The rector of the university
of Florence, Alberto Tesi, on Thursday ordered the crucifixes on
display in the institution's lecture theatres and other spaces
to be counted pending examination of a request to have them
removed.
The application comes from a group of left-wing students
and has been lodged with the academic senate.
It will be this body, and not the rector in person, that
will decide on the matter, Tesi explained.
"This is the body appointed to rule on such things, the
decision is collegial and will be reached when the time is
right," Tesi said.
The presence of crucifixes in public institutions has long
been a subject of heated debate in Italy, which is officially a
secular state but where the Catholic Church and the Vatican
wield strong influence.
In March 2011 the European Court of Human Rights ruled that
the display of the Christian symbol did not breach non-Catholic
families' rights.
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