Foibe, agreement signed for the exhibition on the Julian-Dalmatian exodus at the Vittoriano –

The agreement between the Istituto Vittoriano and Palazzo Venezia (Vive) and the Federation of Associations of Istrian, Fiuman and Dalmatian exiles was signed today in Rome, at the Ministry of Culture, for the creation of a temporary exhibition on the Julian-Dalmatian exodus at the Vittoriano, pending the creation of the Museum of Remembrance in the Capital. The signing – reports the Mic – was attended by the Minister of Culture, Gennaro Sangiuliano; the director of Vive, Edith Gabrielli; the president of Federesuli, Renzo Codarin; the honorary president of Federesuli, Giuseppe De Vergottini; the Plenipotentiary Minister Michele Rampazzo, coordinator for minorities and exiles. The agreement provides for the provision, by Vive, of the space located on the first level of the Vittoriano, while the Federation of Associations of Exiles will develop the scientific and museographic project, will share the operational phases with Vittoriano and will create the exhibition, to which admission will be free.

The signing of the agreement had been anticipated in recent days by Minister Sangiuliano on the occasion of the anniversary of the massacre of Vergarolla, near Pola, on August 18, 1946, which led to the death of about 100 Italians, a third of whom were children. This event is still shrouded in mystery and with no culprits identified, and will be the focus of the exhibition at the Vittoriano and subsequently of the Museum. “This exhibition – Sangiuliano stated – is the first and important step towards the creation of the Museum of Remembrance here in Rome dedicated to the memory of the Italian martyrs of the foibe massacred by the blind violence of Tito’s communists. Thanks to the agreement with the Federation of Exiles’ Associations, we will create an exhibition at the Vittoriano that will light, in a highly symbolic and central place for national identity, a powerful beacon on the black hole of memory linked to the exodus, from their lands, of Istrians, Fiume and Dalmatians in the Second World War. With this exhibition we continue to restore, after too much silence, the due visibility and above all the right dignity and memory to the tragedy of the foibe”.

“The Vittoriano was built to honor the memory of the first king of Italy, through the values ​​of the unity of the country and the freedom of its citizens. These founding values ​​remain intact in the republican system and in the European reality of today. The Vittoriano with its over four million visitors per year is the monument that tells the story of Italy and Italians in moments of success and also in moments of pain. Numerous and important exhibitions of the past are demonstrating this. The agreement signed today with FederEsuli serves to remember an extremely painful historical episode for thousands and thousands of our fellow citizens, and therefore for the Italian people in its entirety. As director, I am and remain convinced that, while waiting for the Museum of Remembrance, the Vittoriano will be up to this institutional, civil and moral task”, declared Director Gabrielli. “The signing of this agreement confirms the renewed spirit of collaboration between Federesuli and institutions, in particular with the Ministry of Culture. The exhibition at the Vittoriano is an important and ambitious project for which I can only thank Director Gabrielli and Minister Sangiuliano, whose sensitivity for our history is a harbinger of great results”, said President Codarin.