Mattarella: religious freedom at the basis of the Constitution

It happens every year that, at the end of Ramadan, greetings arrive from the head of state for those who profess the Islamic faith. So it is not the first time, but this deadline was preceded by rather vehement political polemics triggered by some news cases such as, for example, the school in Pioltello that was closed due to the high number of Islamic students. Mattarella had already replied to a letter from the Institute's vice-principal, appreciating the work of the teachers, and yesterday, in his message, he stuck to his role, to make the Charter respected. "The Constitution reminds us that all religious denominations are free before the law, insofar as they do not conflict with the Italian legal system. Religious freedom is one of the foundations of coexistence'. He reminds us, in short, that respect is not an end in itself but is necessary to establish 'social cohesion', which is so necessary these days.

Herein lies the point. That integration is a step to ward off radicalism, terrorist drifts and therefore asking foreign citizens to abide by our constitutional values must be accompanied by respect for their beliefs. And the Head of State is well aware that at the forefront of this challenge are young people - and schools - to educate them 'in mutual understanding'.

Current events are also made up of a gloomy international picture, looking at what is happening in Gaza. 'This year,' writes Mattarella, 'Ramadan has sadly coincided with suffering and mourning afflicting innocent civilians in various parts of the world, including the Middle East'. In conclusion, it must be said that these wishes for the end of Ramadan are not an exception because, countless times, the head of state - from a secular position - has found occasions to respect the festivities of various religions (as we know he is a practising Catholic).

The fact remains that yesterday's message crosses a dialectic that began with the words of Salvini, who had branded the Pioltello case as "a backwardness and a surrender to Islam" and had called for a percentage (20%) of the presence of foreign pupils in classes. Well, on this proposal the FdI group leader in the Chamber, Foti, had recalled in an interview how in the North it is often complicated to respect these numbers and therefore the proposal would have clashed with reality. Just yesterday, then, there was the first green light for one of his bills on a clampdown on places of worship on the basis of urban compatibility. And a few days ago, Minister Valditara, in the Council of Ministers, had spoken of a regulation being studied that - looking at Pioltello - aims to prevent schools from authorising absences linked to religious festivities unless there are agreements between the State and confessions. Here, Mattarella reminded everyone that the horizon remains constitutional.

And there is also the horizon of facts: yesterday the first report on immigrant workers in the agri-food industry (Made in Immigritaly. commissioned by Fai-Cisl) was presented at the Cnel, in which it is explained that 50% of workers are immigrants. One out of two who guarantee the production of Made in Italy.