Brussels, Oct. 21 (LaPresse) – Deep emotion and a large crowd marked the visit of the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella, together with Belgium’s King Philippe and Queen Mathilde, to the Bois du Cazier in Marcinelle — the symbolic site where, on August 8, 1956, 262 miners lost their lives, including 136 Italians and 95 Belgians.
“I am grateful to you for making this pilgrimage together. The memory of the tragedy is everlasting,” the President told those present. “But it is also a warning in the history of our labor,” Mattarella added, speaking with attendees who thanked him for the visit and urged that the event never be forgotten.
The Head of State, accompanied by his daughter Laura and the royal couple, laid a wreath at the memorial, visited the exhibition space, and met some relatives of the victims and three elderly miners — one of whom, Umberto Ciacci, said he is the only one still alive who worked at the Bois du Cazier mine until its closure in 1967.
There was a large turnout from the Italo-Belgian community, very numerous in the Charleroi area, who came to greet the President waving small Italian flags. Before Mattarella, only President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi had visited the Marcinelle site, on August 8, 2001, for the 45th anniversary of the mining tragedy.
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