President Meloni’s statement on Day of Remembrance for the victims of the Foibe massacres and the Istrian–Dalmatian exodus

“Today, Italy marks the Day of Remembrance that pays tribute to the martyrs of the Foibe massacres and to the Italians of Istria, Rijeka and Dalmatia who were forced to abandon their homes and their lands just because they were Italian. Hundreds of thousands of our compatriots had no choice but to flee, and, on several occasions, the nation failed to embrace them as it should have.
For too many years, remembrance of the Foibe massacres and of the Istrian–Dalmatian exodus fell victim to what was effectively a conspiracy of silence. The Italian Republic made amends regarding this painful page in its history with Law no. 92 of 30 March 2004, establishing a national Day of Remembrance, which falls today. This Day of Remembrance commits institutions to raise awareness of what happened, to accord due importance to the contribution that the Italians of Istria, Rijeka and Dalmatia made to the social and cultural development of the eastern Adriatic and to preserve the traditions of Istrian–Dalmatian communities living in Italy and abroad.
 
This is why I wanted to establish a dedicated committee at Palazzo Chigi to coordinate commemoration activities for this day, for the purpose of ensuring more efficient planning of the initiatives and ceremonies proposed and organised by authorities to mark the 10th of February. The Government thanks the exiles and their descendants for their invaluable work to share first-hand accounts, and to all the associations, foundations, organisations and committees that keep the memory of those events alive and work tirelessly on research, documentation and dissemination activities.  
Our compatriots of Istria, Rijeka and Dalmatia are ‘Italians twice over’, and they cherish our flag in their hearts – the Tricolour that many of them took with them as they fled their lands and whose wonderful colours will light up the seat of the Italian Government this evening. 

Italy does not forget”.

[Courtesy translation]