August 8th marks the \u201cNational Day of Italian Labor Sacrifice Around the World\u201d, which coincides with the commemoration of the mining accident in Marcinelle, Belgium, in which 262 miners, including 136 Italians, lost their lives at the Bois du Cazier mine in 1956.<\/p>\n
For the occasion, the Vice President of the Council of Ministers and Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hon. Antonio Tajani addressed a message to his compatriots abroad:<\/p>\n
\u201cSeventy years ago, on August 8, 1956, Marcinelle entered forever in the collective memory
\nof our country and Europe.<\/p>\n
In the mine of the Bois du Cazier, 262 workers of twelve nationalities lost their lives,
\nof which 136 Italians. Today we remember them one by one. Behind those numbers were
\nnames, faces, families, hopes. Men who left to build, through work,
\na better future for their children and to contribute to the rebirth of Italy.<\/p>\n
This day also belongs to those who remain: widows, orphans and the
\ncommunity that knew how to transform immense pain into the strength of the
\nmemory and in the courage to move forward. From them we learned the meaning
\nmore authentic than dignity: that of those who had left their land for
\nwork and that of those who, for seventy years, have preserved and handed down the
\nmemory.<\/p>\n
For this reason, since 2001, on the initiative of the Berlusconi Government, 8 August is the
\nNational Day of Italian Labor Sacrifice Around the World.<\/p>\n
Marcinelle is an Italian tragedy, but also a profoundly European one. From that
\npain also matured the awareness that Europe should not be
\nonly an economic space, but a community of rights, solidarity and protection
\nof the person.<\/p>\n
I worked in Brussels, together with the whole Government, to make 8 August the
\nEuropean Day of Remembrance for Victims of Labour. An initiative I have
\nstrongly desired and it will soon be a reality. In this European spirit it is mine
\nintention to carry out a new visit to Marcinelle in the coming months together with the
\nPresident of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola.<\/p>\n
Memory must translate into responsibility and action. Our Constitution
\nfounds the Republic on work, recognizes every citizen’s right to work and
\ncalls each to the duty to contribute to the progress of society. Every life
\nlost at work affects one of the very foundations of our democracy.<\/p>\n
No economic outcome can be worth a human life. The safety of those who work
\nis the first measure of a country’s civilization. Prevention, training, are needed
\nclear rules, rigorous controls and a shared responsibility of institutions,
\nbusinesses and workers.<\/p>\n
Seventy years later, Italy is rallying around Marcinelle. He does it for
\npay tribute to the victims, to express closeness to their families and to
\nrenew their gratitude towards the millions of compatriots who, with their work,
\nthe skills and sacrifice, continue every day to give prestige to our country
\nin the world.<\/p>\n
To cherish Marcinelle’s memory means turning it into a responsibility.
\nIt means defending the dignity of work everywhere, strengthening the culture of
\nsecurity and work so that no one has to lose their life anymore while
\nbuilds his own future and that of his family. That is the commitment
\nwhich we assume in front of the fallen of Marcinelle and all Italians in the world:
\nnever again deaths at work.<\/p>\n
Honor to the fallen of Marcinelle. Long live Italy, long live Italians abroad, long live Europe!\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Antonio Tajani<\/em><\/p>\n (Marcinelle, August 8, 2026)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"August 8th marks the \u201cNational Day of Italian Labor Sacrifice Around the World\u201d, which coincides with the commemoration of the mining accident in Marcinelle, Belgium, in which 262 miners, including 136 Italians, lost their lives at the Bois du Cazier mine in 1956. For the occasion, the Vice President of the Council of Ministers and […]","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":3237,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3241","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ambasmara.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3241","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ambasmara.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ambasmara.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ambasmara.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ambasmara.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3241"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/ambasmara.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3241\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3257,"href":"https:\/\/ambasmara.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3241\/revisions\/3257"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ambasmara.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3237"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ambasmara.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3241"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ambasmara.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3241"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}