The Italian Society for Justice and Freedom (Società Italiana per la Giustizia e Libertà) is a non profit organization that was dedicated to the active opposition and resistance to the neofascist regime of Sicily. It's motives, but also ideal and methods were very similar with those of the namesake's group; Giustizia e Libertà.
When the bombs fell one of the few safe and undamaged territories of the ex-Italian Republic was Sicily, with it's undamaged infrastructure, and the presence of the city of Palermo, now one of the largest surviving cities in Europe. It is also home to "Cosa Nostra", the oldest and currently largest mafia organization on the Italian Peninsula. Without the presence of a central authority the Sicilian Regional Assembly and the region do their best for keep the region safe from the intern and from the outside, until late 1983, when Cosa Nostra made a coup d'etat for overturn the provisional Sicilian Republic. Many ex-members of the Sicilian Regional Assembly who refused to recognize the authority of the Mafia fled from Sicily, they took refuge in Malta, Northern Africa and in other places.
After a year in Pantelleria, now under Maltese control, many other refugees came to Malta for escape from the grip of the Mafia, not only common people, but also some mayors, military officials, priests, magistrates, judges and others.
In the spring of the 1986 a group of Sicilians leave the island for going in South America, for trying to establish contact with the Italian embassies in America, two ships with some 500 people inside left Malta for trying to reach South America, after crossing the Strait of Gibraltar, they made a little rest in the Azores for take supplies and get informations about the world. After a week of rest the ships continue their travel until the 15th June of 1986, when they docked at Montevideo, now capital of the United American Republic, a federal republic composed of Uruguay, the Falklands and Argentina. The crew and the passengers were examined by the Argentinian medic for see it they have sign of radiation or other lesions, after being accepted by the authorities many Italians, alongside the already present Italian community thinks that an organization need to be created in order for helping others who might still flead from Italy.
Founding[]
After the arrival of many Italian refugees and some ex-deputies of the Sicilian Regional Assembly, alongside other high profile figures like deputies of the Italian Parliament in Southern America it was decided to create an organization for helping those who are still leaving Italy and giving them relief. The 7th May of 1987, in the Palace of the Scuola Italiana di Montevideo a group of Sicilian and Italian refugees created the Committee for the Establishment of a Southern State, as a survivor aid organizations and for the established of a democratic state in southern Italy, they recived also help from the staff of the Italian embassy in Uruguay, Brazil and Argentina among others South-American states, all of the embassies in the southern hemisphere refuse to recognize the Sicilian Republic as a legitimate government. In fact one of his original members was Alfredo Orlandi, Italian ambassador in Uruguay.
Expansion[]
The committee it was from the start popular among the Italians in Argentina, after a month from his foundation the committee had 50,000 - 200,000 subscribers, and it has also created a chapter in Buenos Aires, other than their main base in Montevideo.
In 1990s several chapter were founded in Santiago, Rio de Janeiro, Mexico City, Lugano and Canberra. It have also created a cash fund for the Italian refugees, thanks to the generation of Italian-Americans.
Between the 1990s and the 2000s the committee had grown and founded several chapters in the world, in the 1997 the first chapter in Italy was founded in the city of Genoa, their support have grown between the Italians and many have joined at their, bring the committee at have 500,000 members.
War for the liberty[]
When the 1st Sicilian war occurred the committee and many deputies asked at the Parliament for joining in the Peacekeeper force for taking Gibraltar from Sicily, after long decisions the parliament accepted their request, and the United American Army joined along with Celtic Alliance, Pais del Oro, Portugal, Chile and the Rif Republic.
After the war they founded a chapter in Prato and an another one in Venice, and it have support from the Italian survivor states in the fight against Sicily.
When the 2nd Sicilian war occurred many member of the committee joined voluntarily at the Liberation Forces for liberate Tuscany and Southern Italy, also many other joined in the bands of fighters for fighting the Sicilian Republic from the intern, many partisians were killed by the Sicilian Forces or resist again them in the mountains, other have created underground bases in the main cities of the Republic, for continue the fight again the Mafia with the propaganda and the information.
The Sicilian Republic view the committee as a terrorist group for destabilizing the state.
Mission[]
The main goal of the committee is to establish a democratic republic in Italy, but also to help the refugees, promote Italian history, culture, values and democracy in the world alongside human rights. And to don't see the southern Italians as supporters of the Mafia, but as an oppressed people who want freedom.
