Chronology
May 5. Lampedusa (Agrigento, Sicily). Twenty immigrants detained in the camp are under investigation and accused of planning a revolt.
May 30. Milan. Rebellion in Via Corelli detention camp. 19 North African immigrants refuse the food, then throw tables and smash furniture. As police arrive, 15 of them are arrested. An immigrant and a cop will receive medical treatment
June 3. Teulada (Cagliari). Fishermen occupy an area in the sea belonging to the army in Capo Teulada. A few months before they had blocked military tanks on land. The protest then continued with the occupation of the sea by fishing ships for the entire day, till 9pm, in order to stop military training. Fishermen have been fighting for six months to be allowed to fish in the area, which covers 15 kilometres from Teulada to Portopino.
June 12. Sant’Anna (KR). In the local detention camp, an immigrant pretends he’s feeling sick, then he takes the keys from an operator and runs towards the exit door. Before gaining freedom, he throws the keys to his companions. It is the beginning of a revolt. The cops arrive and block the group of fugitives, causing the other immigrants to revolt. One man’s action becomes the demand of all the others. The camp turns into a battlefield. About 50 immigrants, more than a half of those detained in the camp, start setting fire to mattresses in the bedrooms. Some of them smash windowsills to get stones to throw at the cops who patrol the entrance of the camp; others unsuccessfully attempt to reach the exit with their faces covered with sheets. The fight lasts till dawn. In the end seventeen people are injured: nine cops and eight immigrants, who are mainly burnt following the fire. Three immigrants are arrested and accused of having incited the revolt. Two of them are moved to prison, another is guarded by police in the hospital.
June 13. Turin. Metropolitan police try to evict the stalls in the Via Cottolengo market, one of the biggest ‘illegal’ markets in Turin and a Sunday meeting place for immigrants, mainly from Maghreb. But the cops only manage to evict a few stalls, as they are soon the targets of stones and bottles. The badly wounded cops are forced to flee in their cars, which are also badly damaged. During the morning, in the same area, unknown people had set fire to the flags of some countries involved in the war in Iraq and distributed leaflets in support of the Iraqi insurgents.
June 18. Milan. Demo of students and immigrants in front of the Valsole offices. Valsole is a travel agency responsible for deporting immigrants in northern Italy. A banner, ‘Stop deportations, fight Fortress Europe’, blocks the entrance of the agency for one hour and some writing is left on the windows.
June 26. Milan. A rough explosive device, which fails to detonate, is found at the entrance of ‘Banca Intesa’. A message claims the action: ‘Banca Intesa is an accomplice in the management of the detention camp. Fire to all concentration camps, fire to all prisons, fire to all States. Solidarity with the arrested in Sardinia. Free everybody’. Signed: ‘The exploited’.
June 27. San Foca (Lecce). Twenty prisoners attempt to escape from Regina Pacis detention camp, but only five of them manage to gain freedom.
July 11. San Foca (Lecce). During a demo in front of the detention camp, a few detainees break out in revolt. They destroy windows and furniture, and throw everything outside. An immigrant attempts to scale the wall, but he’s soon stopped by the cops. The latter also attack the demonstrators: two comrades are injured, one is arrested.
July 12. Bologna. During a revolt in Via Mattei camp, as all the prisoners get up on the roof in order to distract the cops, two immigrants succeed in escaping.
July 15. Sant’Anna (KR). Seven prisoners smash windows and attempt to escape from the local detention camp, but they are caught by the cops. At this point, objects are violently thrown at the police and furniture is set on fire, requiring the fire brigade to intervene. When the revolt is put down by the cops, three immigrants are arrested, nine cops and seven immigrants are injured.
July 15. Milan. Another action is carried out against Banca Intesa, but this time the explosive device detonates. Once again a message claims the action: ‘Solidarity with the immigrants in detention camps, against exploiters’. The comrade arrested in Lecce is also mentioned.
July 17. Lecce. Demo in Piazza Duomo against the detention camps and for the freedom of the arrested comrade.
