Roma Life and Death in Italy

22.7.08

Al Jazeera carried a report tonight that covered the drowning deaths of two Roma (Gypsy) children on a beach in Italy. I heard the reporter say that four Roma children had entered the water and wave swells caused two to drown.

This is a tragedy made worse by the fact that the incident hardly caused a stir among the Italian sunbathers. In fact, most of them just carried on enjoying themselves as the two dead children, aged 11 and 12, lay unattended for an hour.

A Mail Online article reported what an eyewitness said:

"The water was rough and no-one was in the sea but these four Roma children just rushed into the huge waves.

The beach was packed and people soon realised the four were in trouble because the children started screaming and shouting for help.

Some people went in and got two of them but the other two couldn't be saved and they were pulled from the water dead.

There (sic) bodies were left on the beach for an hour before being collected, just covered by a beach towel while people just got back to sunbathing and playing football.

It was very surreal there was this picture of a typical Italian beach with families enjoying the sun and then just metres away were the bodies of these two children. People were completely indifferent about what had happened."

The report also contained these disturbing pictures which is said to convey the often racist indifference that many Italians have toward the Roma in general.




May Cristina Ibramovitc (12) and Viola Ibramovitc (11) rest in peace.

Ridwan Laher

Pictures and Story Credit