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Small business owners have demonstrated in various cities against new measures announced by the government to prevent the spread of the corona virus. The riots have added to the discontent, deliberately smashing shop windows and attacking police officers.
The police chase the rioters in the old town of Turin.
In several Italian cities, small business owners have protested the new partial closure imposed by the government to contain the pandemic. Restaurant owners see their existence threatened because they have to close their bars at night. The same applies to gym owners who can no longer open. The government has promised compensation for merchants and support for unemployed employees. Help should come quickly and be higher than the first block. However, after the experiences of spring, many Italians doubt that aid will arrive in a reasonable time.
In Turin and Milan, the protests quickly degenerated into riots. According to media reports, it was soccer ultras, as well as neo-fascist and anarchist groups who mixed with the protesters, sought a confrontation with the police, and began an orgy of destruction. Shop windows were systematically smashed on shopping streets, furniture on restaurant terraces was smashed; protesting innkeepers may have been affected. The riots apparently followed a similar pattern to the riots on the first weekend in Naples. Minor protests and escalations were reported in several northern and southern cities, including Trieste, Cremona, Viareggio, Pescara, Lecce, and Catania. Stones and firebombs were thrown at the police.
Some commentators warned months ago of a “hot autumn” in Italy, and now they see a wave of protests across the country alongside the second wave of Covid. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte expressed understanding for the protesters’ needs, for their disappointment and anger, but said on Monday night that the measures ordered were necessary and would remain in force. It is about limiting person-to-person contacts and thus slowing down the spread of the virus.
The first wave of Covid and the first confinement were endured by the Italian people with a kind of stoic heroism. You saw a previously unknown threat and collectively faced it the best you could. The rulers had a lot of public support, even intervention measures were supported and mistakes were accepted. Now the mood is different. It can be seen that the responsible authorities are also being caught off guard by the foreseeable second wave. Once again, they seem overwhelmed by the situation, as if they haven’t learned anything from the experience.
The government issued three decrees in a short time. Some of the measures appear arbitrary and are not based on scientific knowledge, but arise as a result of hectic negotiations between political parties and business associations. Additionally, there are again gaps in the healthcare system that, contrary to major announcements, have not been closed. Tracing specialists and medical staff are still lacking to care for the mildly ill at home and to treat the critically ill in intensive care units. Instead of strengthening health services as quickly as possible, they were caught up in absurd discussions about whether or not to take out loans from the EU Stability Fund (there are 37 billion euros available).
The result is a general feeling of insecurity and loss of confidence. This is reinforced by strident accusations and guilt from politicians all over the place. Again, new elections or a new government are called. There is little willingness to allow the current leadership to lock you up at home again. It is enough that children, at least those in the upper grades, do not go to school again. Meanwhile, experts are divided. Some consider that the partial blockade just imposed is sufficient, while others call for a new and complete blockade at least in certain regions, some even throughout Italy. Discussions are confusing, difficult to understand, and stressful for many.
There is also a social division into two groups: those who still have income and those who no longer have it. The second group mainly includes people who were in a rather bad position even before the crisis: casual and low-skilled workers, women and young people, foreigners. The number of impoverished people is increasing, although there is still a general freeze on layoffs. Caritas is experiencing a sharp increase in the number of people seeking help and more than half of those receiving help are now Italians. Unemployment and poverty were previously widespread in the south and in rural regions, but are now moving north and into the cities. Even before the outbreak of the Covid crisis, a quarter of Italy’s residents were at risk of poverty according to Eurostat criteria.
