Rome, August 8, 2026 – Tense atmosphere, protests, dramatic gestures: it was not the usual Marcinelle ceremony that took place at Bois du Cazier on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the miners’ tragedy. Outside the mine enclosure, a noisy group of Belgian protesters waited early in the morning for the arrival of the Italian delegation, led by the President of the Senate Ignazio La Russa. And the police intervention against the sit-in, according to the newspaper Le Soir, was “forceful”.
There were no lack of twists. Further igniting the atmosphere was Thomas Dermine, mayor of Charleroi and member of the Belgian Socialist Party. Dermine, in a long speech, accused those who defend workers and “close the borders” of “hypocrisy” and repeatedly emphasized how Charleroi is “an anti-fascist city.” His speech was among the most applauded in the Bois du Cazier square, while La Russa, in the front row, dismissed it with broad, sarcastic smiles.
Then the political clash between Brothers of Italy and the Cgil broke out. MEP Carlo Fidanza accused the left-wing union of “turning their backs while La Russa was reading Mattarella’s message.” Adding fuel to the fire was a post by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni: “Serious and shameful gesture.” Secretary Landini denied it and in the end, after a long controversy, the Belgian union Fgtb admitted the incident: “It was us, it was an anti-fascist protest.” Here is what happened today in Marcinelle.
Protest against La Russa: “Insult to the memory of the victims”. But FdI accuses the Cgil
When La Russa himself took the floor, a shocking protest took place by some in the audience, who turned their backs to the stage. At that point, the FdI delegation leader at the European Parliament Carlo Fidanza pointed the finger at the Cgil.
“Turning their backs during the Marcinelle commemoration is a serious and shameful gesture. Marcinelle is not the place for political divisions. It is the place of memory, respect, and dignity of work.” It is Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni who denounces the protest that took place during the Marcinelle massacre celebrations in Belgium, where some activists turned their backs during the speeches of Ignazio La Russa – who on the stage set up for the celebrations at the Bois du Cazier mine read Mattarella’s message – and Antonella Sberna, Vice President of the European Parliament.
As can be seen from the images, those who turned their backs wore around their neck a scarf with the inscription Fgtb-Cgil promoting an initiative organized by the two unions (one Belgian, the other Italian) yesterday in Charleroi. It would have been only the members of the Belgian union who turned their backs – as claimed by Fgtb – while Maurizio Landini, also present, explained that the Cgil members were seated further forward and did not turn their backs.
Interviewed by Ansa, one of the protagonists of the protest, Martine Vandevenne, emphasized the reasons for the gesture: “Giving the floor to Ignazio La Russa, who holds fascist ideas, is an insult to the memory of the victims and the workers who fought in this place.”
Fgtb admits: “We turned, we are against fascist parties”
“All the Fgtb comrades turned because we are against the presence of fascist parties, and for us FdI is a far-right party. We are against the presence of all fascist parties. Their presence is not welcome, especially in a place very important for Italian immigration”: said to Ansa Vincent Pestieau, regional secretary of the Belgian union Fgtb in Charleroi. Our protest “was not about Mattarella, but only because Ignazio La Russa spoke on behalf of the government,” he added.
Landini denies: “The Cgil never turns the other way”
The news of the protest was reportedly told to the newspapers by Brothers of Italy MEP Carlo Fidanza, but the Cgil secretary, Maurizio Landini, rejects the accusations. “If a certain Mr. Fidanza, to make himself known, has to speak badly of the Cgil, I believe he got sunstroke here in Marcinelle. Because the Cgil, if he doesn’t know it I tell him, never turns the other way at any time, especially out of respect for our President of the Republic.”
Landini was also at Bois du Cazier for the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the Marcinelle tragedy, the massacre that killed hundreds of Italian miners. The reply is to Carlo Fidanza, head of the Brothers of Italy delegation at the European Parliament, who said “this morning at Bois du Cazier, during the official commemorations of the Marcinelle tragedy, the Cgil representatives turned their backs while the President of the Senate Ignazio La Russa was reading the message from the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella.”
Meloni: “Gesture of contempt towards the Institutions”
“Today, during the ceremony for the 262 workers who died in the mine – recounts Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in a Facebook post – some Cgil representatives chose to turn their backs while the President of the Senate Ignazio La Russa spoke and read the message from the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella. A political protest transformed into a gesture of contempt towards the State Institutions, precisely at the moment when Italy pays tribute to 262 victims and the sacrifice of many of our fellow citizens.”
“And it is even more serious if those who do it are representatives of an organization whose reasons for being include the representation and protection of workers. Marcinelle is not the place for political divisions. It is the place of memory, respect, and dignity of work. Those who chose to turn their backs today have disrespected all of this,” concluded Giorgia Meloni.
La Russa: “Vulgar propaganda acts”
“I do not want to tarnish this commemoration with acts that I consider squalid propaganda,” said the President of the Senate, Ignazio La Russa, on the sidelines of the Bois du Cazier ceremony, commenting on the protest gesture by Cgil activists. “I would like to focus on Marcinelle. I know the history of Marcinelle – he continued La Russa – unlike many Italians who only partially learned about it in 2001 thanks to Mirko Tremaglia, the Minister for Italians Abroad, who designated August 8 as the date that commemorates all Italian victims at work worldwide, I knew it even before. My community has always celebrated it. There are those who for too many years had turned their backs on that ceremony and some still continue to do so.”
Fidanza: “The Cgil should be ashamed”
“The Cgil should be ashamed. This morning at Bois du Cazier, during the official commemorations of the Marcinelle tragedy, the Cgil representatives turned their backs while La Russa was reading the message from President Sergio Mattarella,” told Carlo Fidanza to the newspaper Il Giornale. “They did the same during the speech of the Vice President of the European Parliament Antonella Sberna. A pathetic and shameful gesture, which shows a total lack of respect for institutions, a blind hatred that today even overwhelms the President of the Republic. The left must dissociate itself from this outrage,” said the Head of the Brothers of Italy delegation at the European Parliament, on the sidelines of the Marcinelle victims commemoration ceremony.
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