Europe's news in English

COPY LINK

CRIME

IN PICTURES: Thousands of Italians march against racist and sexist violence

After the usually peaceful Italian town of Macerata was shaken by two violent crimes within a week, thousands of demonstrators turned out at the weekend to protest against racist and sexist violence.

Published: 12 February 2018 08:50 CET

IN PICTURES: Thousands of Italians march against racist and sexist violence

A banner reading 'Against fascism, racism, and sexism. Every day, in every city'. All photos: Tiziana Fabi&Marco Bertorello/AFP

People marched following the death and dismemberment of a local 18-year-old woman and a xenophobic drive-by shooting attack in which six people were injured.

The crimes highlighted the problems of gendered violence and xenophobia, with the suspected shooter saying he was driven to carry out the attack after hearing a Nigerian man had been arrested in connection with the woman's murder.

A poster reads 'stop fascist-racism, enough of playing with migrants' lives'.

Organizers said between 10,000 and 30,000 protesters turned out for the march following a call by NGOs, anti-fascist organization, unions and several leftwing political groups.

The town's mayor had earlier requested a halt to all public demonstrations, arguing that the city needed time to heal.

Other smaller rallies were held across the country as an act of solidarity.

Due to the high tensions in recent days, which have also seen far-right protesters clash with police at an unauthorized protest, shops shut early and schools were closed for the day in Macerata.

This resident put up heart-shaped balloons bearing the names of each of the victims of the shooting.

A man holds a flare in front of a banner reading “Movements against fascism and racism”.

The march came just three weeks ahead of a general election in which far-right parties are predicted to perform well.

This banner, made by a Florentine organization, reads 'no-one is clandestine'.

All photos: Tiziana Fabi and Marco Bertorello/AFP

REVEALED: Where in Italy you're most likely to be a victim of crime

While Italy is among the safest countries in the world – it ranked 33rd out of 163 in the latest Global Peace Index report, right above the UK – crime is still a concern, especially in metropolitan cities and tourist hotspots.

According to the annual crime report from newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore, which collated the most recent data from Italy’s Department of Public Security, Milan was the Italian city with the highest crime rate in 2023.

Overall, some 230,394 crimes were reported in the northern metropolis last year, which corresponded to 7,094 offences for every 100,000 residents.

Milan was followed by Italy’s capital, Rome, with 6,071 reported crimes for every 100,000 residents (up by nearly 600 compared to 2022) and Florence, with 6,053.

The top ten was completed by Rimini (6,002 reports for every 100,000 residents), Turin (5,685), Bologna (5,539), Prato (4,887), Imperia (4,838), Venice (4,825) and Livorno (4,743).

At the other end of the spectrum, Oristano, Sardinia, was the Italian city with the lowest crime rate in 2023 as it ‘only’ saw 1,511 offences for every 100,000 residents.

Oristano was followed by Potenza, Basilicata (1,934) and Treviso, Veneto (2,258).

Single-offence rankings

While the overall crime rate ranking provides a picture of Italy’s major crime hotspots, it doesn’t allow for any insight into the types of offences committed locally, which is why it is worth looking into single-offence rankings.

Milan, Rome and Rimini (a popular seaside resort on Emilia Romagna’s Adriatic coast) were the Italian cities with the highest theft rates in 2023, with the northern city registering nearly 3,900 reported thefts (furti) for every 100,000 residents and the capital stopping just shy of the 3,500 mark.

Milan was also Italy’s least-safe city when it came to petty theft and pickpocketing, with over 900 such offences reported for every 100,000 residents.

READ ALSO: How bad is pickpocketing in Italy’s major cities?

Florence was the Italian city with the highest robbery rate (rapine), with 136 offences for every 100,000 residents.

The Tuscan city was followed by Milan (128) and Prato (124).

Outside of big cities and popular tourist destinations, a number of smaller and, perhaps, slightly unassuming Italian cities had their own crime ‘specialisations’ in 2023.

For instance, Ragusa, Sicily, ranked first in vehicle theft, while Pisa, Tuscany, came in first in reported home burglary offences.

Trieste, Friuli Venezia Giulia, had the highest sexual assault rate (24 reports for every 100,000 residents) in the country, whereas Crotone ranked first for attempted murder.

READ ALSO: The 8 red flags to look out for to avoid rental scams in Italy

Turin came in first for cyber fraud and online scams, while Isernia, Molise, was Italy’s extortion capital.

National picture

At a national level, reported crimes were up by 3.8 percent compared to 2022, with online fraud and robbery registering 10.3- and 9.5-percent increases respectively.

Assault offences also registered a 3.1-percent year-on-year increase, while there were 341 murders in 2023 – up by 13 against 2019.

According to Marco Dugato, a researcher at the Crime Observatory of Milan’s Cattolica University, the latest increases “must be monitored, particularly for certain types of crime”.

In particular, “the rise of more impulsive, less planned, but more aggressive forms of criminal activity” such as assault and robbery “is of concern”.

SHOW COMMENTS

Url copied to clipboard!