nEUrosis

Time for the politicians to listen

May 27th, 2007 by Paolo Berrino

Two recent events in Italy merit our attention. The first is the commemoration on the 15th anniversary of the murder of judges Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino, committed in the fight against the Italian mafia. The second, in a totally different setting, is the annual conference “crescere tra le righe” (growing between the lines), that tackled the issue of communication in modern society. Despite the geographical distance and the dissimilar intents, these two occasions show something about young Italians, what they want to communicate to policy makers, and how they want to do it.

The Capaci bloodshed owns its name to the trait of highway in Sicily where Giovanni Falcone was murdered with a bomb, together with his wife and three policemen escorting them, on 23 May 1992. Two months later, his friend and colleague Paolo Borsellino was killed in front of his house by means of a car-bomb parked nearby. On the anniversary of these shameful events in Italy’s recent history, the Falcone Foundation decided to organise a boat trip to Palermo. The “legality boat”, as it was called, brought together 15,000 youngsters from all over Italy, who set in the Sicilian capital dancing, listening to music, and debating with representatives of national and regional authorities that attended the event.

The debate wasn’t thrilling. As one might expect, all public figures called for the respect of legality and praised the memory of the two judges. Much more striking was the fact that, 15 years after the murders, young Italians were still moved by the case and by the wave of a historical memory. This is a particularly remarkable outcome when recalling the complex, radicalising, century-long relationship between

Italian society and the mafia

A recent article of Foreign Policy, which analyses the status of several mafia groups in the world, assesses the future of the Italian mafia as “a fight for survival”, especially since the arrest of Bernardo Provenzano, “il capo di tutti i capi”, and 24 other Godfathers. This was possible because of the commitment of the police, of course, but also because society, finally, is withdrawing its support and protection for members of mafia families. The celebrations in Palermo showed that the new generations are not willing to tolerate and support illegality as much as the previous ones.

The event also showed young people’s increasing interest in local problems and their wish to be involved and express their opinion. This was highlighted at the conference “growing between the lines”, organised by the Watchdog of Young Editorialists in La Bagnaia, Tuscany. At the event, attended by members of all relevant public authorities, Walter Veltroni, Rome’s mayor, pointed out that we live in a

very fast society, with a very slow press

The media do not understand societal trends or do not want to understand them. Blogging and the concept of new media is youngsters’ reply to the vacuity of content in the everyday news. The net is the place where news, comment and opinions can be exchanged at high speed, and where the most active participation is reserved for the young- who jump at the occasion. This clearly shows they are concerned in local issues.

At the conference in Tuscany the political elite was represented by Gianfranco Fini, Former Vice-Prime Minister, and Franco Frattini, Vice-President of the European Commission. Hardly discovering the wheel, the former stated the necessity to get closer to the young generations. Questioned about the rather too-mature age of his political coalition leader, Fini struck back with the name of Giorgia Meloni, the 30-year-old President of the Chamber of Deputies. Frattini, unsurprisingly, stressed on the

need for the young to talk more about the EU

to follow its policies and to be more engaged in the debate about its future. From environmental to immigration issues, he said, “not having it [the EU] would come at a high cost, while having it is strategically crucial”.

All in all, the two events described here underline a fresh and dynamic trend of communication in a society that is changing slowly but surely. This is the case in Italy, but the situation is similar in the rest of the EU. The young generations are not apathetic, bored and disinterested - on the contrary, they seem keen to follow and participate in political debates; they have a historical memory to refer to when dealing with present day’s issues, and they fight against the lack of information and channels for representation by using new technologies on the internet.

Policy makers should adapt quickly

It has never been easier for them to know what the young voters think and want - their opinions are only a click away. But while national politicians may be quick to jump on the new wave, the European ones may take longer to start surfing on it. The European Union is still missing in young people’s hearts and minds despite its increasing relevance in their lives. This might be a good occasion for the ‘regular’ media to provide the right platform for future political debates, and for politicians to be more accountable, and to engage the future more in the making of the present.

Bookmark to: