Don Cannavera: «Europe wants peace in Palestine but makes migrants die at sea»

Its place is where there is hunger, pain and suffering. Because Don Ettore Cannavera not only believes in miracles, but he does them. For real. He gives a voice to the poor, he welcomes psychiatric patients, he asks for dignity for prisoners, he guarantees protection for the youngest. And always with interest. So much so that with every war fought near our home, Cannavera's words become a balm against fear. Searching for hope. Form of a possible peace. Exactly as happens in his community of Serdiana : ten hectares twenty kilometers from Cagliari, where in 1994, on family land, the priest very close to Jesus of Nazareth (but very far from the Vatican) gave shape to a garden of solidarity . Without closing time. Holidays included.

Don Cannavera, Arabs and Israelis are fighting a new war that makes last year's Ukrainian one already seem old. Who benefits from humanitarian massacres?

«The desire to dominate the other. In power over the other. Jesus of Nazareth was born in Palestine, that gentleman who already two thousand years ago considered us all children of the same father. And it matters little whether his name is Muhammad or Yahweh. The wars demonstrate that the cultural journey to which we all must contribute is still enormous. Anyone who does not believe in a world of peace, anyone who considers this goal impossible, is making a mistake."

Which error?

«Not understanding that oppression is not a right. It makes an impression on me that Jews and Arabs are fighting each other right where Jesus was born. A great man who even the Orthodox Church believes in, who supports Putin and the invasion of Ukraine."

How do you educate for peace?

«Teaching more anthropology in schools, not just history. We have too little knowledge about human beings. Violence is a social product that can only be fought with culture. Contrast is one thing, and that's welcome: confrontation is necessary. But aggression, the fear of others, is another thing. I see it among the kids in my community: there is a young man who has committed a murder. Yet he looks with suspicion at an African boy who is criminally responsible for a much less serious crime. Sometimes we don't go beyond the color of our skin: we don't realize that we all have a heart, that we are all born with the desire to love and be loved, that we all have to respect and be respected."

Which side are you in the war in Palestine?

«I am for the recognition of diversity: we need two autonomous states. Arabs and Jews will know how to coexist. Certainly, the path is not that of Hamas nor the permanent occupation of the Gaza Strip by Israel. In Palestine the underlying problem is culture. Not even politics is educated to recognize the other. For those who govern, there is only the register of weapons, the law of the strongest. A law that is copied in everyday life at every latitude: in a few days a boy who killed a peer will arrive in the community. They argued. Then he went up to the house, took a knife and hit the other."

Will Europe resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict?

«The European leaders who come together for peace in Palestine are the same ones who leave thousands of migrants to die at sea. I am reminded of a dialogue with my mother, who voted for the Christian Democrats. I told her: “Why do you choose those?”. She replied: “There's sa cruxi”. Politics needs citizens not to know and not to know."

What can't politics do?

«Politics doesn't listen, it doesn't stop to listen. As happens to most of us. Just look at talk shows: the voices overlap, the guests talk over each other. Violence is not inherent in man but is the result of the constant oppression that fills our daily lives. Both from a linguistic and physical point of view. The Palestinian question was generated by a mistake: after the Second World War, the strongest states supported the birth of a Jewish state in an attempt to atone for the unforgivable mistake of the Holocaust. The Arab-Israeli war will only end when everyone sits at the same table. The agreement must come from outside. And, as the Pope says, the Jews must be stopped."

Is Bergoglio really a revolutionary?

«Yes, he does. But not the Vatican. This Pope is human and capable, but a prisoner of the Vatican. Hope is in his successor."

Who is in charge in the Holy See?

«Bishops and priests».

On the issues of immigration, for that matter, Bergoglio is not liked even by large parts of the Meloni government.

«When migrants are seen as invaders, the result is there for all to see. Salvini even hoped that the ships would sink. A thesis that Meloni also supported before becoming prime minister. These are examples of lack of political culture. When I heard them, I thought: do they really believe it or are they just doing it to obtain consensus?".

What response was given?

«It is politics that generates fear. Then he foments it and uses it for electoral purposes."

What do you think every time you hear “let's help them at home”?

«We should learn to say another phrase: let's not exploit them at home. Congo, for example, is full of Russians. Who live like masters. We didn't understand that they came here from Africa, because we rich countries put them in a position to escape. At home they can only be oppressed, they don't even have the right to a job. We have taken over Africa and its goods: with the raw materials they have, they could feed us. And mind you: when migrants decide to seek their fortune with us, they are aware that they risk dying at sea. Sometimes politicians have an inhuman concept of humanity. They are dangerous".

More than handcuffs?

«This is another good theme. Not too long ago, the Court of Oristano sentenced a twenty-year-old to life imprisonment. But how do you come up with the idea of doing something like this?".

Don't we risk giving the wrong message of impunity?

«Giving the end of the sentence to a twenty-year-old is a sentence that does not allow hope, nor does it grant it. So there is no re-educational function."

Are you in contact with that prisoner?

«Yes, we are following him. He also started studying again."

Are you against life imprisonment?

«I am against prison, a word that is not even in article 27 of the Constitution on criminal responsibility. If anything, we are talking about punishment, which must aim at re-education and social reintegration. I divide the prisoners into four categories."

Which categories?

«Those who have psychiatric problems are in prison, and these are people who should not enter a cell. In prison they lock up those who have committed crimes due to hunger or trafficked to survive: the place is not right for them either. Ditto with migrants: those we were unable to welcome are arrested. A young foreigner had to spend 120 days in prison for stealing bread. Considering how much a prisoner costs per day, more than 100 euros, it is clear that we would have bought rosettes in quantity."

Who should be in prison?

