The authorities in Trezzano sul
Naviglio near Milan on Tuesday installed traffic signs banning
clans operating under Calabria's powerful 'Ndrangheta mafia from
the area.
"Municipality out of bounds to the 'Ndrangheta" and "Mafia
clans are not welcome here" read the signs in blue on a white
background positioned by mayor Fabio Bottero accompanied by the
president of the Lombardy chapter of the national association of
municipalities (ANCI), Roberto Scanagatti.
The initiative came under the auspices of the ANCI campaign
'100 municipalities against the mafia'.
For years Trezzano sul Naviglio was considered one of the
municipalities with the largest and most deep-rooted 'Ndrangheta
presence in Lombardy.
"Trezzano wants to free itself from the clans," Bottero
said.
"Our city hosts companies that are excellent on an
international level and it has a healthy social fabric, but we
aren't able to remove the problem," he continued.
The anti-mafia road signs have been erected on an
experimental bais, but proponents hope transport ministry
officials will grant them permanent authorization
The 'Ndrangheta has in recent years replaced Sicily's Cosa
Nostra as Italy's most powerful mafia because of its dominance
of the international cocaine trade.
It has a strong presence across the southern Calabria
region and in parts of central and northern Italy and operates
in conjunction with other criminal organisations abroad.
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