Thefts, vandalism, harassment, and striptease in the city center: "The migrant center for minors in Cabras must be closed."

Car and home thefts, property damage, robberies, sexual assaults against women, and striptease in the town center. In Cabras, serious incidents continue involving several residents of the migrant center for minors on Via Toscana. Many have been reported by residents who admit they're afraid to leave their homes. This is why Mayor Andrea Abis officially called for the facility's closure yesterday.

The complaints

At the Carabinieri station on Via Tharros, complaints from residents of Cabrarese are increasing. Many residents, however, are venting on social media, posting videos and photos in the hope that someone will intervene to remove those who, for months, have been engaging in inappropriate behavior. Problems are also occurring within the reception center. In addition to the damage to the facility, several staff members have suffered acts of violence and harassment. Most of the youths remain out and about all day, including at night, despite the ban on leaving the facility after dusk.

Fear

The latest incident that's been talked about for days involves the harassment of a forty-year-old woman: "It happened in the historic center, at dusk," the woman recounts. "There were six of them, they greeted me, and were laughing happily. Then one of them reached out to touch my breast. I was left breathless, but then, luckily, they ran away. A few days later, I encountered the same boy, who was staring at me, provoking me, and had a glass bottle hidden under his shirt. I was scared. In the end, I called the police."

«Too many problems»

Mayor Andrea Abis is firm this time: "We are fully aware of the problems related to the management of the extraordinary reception center for unaccompanied foreign minors on Via Toscana. We work there every day, and the commitment of the municipal administration and social services has become extremely burdensome. The interventions of the Carabinieri, with whom we collaborate daily, are countless and have led to the removal from Cabras of minors who have engaged in inappropriate or illegal behavior." The mayor also emphasizes that "Cabras has always been an open, welcoming community that is doing a great deal at the regional level, as it hosts one of the two centers for minors established by the state in Sardinia. However, the national government's policy is totally inadequate to ensure the management of the CAS and effectively shifts the real problems onto local communities, who are left alone, without the tools and power to effectively intervene in the management of what has now become a routine emergency."

"Center to be closed"

Finally, Andrea Abis announced that "yesterday, during a meeting requested by the prefect, the sole public authority responsible for CAS centers, with the participation of the regional guarantor of minors' rights, we requested the closure of the CAS for minors, unless there is an immediate change in management. On Tuesday, we will be in Cagliari to meet with President Todde, who has expressed her immediate availability for a meeting."

Sara Pinna