The latest news would appear to be the news of the non-existence of any specific allocation for "insularity" in the budget law approved by the Council of Ministers. Nothing in question, perhaps, if only it were not that, considering the impact of the Government's action in the constant commitment of its Minister for Infrastructure for the construction of the so-called "Messina Bridge", to speak in this specific case of mere "forgetfulness" it would seem extremely surreal on the ideal level of political concreteness and on the factual level of procedural implementation.

But so be it: the allies would all be the same (maybe) but would some seem more equal than others? Maybe. Nor, probably, can we expect to overcome such "forgetfulness" simply by citing reasons of prudence in the preparation of a financial maneuver which, even in a small way, should have taken into consideration, and as a priority, the reasons of the most disadvantaged components of the national perimeter if it is true, as it would seem to be true, that the Sardinian Region is fully included in it. The island-peninsula distance, far from shortening to the point of being appreciably reduced, would instead appear to be growing beyond measure.

The political question considered in and of itself seems to be increasingly transformed into a social question of principle and although, at least in theory, Sardinia has the possibility of addressing its dynamic relations with the State as an alternative to the equalization aim, however, this specialty would seem to remain in the status of "sleeping beauty" on the sea. There is, at least this is the impression one might get from it, a certain tiredness on an institutional level in carrying out actions useful for the declared purpose. And the same idea of proceeding with a revision of the special statute in an attempt to update it to make it compliant with the passage of time could still make sense only if the substantial aspects that had suggested it at the time are identified and addressed in a timely and analytical manner. the processing by parameterizing them to current events. Even more so when we do not intend to forget that the reasons presupposing the persistence of the different specialties are to be found in the insular geographical position of the region, in the presence of deep-rooted linguistic minorities, in the particular conditions of primary and secondary backwardness induced by some of them. And even more so when, presumably, starting from such incontrovertible "conditions" of minority, what makes the difference would appear to be the different methods of attribution of financial resources and certainly not, contrary to what one would be led to believe, the exercise (not always satisfactory, indeed, in terms of concrete implementation) of exceptional legislative powers in derogation and/or special of state legislation, which too often remained, at least it would seem, on the pure and simple level of paper.

The reasons for the Sardinian specialty, although they are historically profound and articulated, in current affairs, in the face of the reflection of the times, seem to appear extremely faded, probably because they were not appropriately reinterpreted or, perhaps, because they were ultimately no longer representative of a reality which, instead , the passage of time has made it more necessary to be included in a context of ordinary regime directly dependent on the state in order to be able to appreciate its growing needs.

In other words: although it would seem to be true that Sardinia takes the form of an unexpressed synthesis of all the potential characteristics of a so-called normative specialty, being an island characterized by a low population density and inhabited by a community of speakers of a minority language, however, the circumstance, on a factual and practical level, does not seem to be able to translate into concrete and lived experience. Perhaps, and let us insist on the doubtful formula, it would be appropriate to refer to a new "Sardinia Rebirth Plan", such as the one used, barring error, in past years, or to resort to the intervention of a revised model of "Cassa per il Mezzogiorno" to encourage the necessary infrastructure and the creation of an unprecedented industrial platform of an island nature. The persistent, at least so it seems to be perceived, self-referentiality of the national elites cannot in any way reverberate to the detriment of the most critical regional realities. In the long run, and with good likelihood, given the constant trend of the central political direction, it would be appropriate to change the point of view through which to look at the various regional experiences, especially those that still seem to boast, such as Sardinia, specialty reasons.

Saying it differently: the most peculiar characteristics of each individual territorial community, be it special or ordinary, should not be considered as pure and simple competitive factors suitable for implementing the integration of the country of Italy in the European context first and then the global one, in any case given the 'non-existent or almost non-existent (it would seem) practical evidence; the special autonomies have until now been promoters of stringent expectations on the part of the respective communities, which, on that assumption, have over the years become the bearers of a need for subjectivity that cannot be implemented within the required terms; the reasons for specialization and insularity, however pursued, could in the long run find room for realization in a context of ordinariness, i.e. within a general state plan that expresses itself in a similar way for each territorial reality while respecting individual diversities.

In other words, and in extreme summary, it would be important, today, to reflect on the reasons for the persistence of the regional specialty which, at present, would seem to appear in all its uneconomicalness on a financial level even before its inadequacy on a regulatory level.

Giuseppina Di Salvatore

(Lawyer – Nuoro)

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