«Those 10 percent of real criminals. Today penitentiaries are considered like garbage dumps. But while the garbage is sorted, all inmates are treated the same. Those we don't want to see end up in prisons. The weak, the disadvantaged. It's as if their presence disturbs us. The absence of re-education programs means that 70 percent of those who end up in cell leave and then return. Unfortunately we live in a society where others are not considered for what they can give, but are judged for what they do. Prison is not the solution for these poor people. But this ear does not even hear a certain magistracy. Most people who commit crimes do so because they don't have a job. This is why I created an agricultural company in my community."

How is La Collina organised?

"The kids in the community all have a work contract and pay their food with that."

Who is the person responsible?

«A man convicted of murder».

What do you grow?

"Many things. The vegetable garden and orchard are for internal consumption: only a small part of the production is put on sale. We make the bulk of our revenues from oil and wine, put on the market using the La Collina brand. The olives, obtained from 1,200 plants, we take to my brother's oil mill; the grapes instead are bottled by the Argiolas cellars."

The average age of the guests?

«Thirty-five years».

The latest arrival?

«A person who had an important institutional role. Then family problems and drug use. Now he's definitely better, he's making his way."

What is the task of the communities?

«First welcome, then rebuild contexts, personal acceptance and self-esteem. Hundreds of times in prison I have heard prisoners addressed as "thug, move". Recovery does not come from insults or contempt."

How many years can you stay at La Collina?

«Maximum three. More time would not be useful, because one would get used to a too quiet life. The real one, however, is hard and insidious."

In what year was the community of Serdiana born?

«The challenge began in 1994, with few beds. In 1998 we gave shape to the great community. Three magistrates and two politicians believed it. A communist and a Christian Democrat."

Who were the politicians?

«Emanuele Sanna and Giorgio Oppi».

How many seats are there today?

«Twenty-four, divided into three sections of eight. One is the criminal one, for those who have to finish serving their sentence; one is reserved for those who have paid their debt to justice; the third section hosts teenagers removed from their families of origin and awaiting foster care. To give an order of magnitude: the Quartucciu juvenile prison costs the State 10 million euros per year; the costs of the Hill amount to 200 thousand euros. Penitentiaries punish, while we re-educate. The first problem for prisoners is not the deprivation of liberty, but idleness: in prison there is no work and very few activities. We spend time on the cot watching TV."

There is an escape from Sardinian prisons: three of the six new managers just appointed have resigned from their positions. Is it that terrible to work here?

«The island's penitentiaries are complex, especially in terms of composition: the majority of the two thousand inmates are not Sardinian. This has a significant impact on the organization. Add to this the fact that a director must think of everything, often alone, given the scarcity of financial and human resources. Politics, then, deals very little with prison life."

Are you following the Sardinian political events in view of the regional elections?

"Yes".

Your opinion always counts for a lot.

«At the request of Soru, I have already responded and made my decisions: I am for Alessandra Todde, also for her attempt to present herself united for a field as broad as possible and not, as usual, divided and losing».

Do you know Todde?

«Yes, I know her for her cultural and political preparation. Even if I have some reservations about the party he belongs to. He came to La Collina to buy our produce during the Christmas holidays."

Have you had contact with the Region in the last five years?

«Always, even the other day. I have human contact with everyone. Even with the right. But I see that the best proposals are made by the centre-left."

Social policies: how does the management of social policies work in the Region?

«Not good, not to say bad. Social policies are not among the objectives of this regional administration. But not even the Democratic Party is interested. The ruling class listens to you in exchange for a vote. In the centre-right there is someone who shows availability towards the most vulnerable, but these are isolated cases. Even outside the churches it is full of people who avoid the poor after having received communion."

Overall vote for Sardinian politics, meaning majority and opposition?

«Do four. They are too focused on themselves and their groups."

Is there a perfect family?

«No, not at all. When I officiate weddings, I always ask couples if they have lived together before. It is a necessary step, it should be done for at least three or four years. It is essential to know each other's weaknesses and differences, both cultural and political."

Singles are only allowed to foster disabled children: don't you think they have the same rights as other couples?

«Children must have the opportunity to learn about both figures, the male and the female. In the absence of this possibility, a single parent family can be used. But always building complete relationships externally."

Abortion: for or against?

«I'm not taking sides. I am in favor of abortion, if it is not clandestine, when there is a real need. The reason must be serious and valid, the result of a conscious and exceptional choice."

Homosexual marriages?

«Yes, I am in favor. Love is between two people, not between a man and a woman necessarily. In fact, I would talk about loving coexistence."

Uterus for rent?

«No, my “no” is absolute on this. Life begins inside, as soon as the egg is fertilized. It cannot be generated on commission."

Sale of soft drugs?

«Favourable, provided that an educational and empowerment process is activated first. The state sells alcohol and does it to make money."

Euthanasia?

«For me, a believer, the end of life is not the end. On the contrary. Death is just a change. This is why I don't understand those who oppose it. I think of my father: he was 85 years old when he passed away. He had been bedridden for two. My brother, a doctor, brought a mountain of medicines every day. I told him: Luciano, why this fury? It's just suffering, moreover at a high cost for families and society."

Is Sardinia a land that can still give hope?

«If I look at people who work for others, I see hope. But if I look at the political and cultural situation, I see little change. I see too much inattention towards the weakest."

Who is your best friend?

«It was Giorgio Pisano. My closest friends are unbelievers, people with a different vision than mine. And it couldn't be otherwise when personal enrichment and growth are the goal. I had a very strong and intense relationship with Giorgio. He was a thoroughbred journalist. A free man. Upright, honest and prepared. I was there when Giorgio died. I shook his hand."