Feature: What 70th Liberation Day means for Italians

Italy on Saturday celebrated the 70th anniversary of the liberation from nazi-fascist rule at the end of World War II. How did citizens feel about this special day rich of commemorative events across the country?

"Today it is a great day. I studied it at school and I still perceive its importance every year," a 31-year-old lady, Marina Cipollini, told Xinhua while walking in the Milan center. April 25 is a public holiday in Italy, with schools and offices closed as well as many shops.

"But my perceptions is that unfortunately young generations do not give enough attention to April 25 celebrations," she added.

In fact to arouse interest in young people is not an easy job, yet it is possible thanks to the commitment of many teachers, Roberto Bontempi, deputy principal of a state middle school close to Rome, told Xinhua.

"Students tend to see these historical events as something very far from their life. Therefore it is important to organize activities that can bring history closer to them," Bontempi said.

His school is located in Vicovaro, a municipality which counts around 4,000 inhabitants and was heavily impacted by nazi-fascism when 30 innocent people were killed there in 1944, he recalled.

"Memory has remained intact here and is very powerful. Witnesses are gradually disappearing but there are many people with the same surnames of victims and those surnames also belong to students born here. Our school this year has held various literary and music events to foster reflection," he said.

Besides the sorrowful remembrance, there are also sentiments of courage and hope inspired by the Liberation Day as stressed by Italian President Sergio Mattarella who defined April 25 as a celebration of "freedom, hope and will for redemption."

The date of Liberation Day was chosen by convention and corresponds to the day Milan and Turin, two cities in northern Italy, were liberated by the Americans in 1945 putting an end to 20 years of fascist dictatorship and five years of war.

"I remember that day's enormous happiness after years of bombings," Lidia Menapace, a 91-year-old former partisan who took part in the Italian Resistance, said. "On April 25 in 1945 I was 21 and my friends and I were full of hope, the hope that we could change the world," she narrated to Xinhua.

"Today's world is not exactly what we aimed for," she added. "Fortunately we have no more dictatorships in Europe, but many countries of the world are still in big trouble. April 25 should be a warning for everybody that only an alliance of people who believe in peace and humanity as the instruments to solve all problems can rule the world," Menapace went on saying.

"I am a dermatologist so my everyday life is related to very different issues," a man walking around with his family, Angelo Marzio, told Xinhua.

"Though I do not celebrate April 25, I always feel this is an important day. It is a day of rest, and rest is very useful to arouse reflection in mind about what happened in the past and must never happen again," he said. Endit