In the annals of the history of Piana degli Albanesi, the date of today, Friday 18 October 2024, must be marked, in memory of the visit of the President of the Italian Republic Sergio Mattarella and the President of the Albanian Republic Bajram Begaj.
This is the second joint visit of the presidents of the two republics and follows that of San Demetrio Corone on 7 November 2018, on the occasion of the 550th anniversary of the death of the Albanian national hero Giorgio Castriota Skanderbeg.
The relations between the two republics and their governments are historically very close and in recent years they have been strengthening more and more and the two joint visits are a clear demonstration of this.
Piana degli Albanesi was chosen with the same criteria as San Demetrio Corone, being the most populous municipality of the Arbëreshë community of Sicily and seat of the Eparchy of the same name.
When the news of the visit of our President of the Republic and the Albanian President began to circulate, a great feeling of joy mixed with deep pride immediately spread among the population, even if the news regarding the reason for the visit and even more so about the program, were contradictory and fragmentary.
In the days preceding the visit, the atmosphere was kept alive also thanks to an innumerable series of important maintenance and extraordinary cleaning interventions that affected Piana and a part of the route of the Presidential procession. In Piana, among other things, the accesses to the library were fixed, the greenery at the Municipal Residence was taken care of thanks to the forestry workers, the lighting system of the statue of Skanderbeg was strengthened, the entire area of the monument to the Unknown Soldier was fixed, including the benches that had been in a total state of abandonment for years, the small square in front of the Seminary was fixed and above all the paving of the square was partially restored, in the past the cause of many falls. In the territory of San Giuseppe Jato, all the waste shamefully abandoned for years near the S. Antonio viaduct and which no one wanted to deal with, shifting the responsibility onto others, was removed at once.
The visit of the Presidents produced extraordinary and almost miraculous effects, having solved in a couple of days problems that had been unsolved for years.
This morning the presidential procession stopped in front of the Sanctuary of Maria SS. Odigitria and President Mattarella, accompanied by his daughter, was welcomed with joy by those present and especially by the children and young people of the schools present in Piana degli Albanesi. President Begaj accompanied by his wife was welcomed with equal enthusiasm. Many civil, military and academic authorities were present in the square including the President of the Region, the Mayor of the metropolitan city of Palermo, the Mayor of Piana degli Albanesi and those of the Albanian-speaking communities of Sicily and a delegation from Calabria.
For the record, it must be said that the program that took place today was very different from what had been leaked at a local level and that it included sites that were in fact excluded despite benefiting from maintenance work such as for the Municipal Residence and the statue of Skanderbeg.
Those who know the protocols related to the visit of the President of the Italian Republic, know well that in reality only and exclusively the Office of the Ceremonial of the Presidency of the Republic is responsible for managing every detail related to a presidential visit.
The first site visited was the MUSARB, formerly the Nicola Barbato Civic Museum, recently reopened after a long closure. During the passage of the procession in Piazza V. Emanuele, the choir of the school children, masterfully directed by Sara Riolo who for years and with great commitment has been making this reality grow, was the undisputed protagonist of this welcome, intoning the hymns and songs related to the cult of the Madonna Odigitria. The procession then headed towards the Cathedral of San Demetrio Megalomartire where it was welcomed by the Apostolic Administrator H.E. Card. Francesco Montenegro. After the visit to the Cathedral, the presidential procession headed towards the theater of the Seminary where the greetings were addressed to the authorities present, an audience of great occasions.
The biggest surprise for many was the speech by the illustrious Professor Matteo Mandalà of the University of Palermo who in his speech of only ten minutes was able to condense the history of the Arbëreshe identity of Italy for more than five centuries (in the video of Professor Mandalà the full speech).
Professor Mandalà was invited by the Quirinale Ceremonial in full harmony with the Presidency of the Albanian Republic. Professor Mandalà, together with Professor Altimari of the University of Cosenza, is the promoter of the important cultural project MOTI I MADH developed under an international partnership.
Among the speeches that followed, the most awaited and appreciated was without a doubt that of our President of the Republic who began by greeting in Arbëresh and Albanian.
A speech truly beyond any formality and full of sincere feeling, closeness and admiration for the cultural miracle of the Arbëreshë and their capacity for integration and action in the culture, politics and growth of Italy. His memory was moving, which took place in Rome where he met Monsignor Giuseppe Perniciaro Eparca di Piana degli Albanesi and Rosolino Petrotta, a doctor and politician who contributed so much to the cultural growth of the Arbëreshë. He recalled having met them several times and having always maintained a living bond with our identity.
President Mattarella in his speech cited Professor Mandalà several times and referred several times to the Arbëreshë cultural identity as a heritage to be safeguarded and defended and obviously his words represent a living hope for all those who wish to keep this increasingly undermined cultural identity alive.
Many scholars have appreciated the President's commitment and his deep connection with the Arbëreshë identity, such as our fellow citizen Professor Francesco Scalora of the University of Padua who hopes for "in the time to come a more careful and less unprepared management of the cultural policies promoted in various capacities within our community, especially in its relations with the Balkan Neighbors".
The Presidents concluded their visit to Piana degli Albanesi with their presence at the Portella della Ginestra Memorial to pay homage to the victims of the massacre of May 1, 1947. On this occasion, President Mattarella met the survivor Serafino Petta. The relatives of the victims of Portella della Ginestra, the historian Francesco Petrotta and other associations were present.
The President of the Italian Republic Sergio Mattarella today marked the history of our beloved Piana degli Albanesi and of the Arbëreshëe cultural identity as a common heritage to defend, protect, enhance, maintain and grow.
And we all have the responsibility and duty to do so.
Salvatore Vasotti
founder / director
VIDEO:
Intervento del Presidente della Repubblica Italiana Prof. Sergio Mattarella *
Intervento del Presidente della Repubblica Italiana Prof. Sergio Mattarella *
Intervento del Prof. Matteo Mandalà - UNIPA *
*I video qui pubblicati sono estratti da video pubblicati dalla Presidenza della Repubblica e reperiti sul web
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