(ANSA) - Venice, April 11 - Matteo Salvini, head of the
regionalist Northern League, said Friday that there is a
possibility one member of a group of jailed Venetian separatists
could be asked to stand as a League candidate in next month's
European parliamentary elections.
Almost two weeks ago, 24 Veneto region separatists were
arrested on suspicions of criminal association for terrorism and
subversion of the democratic order after they tried to use a
souped-up tractor in a demonstration calling for a separate
country of Veneto.
An Italian prosecutor said that the separatists were
planning an "insurrection" to obtain independence for the region
around Venice.
"They proposed independence from the Italian State by using
violent methods and insurrection," said Brescia Prosecutor
Tommaso Buonanno after the arrests.
That doesn't seem to concern the League, which has said
that the prosecution of separatists was an infringement of their
basic rights.
Salvini said "there is a possibility of one being a
candidate" for election to the European Parliament.
The connection between the separatists and League is
longstanding.
The Liga Veneta (Veneto League) separatist party was a
founding member of the Northern League, a federation of
regionalist parties which has recently upped its drive for
greater autonomy for wealthy northern regions and started
calling for outright independence again, the original demand of
its early years.
Meanwhile, Salvini, whose party is opposed to what it sees
as excessive immigration, said that he plans to meet on Tuesday
with Marine Le Pen, leader of the ultra right-wing National
Front in France which has recently had success in local
elections.
Salvini said the meeting in Strasbourg is aimed at agreeing
on a "common strategy" for Europe to deal with waves of
"unwelcome" illegal immigrants arriving on Italian shores.
Earlier in the day, the United Nations High Commissioner
for Refugees (UNHCR) said that the Italy navy has rescued as
many as 6,000 migrants over the past four days alone, attempting
a dangerous sea crossing to Europe.
It estimates that more than 40 boats crammed with migrants,
many fleeing wars in the Middle East and Africa, have been
rescued as they struggled to reach the coasts of Sicily and
Calabria.
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