The President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella, took part, alongside the President of the Federal Republic of Austria, Alexander Van der Bellen, in the celebrations held in Vienna for the 25th anniversary of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, which was adopted in Palermo in December 2000 and which has been ratified to date by 190 countries.
The ceremony – organized at the United Nations hub in Vienna by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) – was also an occasion to honour the memory of the victims of mafia, including judges Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino. A photographic exhibition titled “The Legacy of Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino” was dedicated to them, which the Italian Head of State visited upon his arrival at the UN headquarters, before the beginning of the event.
The high-level session was opened by UNODC Executive Director Ghada Waly, followed by President Mattarella and President Van der Bellen. Click here to read President Mattarella’s speech.
Mattarella’s visit continued in the afternoon at Palais Metternich, home to the Italian Embassy in Austria, for a meeting with the staff of the Embassy and of the Permament Mission of Italy, and with the Italian officials working for the International Organisations based in Vienna.
(source of the original press release in Italian: quirinale.it)
