I greet the President of the Republic, the President of the Senate , the Prime Minister , the Vice President of the Constitutional Court, the ministers, the parliamentarians , the President of FederEsuli and the representatives of the Associations of Istrian, Fiume and Dalmatian exiles.

It is very important to celebrate this year too in a Chamber of Parliament the Day of Remembrance, established by law in 2004.

The approval – by a very large majority – of that law constituted an act of truth and justice , two fundamental values ​​for every democratic system.

Parliament intervened after decades of significant segments of our country's political and cultural scene having , for ideological reasons , denied or downplayed the atrocities committed against Italians on the eastern border , or having distorted their dynamics and context.

We reiterate our gratitude to the exiles and their descendants , who have suffered indifference and hostility for decades, for having initiated, thanks to their tenacity, a path aimed at building a shared memory.

A memoir based on authoritative and impartial research that attests to how in Istria, Dalmatia and Venezia Giulia a persecution was carried out against the defenseless Italian population – often under the pretext of reprisals against members of the Nazi-Fascist apparatus and collaborators .

Historical data now allow us to refute the positions of deniers or justifyers of those tragic events.

To respond with indignation to those who, recently, have even considered the institution of the Day of Remembrance as the result of a process of historical falsification, aimed at placing on the same level the rights and wrongs of the various parties and ideologies in conflict.

The purpose of today is not to apportion blame or justice. It is to remember the many Italians who fell victim to the Yugoslav communist forces , many of whose burial places remain unknown.

To remember the hundreds of thousands of Istrian, Rijeka, and Dalmatian exiles who were stripped—as individuals and communities—of their dignity, their roots, their property, and their fundamental rights. And who, as refugees in their homeland, were welcomed only in some cases with the necessary solidarity.

To also pay homage to the many compatriots who decided, with courage and determination, to remain in their native lands and suffered for many years various forms of persecution and discrimination by the Yugoslav authorities.

This does not mean denying the grave responsibility and dramatic effects of the fascist policy of forced Italianization of the Slavic populations. Nor can we forget the criminal actions of Nazi-Fascist forces in Yugoslavia. This year, I wish to reiterate my unconditional condemnation of them, in keeping with the anti-fascist values ​​on which our Constitution is founded.

What happened on the eastern border must be an integral part not only of the civic conscience of the entire national community but of a common European memory of the tragic pages of our past history, founded on an accepted and shared reconstruction of the past.

Only in this way can we prevent ideological and nationalistic extremism , ethnic and class hatred and radicalism from once again leading to atrocities like those experienced after the Second World War.

Today Italy, Slovenia and Croatia are actors in the process of European integration, of its core of common values ​​and principles, centered on respect for human rights and the rule of law, the protection of minorities, peace, and solidarity.

And in this context, the lands where the atrocities we wish to remember took place are a place of dialogue and exchange, both economic and cultural.

This process was also supported by gestures of great symbolic and political significance, such as the meeting in Trieste in July 2020 between President Mattarella and his Slovenian counterpart Pahor, which was intended to signify the shared memory achieved between our different countries.

A gesture, the handshake in front of the Basovizza Foiba, devoid of rhetoric, which wanted to demonstrate the will to look to the past with a constructive spirit to promote the value of friendship and collaboration between our countries, which today belong to the same European House.

I will conclude by emphasizing that, as the law establishing Remembrance Day rightly provided, it is essential to promote the historical dissemination of the foibe and the exodus of Istrians, Fiume and Dalmatians among the new generations.

I therefore thank the girls and boys and teachers who participated again this year in the National Competition "“For Love of Homeland!” The disregard and contempt for human rights have led to barbaric acts that offend the conscience of humanity..." announced by the Ministry of Education.

The works relating to this fundamental passage of the preamble to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the award ceremony for which we will shortly witness, are a tangible sign of the deepest meaning of this Day.

Thank you.