An overnight fire, between January 18 and January 19, in the port city of Brindisi in southern Italy, damaged a building where works were set to begin the next morning to create a migrant reception center for seasonal agricultural workers in the Restinco and Montenegro areas.
The fire squad was called in to put out the fire, which is believed to have been a case of arson. The European Union had allocated 2.3 million euros to renovate the building to render it suitable to host the migrants, with 80 places, a canteen, and a vocational training center.
Brindisi social services councillor Ercole Saponaro commented on the incident, saying that the building had been "targeted by a cowardly attack. All the dilapidated furnishings, which had been taken outside the building while waiting for the waste management services to remove them, were dragged back into the building and set fire to, creating enormous damage to the building."
"The damage caused will lead to further expenses and, as a result, a delay in the starting of the works, since the works planned were to have begun now and to have been completed by May with a transfer of migrants," Saponaro noted.
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'Cowardly act'
This "cowardly act," Saponaro added, "that aimed to stop the project from being completed, will not stop us. I want to reiterate that this serious act will not stop us, since the project -- praised by the government and the prefect's office in particular -- must go forward: we will complete it to transfer migrants from other facilities.
Commenting on the fire was also the Puglia regional governor, Antonio Decaro, a member of the central-left Democratic party (PD).
"Housing dignity and social integration of migrants living in Puglia," he said, "is a priority for Puglia in terms of legality and the battle for civility. Those trying to discourage us on this path through acts of intimidation, behind which is labor exploitation of foreign nationals," he added, "are making a big mistake. We will move forward more determined than before and, if necessary, we will find more regional resources."
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Support promised from regional government
The facilities, the Puglia regional government said, are part of a project within which the Puglia regional government plays a role of support for the municipalities in drawing up and approving local action plans.
"I will personally go to the place of the fire for an initial estimation of the damages alongside the municipality's technical experts," announced migration policies councillor Silvia Miglietta.
"If necessary, we will ask the government's special commissioner for additional funds to deal with the unexpected circumstances and to comply with the agreed upon timeline, which calls for the completion of the works by December 2026."
"To those who did this vile act," Miglietta added, "I want to say clearly that no intimidation can stop the commitment by the Puglia regional government to improve the living and working conditions of migrants, who contribute essentially to the wealth and wellbeing of our territory."