The end of the Second World War in Trieste is characterized by the Forty days of Yugoslavian communist occupation during which the second wave of massacres in the foibe will be unleashed. On April 30, 1945, the insurrection of the National Liberation Committee took place, which had substantially defeated the last troops of the German garrison. The next day the "Titoites" would arrive in the city, who ousted the Italian partisans: the figure of the Bishop of the Diocese of Trieste and Capodistria, Monsignor Antonio Santin, emerged as a bulwark of the city, having already faced the Germans by making them desist from their plans to destroy the port with mines.

And Antonio Santin Defensor civitatis is the title of the documentary that the National Association of Venezia Giulia and Dalmatia, in collaboration with the Multimedia Documentation Center of Julian, Istrian, Rijeka, and Dalmatian Culture, has dedicated to the charismatic figure of the Istrian prelate. The documentary will be screened on Saturday, June 24, at 17:30 p.m. during a meeting organized by the ANVGD at the Sant'Afra Theater of the Brescia Theater Center, Parish of Sant'Afra and Santa Maria in Calchera (Vicolo dell'Ortaglia, 6 – Brescia), with a presentation by Professor Donatella Schürzel (European PhD in European History and Master's lecturer at UniCusano).

After greetings from ANVGD National President Renzo Codarin and Provincial Delegate Laura Busecchian, Monsignor Ettore Malnati will deliver a presentation entitled "Bishop Antonio Santin and the Protection of Human Rights in Venezia Giulia ." Indeed, even before the outbreak of the Second World War, Santin, initially as Bishop of Fiume and later of Trieste, despite coming from a background of Italian patriotic sentiments, had paid attention to his Slovenian and Croatian-speaking faithful, who were the target of the denationalizing policies of so-called "border fascism." Nor did he remain silent in the face of the promulgation of the racial laws, announced by Mussolini during a rally in Trieste.

Also in Bergamo, more precisely in the splendid setting of the Benedictine Abbey of San Paolo d'Argon (Via del Convento, 1 – San Paolo d'Argon – BG) on the occasion of the 2023 twinning in which the Bergamo province is united with that of Brescia as Capital of Culture, the documentary that the National Association of Venezia Giulia and Dalmatia, in collaboration with FederEsuli and the CDM, has dedicated to the charismatic figure of the Istrian prelate Monsignor Antonio Santin will be presented and which will be screened on Sunday 25 June at 11:30 am in the “Chapter Hall” of the Monastery itself adjacent to the Antonio Santin Defensor Civitatis Church.

The Municipal Administration of San Paolo d'Argon , represented by the brilliant personality of Councillor Milena Rollo and the worthy Mayor Graziano Frassini, enthusiastically supported the initiative at the end of June which includes a series of intense moments dedicated to the history of the Exodus and ending with a visit to the Abbey, whose foundation dates back to 1079, a visit kindly offered to the Anvgd members of Bergamo, Brescia and to all the guests by the Municipal Administration itself.

We begin with the Celebration of Holy Mass at 10:30 a.m., officiated by Father Luca Casali. During the Mass, the readings dedicated to us will be presented by Giacca, an Istrian exile and member of the national executive of the ANVGD, who is coming to us from Padua, Italy. She was born in Stridone di Portole, a tiny village near the center of Istria, where she lived until the age of 6. Likewise, some ANVGD members from Bergamo will bring to the altar during the offertory some of the symbols of our exile, as votive offerings in memory of our sacrifice. As is customary every June, the Holy Mass is dedicated by the ANVGD members and their descendants to Saints Vitus and Modesto, protectors of the city of Fiume. Furthermore, from 21 June, the Abbey will be hosting an exhibition on Fiume by Tiziano Bellini (ANVGD provincial delegate for Cremona), featuring 35 panels filled with highly interesting period photos and documents of the city on the Kvarner Gulf.

This will be followed by a presentation by Professor Donatella Schürzel , the busy National Deputy Vice President of the ANVGD, who was recently awarded the "Julian-Dalmatian Dignity in the World" prize in Assisi. The documentary film " Antonio Santin, Defensor Civitatis ," directed by Valeria Baldan and Giovanni Ziberna, recounts the merciful figure of Bishop Santin, Bishop of Trieste and Capodistria from 1938 to 1975. The ANVGD Committee of Bergamo will host the event with its entire Executive Committee, along with other Lombard Committees and Delegations, as well as the Brescia Committee, now represented jointly.

These initiatives are part of the project " Bergamo and Brescia, cities that welcome the exodus. Places, stories, MEMORY and memories," presented by the Bergamo ANVGD Committee and the Brescia ANVGD Delegation as part of Bergamo Brescia Italian Capital of Culture 2023.