LA REPUBBLICA (Italy)
The widows of men who committed suicide because of their economic situation in crisis-ridden Italy have marched in front of the Italian Revenue Office in Bologna.
The silent protest Friday was led by Tiziana Marrone, whose husband Giuseppe Campaniello died after setting himself on fire in front of the Revenue Office to protest against a tax level he deemed unbearable. It was one of what officials say is a disproportianately high rate of economic-related suicides in recent months.
Calling themselves the “White Widows,” the group carried white banners and handkerchiefs. Though emotional, the protest was demonstrably peaceful compared to what happened on Thursday when a man armed with a shotgun and two pistols took a dozen tax office employees hostage in the Lombardy region, complaining about his accumulating tax debts. After a standoff, the man released the hostages unharmed and was arrested.
Read the original in La Repubblica
