Assessment for Sardinians in Italy

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Risk Assessment | Analytic Summary | References

Risk Assessment

There is very little chance that the Sardinians will resort to sustained militant political strategies in the near future, as they have only two of the risk factors for rebellion: territorial concentration and a history of lost autonomy. Additionally, the democratic nature of the Italian state and the lack of serious armed conflicts in neighboring countries further reduces the likelihood of rebellion. The occasional references to kidnappings on Sardinia seem to be economically motivated and do not reflect political or ideological demands.

The Sardinians also lack the risk factors usually associated with the potential for protest. They do not face political or cultural restrictions, or government repression. They also do not have any external kindred support. Nonetheless there is still the potential for future protest, due to their distinct history and their concerns for the protection of the Sard language. Additionally, protest activity has occurred, although sporadically, in recent years.

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Analytic Summary

Sardinia is a Mediterranean island east of the Italian peninsula. Its inhabitants, who have been on the island centuries longer than Italy has been a country, speak Italian primarily and also converse in Sard, a unique language similar to Latin (LANG = 1). The Sards were independent from the 9th to the 14th century (AUTLOST = 1). In 1720, after several centuries of Catalan rule, the island became a possession of the Dukes of Savoy, who in 1861 became kings of Italy. Sardinians are divided internally by numerous dialects and various sub-cultures. Sardinians share the common religion of most Italians, Roman Catholicism, and are not persecuted for their beliefs (BELIEF = 0; RELIGS1 = 1; CULP0104-06 =0 ).

Sardinia has experienced a decline in farming and as a result its people face high rural-to-urban migration and substantial unemployment. The Italian government has implemented remedial economic policies to counteract the effects of historical neglect (ECDIS04-06 = 1). Between the 1950s and 1970s, 500-700,000 Sardinians seeking economic opportunities left the island for Italy and other destinations. Since 1962, the Italian government has invested heavily in the island's industrial development, but the factories that dot the new industrial estates, mainly in coastal areas, are largely controlled by outsiders and have not created as many jobs as planned. Economically, Sardinian organizations have called for greater investment in Sardinian infrastructure and greater Sardinian control over tourism flows and revenues (ECGR04-06 = 2).

The Sardinians are not subject to political discrimination (POLDIS03 = 0), nor are there reports of overt government repression against the group. Sardinians are represented mainly by the Sardinian Action Party, which has as one of its platforms the separation of Sardinia from the rest of Italy (POLGR04-6 = 4; SEPX = 3). Beyond outright separatism, the Sardinian Action Party also calls for more political autonomy for the island vis-ŕ-vis the central government. A main concern of many Sardinians is protection of the Sardinian language, both as a language taught in schools, and as a language that can be used in dealing with the government (CULGR04-06 = 2).

While there was limited organized protest and militant activity starting in the 1960s, this never escalated beyond larger protests in the early 1990s. Recent political protests have been smaller in nature, representing symbolic resistance (PROT04-05 = 2). In 2002, Sardinian separatists claimed responsibility for 3 mail bombs that exploded in Milan. Bombings in 2004 were related to European Union electoral politics, and one targeted Romano Prodi, an Italian politician and president of the European Commission. No other violence has been reported in recent years (REB00-01 = 0; REB02 = 1; REB03 = 0; REB04=1; REB05-06 = 0).

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References

Center for Advanced Studies, Research and Development in Sardinia. 6/26/2006. “Polaris.” http://www.crs4.it/ict/dart06/slides/marcheschi-en.pdf, accessed 4/14/2008.

Eve Hepburn. 2007. "The New Politics of Autonomy: Territorial Strategies and the Uses of European Integration by Political Parties in Scotland, Bavaria and Sardinia 1979-2005." European University Institute, Department of Political and Social Sciences. http://cadmus.eui.eu/dspace/bitstream/1814/6944/1/2007_04_Hepburn.pdf, accessed 4/15/2008.

Institut de Sociolingüística Catalana. n.d. "Sardinian in Italy." Euromosaic. http://www.uoc.es/euromosaic/web/document/sard/an/i1/i1.html, accessed 4/8/2009.

King, Russell. 1975. Sardinia. Harrisburg, PA: Stackpole Books

Lexis-Nexis. Various news reports.1990-2006.

Magliococco, Sabina. 2004. "Sardinia." in Christopher Kleinhenz, ed., Medieval Italy: An Encyclopedia. New York: Routledge. 1013-1015.

Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism. "Sardinian Autonomy Movement (MAS)." http://www.start.umd.edu/start/data/tops/terrorist_organization_profile.asp?id=108, accessed 4/3/2009.

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