Riace Mayor Domenico Lucano on Wednesday said that the town's internationally-renowned model of integration, which saw migrants help revive the small town in Calabria whose population was dwindling, will continue even without public funding. A court in Reggio Calabria on Wednesday ordered his release from house arrest imposed on October 2 over allegations he has aided illegal immigration.
However, the court ordered him to leave the town.
'We will go ahead anyway - alone', says mayor
Speaking in front of the court in Reggio, the mayor said that, ''Riace represents an idea that goes against a barbaric civilization''. ''We will continue even without public money, alone, because over the years we have built a support system for integration that is making a difference today,'' he continued.
The central government is set to scrap the 'SPRAR' projects to help migrants and asylum seekers in Riace, citing alleged ''serious anomalies.'' Lucano said that the end of the project, which implies that migrants living in Riace - some for years - can leave doesn't scare him. Indeed he said he was in favor of ''leaving SPRAR."
''I want it for political reasons. I don't want to have anything to do with those who don't have confidence and with this government that often doesn't respect human rights."
Lucano also spoke about his strategy to continue with the project without public money - investing in artisanal laboratories started by migrants who have been living in the town for years and in an olive oil mill. This would imply boosting activities in a town that is known around the world while continuing to spontaneously host migrants ''just like when we started off'' in 1998 with 200 refugees from Kurdistan. Since then, the town hasn't only been known for hosting the 2,500-year-old Riace Bronzes but as an example of integration, with Lucano winning 40th place among Fortune's 50 most influential leaders in the world.
Mayor released from house arrest, banned from staying in Riace
After the court's decision, Lucano was released from house arrest, ordered on October 2. However, the mayor of Riace said it was only a partial victory. The tribunal in fact banned him from living in the town he had been governing up to his detention and before his suspension from the role decided by the prefect of Reggio Calabria. Lucano will therefore have to relocate for a yet-unspecified period of time.
However, he said he means to continue to work for his town's model of integration even from afar, although it is still unclear how his absence will influence the lives of migrants in Riace who have so far counted on him for support. Migrant residents will now have to decide whether to stay without public funding or to accept to be transferred with another SPRAR project after the closure of the one in Riace decided by the interior ministry.