On January 14th, as we have already reported, the site was inaugurated dalmatians.org, of the Association of Italian Dalmatians in the World – Free Municipality of Zara in Exile (founded in 1963). Almost a hundred participants attended the unique ceremony of putting the portal online, which took place on the Internet via Zoom. There was great emotion among the participants in the meeting when the new mayor of ADIM-LCZE, Antonio Toni Concina, born in Zara, manager of large companies, former mayor of Orvieto and excellent pianist and little Zara Gloder, just four years old, after a countdown, gave the go-ahead for the inauguration.

Toni Concina's speech

Toni Concina, who took over from Franco Luxardo, who had succeeded the late Ottavio Missoni, had the privilege of christening the site.

In welcoming everyone he said: “I am excited, moved and grateful to everyone. The site is a force and makes us work together. Dalmatia, Istria, Fiume, Pola, Split and my Zadar must preserve the scent of their Roman, Venetian and Italian stones over the centuries, not for a misplaced thirst for reconquest, which is impossible, but to broaden the minds of the border people towards an ever deeper and more European coexistence. We are putting our heart and courage into it. It is important to return to schools too. This is a small step for us, but of great importance. We have sown well”. At the end of his speech he wanted to thank the councilor for Communication Vittorio Baroni and the general secretary, Elisabetta Barich, for their commitment to this initiative.

The story retraced by Franco Luxardo

The floor was then given to the honorary president, Franco Luxardo, who recalled the history of the Association. “Zara was completely destroyed by bombing during the Second World War. The Italian population fled and spread throughout the world. Then the first Dalmatian Gathering, in 1953, which took place in Venice, in Piazza San Marco, with 7.000 people present – ​​Luxardo was keen to recall –. That is how this Association was born. Since then, every year there has been a Gathering, changing cities. In Venice we have established the Dalmatian School of Saints George and Tryphon, a gift from a benefactress, a unique reality with a high-level center. Over the course of 19 years we have collected goods worth 500 thousand euros. The result is that today we have a high-level cultural center in Venice, a library with about 15 thousand titles of Dalmatian origin and many artistic relics donated over the years by exiled families. Today it is important to bring our cultural heritage to digital, including that of the newspapers 'Zara' and 'Il Dalmata', whose first issue dates back to 1866, which collect our history".

Concina then recalled that the good wishes messages he received on this occasion were numerous.

The intervention of Maurizio Gasparri

Then a surprise phone call live from Senator Maurizio Gasparri. The Senator said on speakerphone: “I learned about the presentation of this site from Toni Concina and I wanted to bring you a greeting of friendship, great esteem and gratitude to all of you since I am always careful to support your cultural, educational, cinematographic, historical initiatives and instances in Parliament, aimed at telling what you have experienced. I always remember your values ​​and your tragedy. Stories that are fundamental for all of us for our national identity. I will follow what you do”.

The secretary general Elisabetta Barich, after recalling the many Dalmatian gatherings, from which the need to publish periodicals arose, then announced the next issue of “Il Dalmata”, thanking Gianni Grisillo, also among the participants in the virtual meeting, who for many years was a pillar of the newspaper.

Navigating the Internet's Mare Magnum

The Councilor for Culture, Adriana Ivanov Danieli, defined by Toni Concina as a “historical professor”, from Padua, was keen to point out: “We have dived into a new adventure in which we will continue to navigate because the sea is an element of connection, in particular for the world of Dalmatia. Now that the European Common Home also includes Italy and Croatia: we nurture the hope that the Adriatic will once again become a full element of connection between the two shores. The digital world offers us the opportunity for the Dalmatians, navigating the Mare magnum of the Internet, to fully recover their historical role, becoming mediators of culture and historical knowledge, including that of their tragedy, too long ignored. May the wind fill the sails and navigation be prosperous and profitable”.

The memory must remain alive

During the debate, which lasted several hours, journalist Nicola Porro also spoke, who highlighted: “I remember a program that aired on prime time television, about the drama of the exodus and the testimonies of the people. It was moving. Reality is like a black hole in our history. The new generations know very little about these events. The foibe have an afterthought that some people connect to fascism: instead it is a great Italian and European drama”.

Historian Ernesto Galli Della Loggia emphasized: “I am involved and have a strong relationship with Dalmatia and Istria through my parents. It was a great forgotten injustice: Italians expelled and thrown into the fray towards a homeland that welcomed them indifferently. With his presidency Toni Concina will write a rich page. The memory of your history must not cease to be alive”.

The new Communications Councilor Vittorio Baroni, author of the Internet project, coordinated the meeting: "We have the opportunity to establish new relationships based not on ideologies, but on culture, research, friendship and economic development. In this perspective, we should consider the 14 bilateral cooperation agreements of the University of Zadar with Italian universities and the Erasmus+ mobility program that unites 35 Italian universities with Dalmatia".

Among the many participants at the event were also the Dalmatian Giorgio Varisco, who has been very active in the Association for a long time, the vice-president of the Free Municipality of Pola in Exile Annamaria Crasti, Elisabetta De Dominis, the writer of Istrian-Fiuman origins Diego Zandel, Carlo Cetteo Cipriani, Donatella Bracali, Francesca Gambaro, Michele Massera (descendant of exiles, third generation, responsible for the digitalization of “Il Dalmata”) and several journalists.

At the end of the online event, Rachele Chantal Dell'Olio, mother of little Zara and daughter of a Dalmatian, read a touching and unpublished poem entitled “In Honor of Zara”.

Source: The Voice of the People – 23/01/2022

The inauguration of the portal dalmatians.org It is visible on the YouTube channel of the Multimedia Documentation Centre of Julian, Istrian, Rijeka and Dalmatian culture: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zasZ8NtirkQ