Monday, July 21, 2008

Two children of the Roma ethnic group drown in Naples. Next to their lifeless bodies people continue to sunbathe, have fun and swim in the sea.
Pictures on:  http://www.everyonegroup.com/EveryOne/MainPage/Entries/2008/7/20_Two_children_of_the_Roma_ethnic_group_drown_in_Naples.html

by Roberto Malini - Gruppo EveryOne (transl. Glenys Robinson)

Naples, July 19th - Two young girls of the Roma ethnic group drowned yesterday in front of Torregaveta beach along the Neapolitan coast, in a setting of racism and horror. The press reports the tragedy based on witness accounts: an accident. Four young girls, all of the Roma ethnic group and aged between 11 and 13, were begging on the beach, when suddenly they decided to take a dip in the sea.

They were unable to swim, the sea was rough and they drowned in front of more than 70 bathers. No one went to the girls’ rescue, while the emergency services called to the spot saved two of the girls and recovered the lifeless bodies of the other two. The children came from the “gypsy” camp of Secondigliano. But the dynamics of what happened – as reported by the press – are unconvincing. There is something strange about the fact that four young girls who are non-swimmers would throw themselves fully-clothed into a rough sea (which can’t have been that rough seeing there were many other people, including several children, in the water at the same time). There is something strange about the fact that four young girls would dive into the waves in front of dozens of people, forgetting all about their traditional modesty. Unconvincing too is the fact that in a climate hostile to the Roma people, they would stop begging for money in order to abandon themselves to a joyous, carefree activity without fearing what people around them would say. It appears that several people present on the beach filmed the tragic event with their video phones and that the police have acquired some of these images. We have asked the authorities if we can take a look at these videos and meet the two surviving children in order to throw light on a case that has its dark side. But the most shocking aspect of all this (and this is visible to everyone from press photos and TV pictures of the moments after the bodies were recovered) is the attitude of the people on the beach. No one appears the slightest upset at the sight and presence of the children’s dead bodies on the beach: they carry on swimming, sunbathing, sipping soft drinks and chatting. Unreal, cruel scenes, indicative of how racism has transformed the Italian people into a inhuman people, educated by propaganda to consider the Roma people on a level with animals, unworthy of sentiments of pity and pain. The lifeless bodies of the two children killed by the sea and racial hatred lie on the sand, before dozens of eyes, yet no one seems to have realised what has happened. They continue to enjoy the warmth of the sun and the sea’s waves. Two jellyfish, two dead fish lie – motionless – on the sand. “The Roma people are just a scourge,” say the politicians, the authorities, the journalists. The tragedy that took place on Torregaveta beach is not worthy of shedding a tear for, not worthy of wasting a prayer on.

On the sand lie two starfish.

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