Iran Press/ Europe: According to Iran Press, nearly 50,000 people gathered in one of the big central squares of Rome and called the right-wing government inefficient.
A student told an Iran Press reporter in Rome: The demonstration is against the government's budget plan, which darkens the prospects for the people. The government has severely reduced university and healthcare budgets and has no plans for job creation.
This student emphasized that they must not allow the government to reduce the budget of important sectors.
While criticizing the privatization of the Italian health sector, the demonstrators announced that the lack of medical staff, especially the severe lack of funding in the health sector, has caused the reduction of services to patients in hospitals and even the closure of dozens of medical centers.
The number of Italians living in “absolute poverty” has risen dramatically over the past 10 years, according to a new report published by the country’s national statistics institute, ISTAT.
Nearly 1 in 12 Italians live in 'absolute poverty' due to higher inflation, the report finds. There are now over 5.6 million Italians who cannot afford the cost of bare essentials like food, shelter, education, and healthcare, according to a recent report by ISTAT.
According to ISTAT, the reason for this climb in the poverty rate is mostly due to the rise in inflation in the country, which in 2022 surged by an estimated 8.7%.
In September 2023, the latest data available, inflation was 5.3% - much lower than last year, but still higher than the European Central Bank’s target of close to, but below, 2%.Another protester expressed concern about the long wait times for doctor visits, specialized tests, and hospitalization, stating that the government's actions are undermining the credibility of the public health and treatment sector. They also warned that this could ultimately benefit the private sector.
He stated: Millions of Italians forego their treatment because they are denied access to public healthcare and cannot afford to go to private hospitals. This Italian citizen added: There is no job security for young people, and workers and employees cannot meet their living expenses due to their low wages.
A large anti-government rally in Rome was organized by the Italian Democratic Party. Even though it was forbidden to carry the Palestinian flag and wear Palestinian keffiyeh in the anti-government rally, some demonstrators did not pay attention to this ban.
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