Antifascists commemorated in Basovizza
Basovizza, 8 September - The annual commemoration of four Slovenian victims of fascism was held at the memorial site in Basovizza, Italy, where they were killed in 1930. Tatjana Rojc, senator of Slovenian descent, said peace, democracy and tolerance are the basis of co-existence which fascism wanted to destroy by trying to divide people who have always lived there.
Basovizza, Italy
The annual commemoration for four Slovenian victims of fascisms, executed in 1930, at their memorial.
Photo: Bor Slana/STA
Basovizza, Italy
The annual commemoration for four Slovenian victims of fascisms, executed in 1930, at their memorial.
Photo: Bor Slana/STA
Basovizza, Italy
The annual commemoration for four Slovenian victims of fascisms, executed in 1930, at their memorial.
Photo: Bor Slana/STA
Basovizza, Italy
The annual commemoration for four Slovenian victims of fascisms, executed in 1930, at their memorial.
Photo: Bor Slana/STA
Basovizza, Italy
The annual commemoration for four Slovenian victims of fascisms, executed in 1930, at their memorial.
Photo: Bor Slana/STA
Basovizza, Italy
The annual commemoration for four Slovenian victims of fascisms, executed in 1930, at their memorial.
Photo: Bor Slana/STA
Basovizza, Italy
Culture Minister Asta Vrečko addressing the annual commemoration for four Slovenian victims of fascism, executed in 1930, at their memorial.
Photo: Bor Slana/STA
The event was attended by Slovenian Culture Minister Asta Vrečko and Slovenian Ambassador to Italy Matjaž Longar, as well as by Trieste Bishop Enrico Trevisi, mayors and heads of a number of NGOs.
The four victims, Ferdo Bidovec, Fran Marušič, Alojz Valenčič and Zvonimir Miloš, were members of the secret anti-fascist organisation Borba (Fight), who fought against aggressive Italianisation.
They were sentenced to death following a short trial under fascist laws before a fast-track court in Trieste, known as the First Trieste Trial.
The four are a symbol of antifascism, while they are still officially considered terrorists in Italy, with the Slovenian minority making efforts to avert this status.
A symbolic gesture by the Slovenian and Italian presidents, Borut Pahor and Sergio Mattarella, when they jointly visited the memorial in 2020 played an important role in these efforts, and in 2022 Italian regional authorities granted the Basovizza memorial the status of cultural importance.
In her address to today's commemoration, Minister Vrečko invited "all Italian politicians to join us here next year and send together a message that they were not terrorists, but fighters for antifascism, freedom, their language and co-existence", she was quoted by public broadcaster Radio Slovenija.
A series of event have taken place in recent days to commemorate the 6 September 1930 execution of the four antifascists in Italy and Slovenia.