Domenico Lucano

Domenico Lucano (born 31 May 1958) an Italian politician, former mayor of Riace, in Calabria, southern Italy.

Domenico Lucano
Mayor of Riace
In office
12 June 2004 – 3 October 2018
Preceded byCosimo Salvatore Comito
Succeeded byAntonio Trifoli
Personal details
Born (1958-05-31) 31 May 1958
Melito di Porto Salvo, Italy
NationalityItalian
Political partyCentre-left independent
OccupationPolitician

Biography

Lucano was born in Melito di Porto Salvo but moved early in his life to Riace. He worked as a teacher for most of his adult life, and was a human rights activist since the 1990s.

Mayor of Riace

He became mayor of Riace in 2004, maintaining the role since then. In 2009, shortly after his first re-election as mayor, Lucano was shot at through the window of a restaurant and two of his dogs were poisoned.[1]

He gained worldwide attention through his innovative approach to dealing with refugees,[2] in the context of the European migrant crisis. As mayor of Riace, he allowed 450 refugees to settle among the 1,800 inhabitants of the village, revitalising it and preventing the closure of the local school.[3][4]

Lucano, came second runner-up in the 2010 World Mayor competition. (The winner Marcelo Ebrard was the Mayor of Mexico City, which has about nine million inhabitants.)[5]

Lucano was also listed by Fortune as one of the world's greatest leaders in 2016;[4][6] featuring at number 40 in the magazine's listing.[7]

In 2017 he was awarded the Dresden Peace Prize.[8]

In October 2018, the Italian police put Lucano under house arrest for allegedly helping illegal migrants to stay in the country by organising “marriages of convenience”.[9] [1]

In April 2019, Lucano was indicted with other 26 people on charges of abuse of power and aiding illegal immigration.[10] In the same month, he faced another probe regarding alleged false public statement and fraud.[11]

On 21 May 2019, the Regional Administrative Court of Reggio Calabria cancelled the provision by which the Ministry of the Interior deleted the reception system of Riace in October 2018. The Ministry's provision was considered illegal as it violates the legal rules of the procedure. On 9 June 2020, the Council of State disavowed the closure of the Protection system for asylum seekers and refugees projects wanted by the then Minister of the Interior Matteo Salvini.

References
  1. Giuffrida, Angela. "In Italy's 'hospitality town', migrants fight to save mayor who gave them a new home". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-10-07.
  2. Sreenivasan, Hari (April 3, 2016). PBS NewsHour Weekend. |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  3. Ash, Lucy (10 January 2011). "Italian mayor9 saves his village by welcoming refugees". BBC News. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
  4. Poggioli, Sylvia (April 12, 2016). NPR Morning Edition (radio). National Public Radio. Retrieved 2016-04-13.
  5. World Mayor 2010 results
  6. "Riace: The Italian village abandoned by locals, adopted by migrants". BBC News. 25 September 2016. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
  7. "World's Greatest Leaders". Retrieved 2016-04-13.
  8. "Laureates – Dresden-Preis". dresdner-friedenspreis.de. Retrieved 16 November 2018.
  9. Reeves, Chris. "Italy Arrests World-Renowned Sanctuary City Mayor for Aiding Illegal Migrants". Townhall. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  10. "Riace Mayor Mimmo Lucano indicted - English". ANSA.it. 2019-04-11. Retrieved 2019-04-12.
  11. "Riace Mayor Lucano faces new probe - English". ANSA.it. 2019-04-12. Retrieved 2019-04-12.
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