period there are species that nest and, from March 1st to June 30th, visits are suspended», he says. «I did an inspection on Sunday morning. Lots of cigarette butts, glass and plastic bottles and lots of glasses. They piled up some wood and wanted to make a bonfire. A real disaster”. This last aspect particularly worried the director. If a fire of this size had been lit – there was a lot of wood accumulated – there would have been a risk of a fire starting. And in recent weeks Sicily – like every summer – is a region heavily affected by fires.
He leaves
The affair of the party, however, could have criminal consequences: the Palermo prosecutor’s office is evaluating whether crimes were committed, given that the party was unauthorized. While the video in which DJ Mauriziotto – real name Maurizio Giglio – is seen playing for the guests is circulating online. Among other things, DJ Mauriziotto, before dedicating himself to music, was an officer of the Coast Guard whose men, together with financiers and carabinieri, interrupted the party, identified those present and forced the guests to get back on the dinghies with which he had reached the islet. Also in the video, among people dancing with eccentric hats and clothes, a sign appears with the words “save the planet”: a paradox, considering the conditions in which the protected area was left.
