CHARLEROI \\ aise \\ - Last week a group of students Abruzzese in Charleroi was through the good offices of the Commission "Solidarity Abruzzo" which was chaired by Anthony Carmelo Scifo was formed after the earthquake last year to raise funds to be allocated to affected populations. The Commission has decided to use the funds raised for a project to accommodate pupils in Belgium of a third class of the State School "G. Mazzini - T. Patini" in L'Aquila, in fact, 17 to 23 April were housed in Charleroi despite the well-known problems caused by aviation Icelandic volcano. The boys arrived in Belgium, accompanied dal preside, in autobus: ad accoglierli dopo 22 ore di viaggio 250 persone che hanno condiviso con loro la cena di benvenuto. I giovani sono stati quindi ricevuti nelle rispettive sedi dal presidente del Comites e dal Console Generale, ma anche dal Sindaco di Châtelet che li ha invitati a pranzo e trascorso gran parte del pomeriggio insieme a loro. Stessa calorosa accoglienza anche dall’amministrazione comunale di Mons e dal Municipio di Charleroi dove sono stati ricevuti dall’assessore all’insegnamento ed alla problematica giovanile. "Il loro stupore – racconta Scifo – è stato grande quando sono stati accolti da un senatore e da una senatrice, che hanno illustrato loro il funzionamento della camera e del senato, si sono seduti sugli scranni senatoriali". "Immensa commozione" ha prodotto la visita al sito minerario "Bois du Cazier" di Marcinelle, dove l'8 agosto 1956 morirono 262 persone di cui 136 di nazionalità italiana e, di questi, ben 60 abruzzesi. "Il Preside – prosegue Scifo – in molte occasioni, rivolgendosi ai ragazzi, li ha invitati a riflettere sul concetto dell’accoglienza: gli italiani, qualche tempo fa, sono andati in giro per il mondo, hanno sofferto, hanno dato un contributo rilevante all’economia del paese che li ospitava. Anche se, in un primo momento, sono stati discriminati, si sono affermati e si sono fatti rispettare. Ora l’Italia accoglie gente d’altrove che contribuisce con il lavoro the welfare of our country. The experience of our emigrants should make us reflect on how to welcome people who come to us. For young people, L'Aquila, the arrival in Belgium was a harbinger of new experiences. One evening, after dinner, returning to the place of accommodation, a boy has confessed to his teacher: "at one time I made three new experiences, take the plane, go to another country and get on a boat" . This experience was gained during the visit to the elevator hydraulic Strepy-Thieu. "important and unique," says Scifo, was also the morning that the boys have lived with the pupils of a class of Belgian. I Belgian boys have shown their life by showing students through visual aids prepared expressly places where they operated, the subsidies available to them and their activities. For their part, students Aquila did see the contents of a video made by them showed that the serious injury caused by the earthquake to their city and especially the old town. "If we had not ascertained the person would never have guessed how big the attachment of Italians living abroad to their homeland and solidarity with their fellow citizens," said a group of adult guest. "I spent four days have passed in a hurry. I four days were intense, "Scifo says." I wonder who among the guests and the host has acquired more wealth from this meeting. On 23 April, several members of the committee wanted to take guests to the airport. The time of departure - he concludes - and saddened those who departed and those who remained. " (AISE) |