There is also a minority who want the independence of only the ex-region of Sicily, for establishing a democratic Sicilian Republic. Of course they will used the same flag and coat of arms of the Sicilian Republic, they are also against the use of see them as a symbol of the Mafia.
They also claimed the Pelagie Isles and the Island of Pantelleria, as a part of Sicily. They are also against the idea of join at the ADC, their motto is "Libertà, Unione e Indipendenza" and in the 2003 they have even create a Sicilian anthem for don't use the obsolete "Sound the Trumpet" of Vincenzo Bellini. The new anthem is called "Madreterra", composed by Vincenzo Spampinato in the 2003, the song is currently banned in Sicily, but despite this many Sicilians see this anthem as an anthem of liberty and democracy.
Financing[]
CESS is financed mostly from membership dues and donations, but also trought a network of associations, chamber of commerce, associated shops, sport organizations and much more.
List of chapters[]
The Hotel de los Inmigrantes it was here where the first chapter of the CESS was opend, it was buyed by Enzo Maiorca in the 1985 and in the 1995 half of his structure was donated at the United American Government as a museum of the Italian immigration in Argentina, the other part contain the offices and the locals of the Committee.
1) Southern America, this are the first chapters established by the CESS, they are also the most developed and grown in number due to the high presence of Italian immigrants and they are financed by the Italian immigrants:
Montevideo (1985)
Buenos Aires (1985)
Rosario (1986)
Córdoba (1987)
Porto Alegre (1989)
Rio de Janeiro (1990)
Brasilia (1990)
Santiago (1990)
São Paulo (1991)
Bogotà (1993)
La Paz (1993)
Antofagasta (1993)
Caracas (1994)
Conception (1995)
Asuncion (1996)
Lima (1997)
Quito (1998)
Recife (1999)
Maracaibo (2001)
Cartagena (2004)
2) Northern America, this chapters were organized between the 1990s and the 2000s, most of them are small, but they are growing in recent years thanks to the omnipresent Italo-Americans :
Mexico City (2001)
St. John's (2006)
Nantucket (2010)
3) Europe, most of this chapter were established in 90s, are more frequented then that in North America and are also more modern and equipped, for the high presence of Italian immigrants or by the donation of some local or national politicians :
Lugano (1997)
Trento (1999)
Bern (2000)
Aosta (2000)
Sondrio (2001)
Cuneo (2003)
Genoa (2004)
Prato (2005)
Venice (2005)
La Valletta (2010)
Bologna (2011)
Monaco (2012)
Olbia (2013)
4) Oceania, this chapter also were build in the 90s, they are frequented by many Italo-Australians and Italo-New Zelandese and are also fianced by the Italian residents present in the CANZ :
Canderra (1997)
Adelaide (2001)
Wellington (2002)
Auckland (2003)
6) Underground chapters, these chapters function as hidden recruiting points for supporters and sympathizers of the Italian reunification, they are located in disclosed and remote locations like the Appennini or abandoned towns.
List of presidents of the society[]
Sergio Mattarella, the current president of the Committee, before the war he was a teacher at the University of Palermo and a candidate at the House of Deputies.
Marcello d'Alessandro (1983 - 1991)
Tomaso De Vergottini (1991 - 1994)
Cpt. Adolfo Lucatelli (1994 - 1997)
Azucena Berrutti (1997 - 2002)
Danilo Astori (2002 - 2006)
Giulio Sanguinetti (2006 - 2013)
Giorgio Napolitano (2013 - 2014)
Sergio Mattarella (2014 -)
Galleries of images[]
Cruiser "Vittorio Veneto", this ship was one of the several ships of the Italian fleet that decided to escape in South America alongside cruise ships, the ship carried between 200 and 500 refugees in his first voyage towards Argentina, it periodically return to Italy until 1989 for get Italian refugees with a convoy of military ships. After this it was donated to the American Navy, who in 2004 donated it to Genoa.
Italian refugees starting to disembark from one of the first ships that docked in Montevideo alongside others, they are helped by Uruguayan citizens.
Uruguayan sailors and the Uruguayan Red Cross helping and coordinating the Italian refugees for going to the nearest medical centre for any exposion to radiations.
Montevideo desperetly in need of place for host the European refugees use everything at their disposal, this is a stadium inthe city of Punta del Este in 1985.
Marcello d'Alessandro, Italian ambassador in Uruguay when doomsday occured, he would become since the start a leading figure and a source of help for the Italians who arrived in Uruguay betwen 1984 and 1989, he will later become the first president of the SIR.
Flag of the Society for the Italian Riunification since 2001, the previous flag was just a normal tricolor.
