Giuseppe Diana (; 4 July 1958 – 19 March 1994), also known as Father Peppino, was an Italian writer, a scout, and a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

parish priest in

Casal di Principe Casal di Principe (Campanian: or simply ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Caserta in the Italian region of Campania, located about northwest of Naples and about southwest of Caserta. It has a population of approximately 21,000 ...

. He was killed by the

Camorra The Camorra (; ) is an Italian Mafia-typeMafia and Mafia-type orga ...

Defying the Camorra

In the mid-1980s, he set up a welcome centre for African immigrants in

Campania Campania (, also , , , ) is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islands and the i ...

to stop them from being recruited by the Camorra in a direct challenge to their business practices.Bosses from hell
The Guardian, Friday 3 October 2008 On Christmas 1991, he published a letter urging his parishioners to shun the Camorra. The letter entitled "For the love of my people I will not stay silent", called on the church to resist the Camorra's rule, which he called "a form of terrorism". He also denounced the

Casalesi clan The Casalesi clan is a clan within the Camorra, an Italian criminal organization, operating from Casal di Principe and San Cipriano d'Aversa in the province of Caserta between Naples and Latium. Formed by Antonio Bardellino, it is a confederatio ...

s' business practices: "

Extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence; the bulk of this article deals with such cases. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, ...

that has left our region with no potential for development; kickbacks of 20 per cent on construction projects; illegal

drug trafficking A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via insuffla ...

, which has created gangs of marginalised youth and unskilled workers at the beck and call of criminal organisations."Don Peppino, eroe in tonaca
by

Roberto Saviano Roberto Saviano (; born 22 September 1979) is an Italian writer, essayist, journalist, and screenwriter. In his writings, including articles and his book '' Gomorrah'', he uses literature and investigative reporting to tell of the economic reali ...

, La Repubblica, 18 March 2009

Murder

In 1994 he testified in an investigation of ties linking the Camorra, politicians and businessmen after the Government's decision to suspend the local council in Casal Di Principe because of its links to the Camorra. He had threatened to stop administering sacraments to camorristi, refusing to marry them. He also sided with the newly elected mayor of Casal di Principe, who was trying to prevent firms connected to the Camorra from tendering for public contracts. On 19 March 1994, he was shot twice in the head in the Church of San Nicola di Bari in the town of Casal di Principe while preparing to offer a

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...

for the feast of

Saint Joseph Joseph (; el, Ἰωσήφ, translit=Ioséph) was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who, according to the canonical Gospels, was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus. The Gospels also name some brothers of ...

.Gunmen Linked to the Mafia Kill an Italian Priest in His Sacristy
The New York Times, March 20, 1994

Legacy

In his book '' Gomorrah'', writer

, who personally knew Father Diana, dedicated a chapter to the priest.In the grip of Italy's bloodiest mafia clan
The Observer, October 5, 2008 The title of the book comes from a letter by Diana, "time has come to stop being a Gomorrah." "He decided to take an interest in the dynamics of power and not merely its corollary suffering," Saviano wrote. "He didn’t want merely to clean the wound but to understand the mechanisms of the

metastasis Metastasis is a pathogenic agent's spread from an initial or primary site to a different or secondary site within the host's body; the term is typically used when referring to metastasis by a cancerous tumor. The newly pathological sites, then, ...

, to prevent the cancer from spreading, to block the source of whatever was turning his home into a gold mine of capital with an abundance of cadavers."Where Savage Parasites Rot a Nation From Within
The New York Times, 14 November 2007 On 20 March 2014,

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

gave a speech urging the mafia to change their ways and repent, and threatened them with excommunication. After the speech, he donned a priestly ceremonial garment once worn by Diana.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Diana, Giuseppe Antimafia People murdered by the Camorra People murdered in Campania Italian murder victims Italian Servants of God 20th-century Roman Catholic martyrs 20th-century venerated Christians 1958 births 1994 deaths People from the Province of Caserta 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic priests

Defying the Camorra

Murder

Legacy

See also

References