Every year, the Italian Alpine troops gather in a town in the country. However, the 93rd edition, which ended Sunday in Rimini, east of Florence, was peppered with accusations of sexist attacks. On Tuesday, a woman came to the Carabinieri barracks in Rimini to file a complaint against X for sexist behavior. She claims that three alpini “surrounded” her and “insulted her with phrases with a strong sexual connotation”.
More than 500 reports
Inappropriate gestures, sexist insults, sexual assaults… The event which brought together 80,000 Alpini and tens of thousands of visitors was followed by a litany of testimonies from women, denouncing sexist assaults. The feminist collective “Non Una di Meno” has collected more than 500 reports.
“This harassment, which is repeated at each gathering, cannot be ignored as in the past,” believes the feminist association which is working to collect these testimonies and encourages women to file a complaint. The alpini are highly respected in Italy and denunciations provoke an outcry.
“Neither head nor tail”
For Carlo Bionaz, president of an alpini section interviewed by France 3, “these stories have neither head nor tail”. “Of course the values of those who committed these acts are not ours. But they have been greatly amplified by social networks. I also note that out of 150 online denunciations, only one has been the subject of a complaint for the moment, ”he retorts to our colleagues.
“It is clear that the problem is not the meeting as such, but the fact that something serious and harmful to the dignity of women happened during the meeting”, reacted the Minister of the Equal opportunities Elena Bonetti, according to the Italian newspaper La Repubblica. Still, the event could tarnish the image of national heroes represented by the alpine hunters, a formation devoted to the national community since 1872.