A hot summer in Salento  

This year, the summer just passed, has been particularly hot for the detention camp for immigrants (CPT, ‘temporary stay centre’) Regina Pacis in San Foca, Salento: gatherings, demonstrations, anonimous attacks and, most importantly, a long series of riots and escape attempts, unfortunately not all of them successful, have been occurring for all this period, making it clear by the practice, and much better than by any speech, what the real nature of this infamous place is like. Following the latest events, the detention camp, its role and its mere existence, are now the object of very harsh controversy. The exasperation suffered by the prisoners had never before shown itself with such force, and for such a long period of time. This is an unequivocal proof that the conditions of detention inside that hell have been deteriorating dramatically in the last period. A first successful attempt of escape, in fact, has been the spark that detonated many other similar episodes.

In the night of June 27, twenty prisoners, Moroccans, Tunisians and Palestinians, manage to reach the courtyard of the camp and run towards the gate with the intent to scale it and gain the freedom. Most fugitives actually jump over the wall; but only five of them finally disappear in the surrounding pine woods and get all traces of themselves be lost, whereas the other fifteen are re-captured. One of the latter, while trying to escape, punches and kicks a cop, who must go to the hospital.

On June 11, a group of anarchists turn out suddenly in front of the detention camp to show solidarity to the prisoners. A banner is opened up, smoke bombs are lit, slogans are shouted out and leaflets are distributed to the people on the beach. This is sufficient to suddenly cause the inmates in Regina Pacis to revolt. They start destroying everything that prevents them to be free; not by chance, in fact, they first attack the barred windows then the furniture, the cameras, etc and throw objects downstairs, managing to go on the balconies. The women too start shouting and revolting. Two immigrants hide themselves on the balcony on the first floor taking advantage of the confusion and wait for the right moment to flee. Only one makes the attempt, jumps over a police van and then throws himself towards the wall. Unfortunately he is captured by two cops who drag him down with their truncheons, in spite of the comrades’attempt to help him to escape. He is a North African man whose traces will be eventually lost, as he will be not found in any hospital or in the camp. The only known thing is that he has a broken leg. Meanwhile the cops who were inside the camp attack and beat violently the comrades, and a true manhunt is carried out among bathers and sunshades. Regina Pacis, in fact, is located on the shore. Most bathers bake up the cops in capturing the fugitive demonstrators. Two comrades are stopped and searched, one of them receives very serious wounds, another comrade has her knee fractured while running off (afterwards she is badly operated in ‘Vito Fazzi’ Hospital in Lecce and never recuperates the use of her knee). Troops of anti-riot cops enter the camp. The comrade who has been bitten is kept as a hostage till all the bathers leave the beach. Another comrade is arrested and accused of attacking an officer with the megaphone while the North African man was trying to escape.

The day after the local press reports that the uprising caused 50 million euros damage. Moreover, a few members of parliament who enter the camp claim that the immigrants who revolted have all criminal records and in doing so they intend to make a difference between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ and to present a general revolt of men and women as an isolated act of few people. When the riot broke out 158 people were in the camp.

Leftist and rightist politicians express their solidarity towards the director of the centre.

On July 12 a lot of writings appear on the walls of Lecce in solidarity with the immigrants, for the freedom of the arrested comrade and for the closure of all detention camps.

On July 17 a demonstration is hold in Piazza Duomo in Lecce, amid a massive presence of cops. The arrested comrade is put under house arrest after two days in prison.

In the night of July 21 another 20 prisoners attempt again to escape from Regina Pacis, but only two immigrants from Maghreb get their traces to be lost.

On July 27 a gathering and a distribution of leaflets are carried out in front of Lecce court, where the judge is deciding about the release of the arrested comrade; after a few days, it is decided for the release, but the comrade must sign every day at the police station.

In the night of August 9 a Tunisian man tries to escape from the camp but he is stopped by a cop. A fight follows and eventually the cop is wounded.  The following night another attempt of escape takes place. Nine immigrants manage to reach the roof, get the rear of the camp and try to scale the higher part of the wall, which is spied by cameras. As soon as they notice that an escape attempt is on the way, the cops run on the spot and stop two fugitives, one of them has a foot broken, whereas another six manage to jump down and disappear. A 29 years old man from Moldavia, Andrei, is trapped in the barbed wire from where he falls down and has his spine fractured. He is now paralysed.

On the night of August 12 another fifteen inmates, all of them coming from East Europe, attempt the escape. They manage to scale the walls but unfortunately fourteen of them are blocked by the cops along the beach, while a man from Romania is not captured and gains his freedom.

Again, on August 17 twenty immigrants, after breaking the door of their room, try to scale the wall: six of them manage to flee, the others are stopped by the cops. A fight follows and the director of the camp, priest Cesare Lodeserto, is punched and kicked by a Tunisian man. The latter is accused of attacking and wounding Lodeserto, whereas the infamous priest receives only slight wounds. During the same night, around 5am, a molotov device is launched against Lodeserto’s house and the window of the kitchen is damaged. A message is left, claiming: ‘Fight Don Cesare, the manager of the concentration camp Regina Pacis, close down all the detention camps’. On this occasion too, left and right wing politicians express their solidarity to the priest.  Following this action, the press reports that an investigation is being carried out against the website of Times of war, where a list of all the people responsible for the management of Regina Pacis is published. These collaborationists, who would prefer to carry on their dirty job without being mentioned, are clearly frightened.

The day after, another demo is held in Piazza Duomo in Lecce, banners are opened up and leaflets are distributed.

On August 19 almost all the prisoners in Regina Pacis are on hunger strike.

On August 29, Sunday, about 100 people march in San Foca against Regina Pacis and the deportations and for the destruction of all the detention camps. A huge deployment of cops escorts the demonstrators who, after going through the village, reach the camp for a final gathering in solidarity to the immigrants. The latter shout in response and show themselves from the windows, whereas one of them is still on hunger strike. During the march, Andrei, the Moldavian man seriously wounded after an attempt of escape, is continuously mentioned.

Finally on September 8, fifteen inmates break a door and enter the courtyard of the camp with the intent to escape. A fight with the cops follows, three immigrants manage to scale the wall but only two of them escape, one is on the contrary immediately recaptured.  

Following these episodes, which have definitely disturbed the calm Adriatic shore (and not only it…) in Salento, the managers of Regina Pacis have suggested not to renew the contract with the State that establishes Regina Pacis as a detention camp for immigrants, maybe also because another detention camp is about to be opened in Bari.

Waiting to see if this is true and what possible new use will be made of Regina Pacis, we hope that the hot summer just passed will be followed by an equally hot autumn, inside and outside the detention camp, so as to arrive at its definitive closure. We also hope that this will be just a beginning for the extinction of all concentration camps.

Enemies of all borders