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Resident demanded that a Brazilian woman order pizza in a language called Friulano. Mayor says this is an isolated case
The case of Brazilian Regia Maraldo Ferreira Martins, 47, who was attacked in the small town of Mereto di Tomba, in the Friuli Venezia Giulia region, northeastern Italy, because she did not know how to speak the local language, provoked the fury of the town's residents and made the pages of dozens of websites and newspapers in Brazil and Italy.
According to a report in the newspaper “Il Gazzettino”, the Brazilian went into a restaurant in the city and ordered two pizzas to take away, “in good Italian”. A truck driver present at the scene, however, started shouting: “Here we are in Friuli, you have to speak Friulian by law”.
The Brazilian, to avoid confusion, left the restaurant, but the man followed her outside. Despite the victim's son's efforts to restrain him, the truck driver pushed her and punched her in the face. The woman was taken to the emergency room with a nosebleed. The attacker's name was not released.
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For Mayor Massimo Moretuzzo, what happened in his city is an isolated episode, but one that must be reprehensible. “I am very sorry for what happened and I am close to the woman and her family. What happened is not part of the city of Mereto, I distance myself from the gesture and condemn the aggression. The protagonist of the event is a person who drank too much, however he will respond for the gesture made. It’s a regrettable episode,” he said.
“I live in Trieste and I know the Friulians, they are good people, hardworking, respectful and peaceful. The attacker was drunk or mentally ill”, defended a resident.
Friulan is a minority Latin language spoken in the historical-geographical zone of Friuli, which makes up the region (state) of Friuli Venice Giulia. It is common in the provinces of Gorizia, Údine and Pordenone and in some cities in Veneto.
Even if it is an isolated case, it is racism, according to deputy Isabella De Monte, who is from the region. “We are facing a serious and particularly unbearable act, either because it was committed against a woman or because it has a racist tone,” she said.
The truck driver was taken to the police and released. The fact will be investigated.
Updated at 10:10 pm, 12/01/19