July 21. San Foca (Lecce). About twenty immigrants attempt to escape from the detention camp, but only two immigrants from Maghreb gain freedom.
July 24. Milan. Another explosive device blows up against a branch of Banca Intesa. A message claiming the action mentions the struggle against the detention camps and expresses solidarity to some anarchists arrested in Trento.
July 27. Lecce. Gathering in front of the court that must decide about the release of the comrade arrested on July 11.
August 9. San Foca (Lecce). An immigrant from Tunisia is stopped by a cop while attempting to escape. A fight follows and the cop has a five days prognosis.
August 10. San Foca (Lecce). Nine immigrants try to escape from the detention camp, six of them are successful, while a Moldavian who has fallen from a high wall, has his spine fractured and is now paralysed.
August 12. San Foca (Lecce). Another 15 prisoners try to escape; only a Rumanian gains freedom.
August 16. Sant’Anna (KR). The prisoners inside the detention camp assault the cops.
August 17. San Foca (Lecce). Twenty immigrants attempt to escape by scaling the wall of Regina Pacis, only six manage to run off. In the fight that breaks out during the attempt of escape, the manager of the camp, priest Cesare Lodeserto is punched and kicked by a Tunisian man. The latter is arrested whereas the priest receives slight injuries.
August 17. Lecce. Unknown people throw a Molotov device against the house of Cesare Lodeserto. A message is left containing slogans against detention camps and their management.
August 18. Lecce. Demo in Piazza Duomo against detention camps.
August 19. San Foca (Lecce). Almost all the prisoners in Regina Pacis are on hunger strike.
August 29. Sant’Anna (KR). At 5am the cops find out that about sixty immigrants are attempting to scale the first fence of the local detention camp with a rope. They have their faces hidden behind towels. Prevented from carrying out their attempt, the immigrants barricade themselves inside a building of the camp. Here they smash the stone steps and throw the pieces at the cops. When reinforcements arrive, the cops manage to enter the building. At this point the immigrants set fire to mattresses, which causes three rooms to be completely destroyed. In the end three cops and 10 immigrants are injured, 13 Palestinians are arrested and 32 other immigrants are charged with crimes.
August 29. San Foca (Lecce). Demo outside Regina Pacis, against deportations and for the closure of all concentration camps. An immigrant is still on hunger strike.
September 1. Five immigrants gain freedom while renovation works are in progress in Via Mattei camp.
September 3. Isola Capo Rizzuto (Catanzaro). At dawn about 50 Palestinians run away from the detention camp. It seems that they were all recaptured along an Ionic street after a few hours.
September 8. San Foca (Lecce). Fifteen prisoners attempt to escape from Regina Pacis and fight against the cops. Two of them gain freedom, whereas four immigrants and four cops are injured.
September 12. Trapani (Sicily). Thirty Tunisians try to escape from Serraino Vulpitta detention camp after setting fire to a room on the second floor. Two of them gain freedom, whereas the others are recaptured by police. Eight immigrants are denounced for ‘resistance and assault on police’ and for having caused serious damages. A cop and an immigrant must receive medical treatment.
September 13. Sant’Anna (KR). Taking advantage of the dark night, two hundred immigrants escape from the ‘primary welcome’ centre, which is close to the detention camp. According to what the law states, the immigrants in this centre are not prisoners, but rather ‘guests who must not leave the centre’. Their escape reveals the true nature of the so-called ‘welcome’. Unfortunately about 60 immigrants are recaptured in the following days.
September 13. Trapani (Sicily). At 3.30 am a few immigrants set fire to the mattresses of the room where 50 of them are locked up. Taking advantage of the confusion that follows, 25 immigrants manage to gain freedom jumping from a balcony. Only two of them escape the attack of police. Eight immigrants are arrested with charges of ‘resistance and damage’.
September 16. Lecce. Once again writing appears on the walls of the town against detention camps and the manager of Regina Pacis.