Sant'Anna di Stazzema 78 years later, Mattarella: "From that abyss our moral and civil redemption"

It is the anniversary of the Nazi-fascist massacre of

(560 people were massacred on 12 August 1944

), the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella recalls that "the horror has struck our lands, our people , bearing witness to the effects of perverse ideologies that are enemies of the dignity and freedom of people".

The head of state also points out that "the memory of the Sant'Anna di Stazzema massacre is, for the whole of Europe, a constant push to keep the theme of respect for people's lives, peace as a necessary historical horizon, in first place , of participation in common perspectives of life and development”.

Mattarella, in his message, then speaks of the "profound sign of such a great horror, engraved in indelible characters in the conscience of the Republic".

The President of the Republic also underlines how “the reaction to that abyss resulted in the moral and civil redemption of our people, the second Risorgimento of our country.

From here the roots of a civil coexistence that found its architraves in the Constitution took off".

In the words of the head of state, thanks and remembrance of the survivors and of those who offered their testimony to overcome that tragedy, so that justice could be done, cannot be omitted: "Italians owe great gratitude to the few surviving witnesses, to the families of the victims , to those who have committed themselves over the years to reconstructing circumstances and events, to recomposing individual stories.

Their testimony was precious, helping to build a living memorial, intimately connected to the values ​​and principles that regulate the life of our community: a permanent warning to the generations that follow".