ROME -- Some 800 demonstrators have taken to the streets of Venice on Thursday to protest the city’s new entry ticket. On Italy’s Liberation Day, the citizens of Venice fought for their freedom once again against measures introducing a daily access ticket which would control the flow of people entering the city. Gathering at Ponte della Libertà, demonstrators were equipped with placards, leaflets, and satirical tickets, the word freedom, fittingly, adorned many of their signs. 

   The polemic measure was introduced by Mayor Luigi Brugnaro, charging five euros per person in an attempt to is to alleviate the strain caused by the influx of tourists, who have begun to overwhelm the city and its services. 

  “It is no longer Venice, but Big Brother.” Ivo Papadia explained in his politically charged speech, “They have installed 700 CCTV cameras and entry totems, they have a control room in Tronchetto from where they can see everything that we do, they can follow us step by step, like what happens in China with the digital identity card. From now on you will no longer come to Venice, you will enter Big Brother.”

  “So, they impose restrictions on our freedom of movement, recognised in article 16 of the Constitution. But the fault lies with the left who have governed this Commune for forty years. They promised to stop mass tourism, slow the exodus, and fight the wave. See how Venice has been reduced and judge.” 

  “It is madness, they put up gates, and ask you to register with your name, surname, and social security number, just so you can have a friend visit you from the outside.” Guido Santin, a doctor from the city added, “Are they joking? They close us down, they hinder us. And what about the elderly who don’t have access to a computer? It is just colossal nonsense.” 

  Among the protestors, young people from housing committees and social centres handed out tickets printed with “Welcome to VeniceLand” 

  “Do not feed the Venetians. Do not cross the fences, it could pose a danger to you or the Venetians themselves. Do not throw objects at the Venetians, not even to attract their attention.” Instead, their solution to the issue of mass tourism is “houses and services for citizens, for those who genuinely want to live in Venice.”

  Explaining how appeals to the new measures are already being prepared, Michele Boato, an environmental historian, urged citizens, not to "register, do not pay, if stopped just give your details. But do not worry. Lawyers are already prepared to argue the unconstitutionality of a regulation that restricts the movement of a people and obliges you to book only to receive a visit from a friend.” 

  Mayor Luigi Brugnaro, however, disagreed with protestors, claiming the new regulations to be a “success”.

  “It is all going well. The tourists understand and pay, with the access fee I can manage services for the citizens.” Criticising the left’s inaction, Brugnaro continued, “They have never done anything to regulate tourism, politics does not do it because it has no interest in doing so. I have done it. The left remains trapped by crossed interests and friendships, without ever moving. The fear of change is legitimate, but if the fear blocks everything, there is no progress, there is no future.”

lw