AUTHOR'S NOTE
When I have begun to write this entry, I was planning to speak mainly about Falcone and Borsellino. But the more I have read about the period between 1975-1992, the more I found that I should explain the whole history of all these men (or at least the more relevant) who have died fighting against the mafiosi. This is an homage to all of them.
PROLOGUE
The defition of hero could be "A person noted for feats of courage or nobility of purpose, especially one who has risked or sacrificed his or her life" [*]. A hero would be then, a man or woman who does what his conscience tell him despite the consequences it may have.
In my opinion it would be difficult to find better examples of heroism than the one given by these policemen and magistrates.
1975-1992
 Giovanni Falcone |  Paolo Borsellino |
"Chi tace e chi piega la testa muore ogni volta che lo fa, chi parla e chi cammina a testa alta muore una volta sola"
Paolo Borsellino [*]
On May 23, 1992, the Magistrate Giovanni Falcone [*], his wife and three bodyguards were killed near Capaci, in the motorway between the Punta Raisi Airport and Palermo, in a bomb explosion [*]. On July 19, of the same year, the Magistrate Paolo Borsellino [*] and five policemen were killed by another bomb in Via D'Amelio, Palermo [*].
They had been working together twelve years against the mafia in their hometown of Palermo.
 Cesare Terranova |  Gaetano Costa |
Twelve years before, in 1979, and 1980, the magistrates Cesare Terranova and Gaetano Costa had been killed by the Mafia. By that time Giovanni Falcone entered the Prosecution Office of Palermo, under the orders of Rocco Chinnici. Paolo Borsellino had begun working already five years before (in 1975) in the office.
Emanuele Basile
In 1980 Paolo Borsellino, as judge, along with Captain of the Carabinieri, Emanuele Basile, achieved the detenntion of six mafiosi. The same year, Emanuele Basile, his wife and his daughter were murdered, in reprisal.
Along with Guiseppe Di Lello, Leonardo Guarnotta and Giovanni Barrile they formed the 'il Pool Antimafia'.
Rocco Chinnici
In 1983, Rocco Chinnici was killed, and he was succeed by Antonino Caponnetto. The great goal of the Pool was to track the 'money trail' to follow the activities of these organizations.
Palermo, middle eighties. Giovanni Falcone (first from the left), Giuseppe di Lello (second from the left), Paolo Borsellino (fourth from the left) e Leonardo Guarnotta (sixth from the left). In the center, the director Antonino Caponnetto (fifth from the left).
The pool had strait collaboration of policemen like Antonino 'Ninni' Cassarà, and Giusspee 'Beppe' Montana, Comissario della Squadra Mobile de Palermo; both murdered in the summer of 1985. At the place of assassination of Giuseppe Montana, Cassarà tells Borsellino: "Convinciamoci che siamo dei cadaveri che camminano" [*].
 Giuseppe 'Beppe' Montana |  Antonino 'Ninni' Cassarà |
'Ninni' Cassarà, Giovanni Falcone and Rocco Chinnici; all murdered by the mafia.
The Pool was the responsible for the Maxiprocesso di Palermo, after the confession of Tommaso Buscetta, one repentant, pentito. The maxitrial lasted from February 10, 1986 until December 16, 1987, and lead to the accusation of 474 mafiosi, from which 360 of them were condemned to a total of 2665 years of imprisonment.
Giovanni Falcone & Paolo Borsellino at the Maxiprocesso
After that, several members leave the pool; December 1986 Borsellino becomes Procuratore della Repubblica de Marsala; September 1987 Caponnetto leaves because of health reasons, and he is replaced by Antonino Meli (chosen in the place of Falcone, in a controversial decission).
Antonino Scopelliti
On August 9, 1991, Antonino Scopelliti, 'il giudice solo' (the lonely judge), is murdered. At his funeral Falcone declares "Il prossimo sono io" ("I am the next one") [*].
On May 23, 1992, when he was travelling on the highway between the Punta Raisi Airport (now renamed Falcone-Borsellino Airport [*]) and the city of Palermo, a 350kg explosive kills him, with his wife, Francesca Morvillo, and three bodyguards (Rocco Di Cillo, Antonio Montinaro and Vito Schifani).
Motorway of Palermo Airport, near Capaci. May 23, 1992.
After the death of Falcone, Borsellino declares that he knows he is the first of the list.
On July 19, of the same year, Borsellino is killed in an explosion in Via D'Amelio, with five policemen (Agostino Catalano, Walter Cosina, Emanuela Loi, Vincenzo Li Muli, Claudio Traina).
Via D'amelio, Palermo. July 19, 1992.
After the deaths of Falcone and Borsellino, the Italian Army is sent to Sicily in an operation called "Vespri Siciliani" [*]. 7.000 soldiers are sent [*]. The army stayed in the island until June 25, 1998 [*].
After the intervention of the army, on January 15, 1993, the Police captures Salvador 'Toto' Riina, thought to have ordered the murderings of Falcone and Borsellino. He was condemned to lifelong imprisonment.
EPILOGUE
Nowadays, the words pronounced by Paolo Borsellino in January 26, 1989 have more relevance than ever:
"L'equivoco su cui spesso si gioca è questo: quel politico era vicino ad un mafioso, quel politico è stato accusato di avere interessi convergenti con le organizzazioni mafiose, però la magistratura non lo ha condannato quindi quel politico è un uomo onesto. E no, questo discorso non va perché la magistratura può fare soltanto un accertamento di carattere giudiziale, può dire, beh, ci sono sospetti, ci sono sospetti anche gravi ma io non ho la certezza giuridica, giudiziaria che mi consente di dire quest'uomo è mafioso. Però siccome dalle indagini sono emersi altri fatti del genere altri organi, altri poteri, cioè i politici, le organizzazioni disciplinari delle varie amministrazioni, i consigli comunali o quello che sia dovevano trarre le dovute conseguenze da certe vicinanze tra politici e mafiosi che non costituivano reato ma rendevano comunque il politico inaffidabile nella gestione della cosa pubblica. Questi giudizi non sono stati tratti perchè ci si è nascosti dietro lo schermo della sentenza: questo tizio non è mai stato condannato quindi è un uomo onesto. Il sospetto dovrebbe indurre soprattutto i partiti politici quantomeno a fare grossa pulizia, non soltanto essere onesti, ma apparire onesti facendo pulizia al loro interno di tutti coloro che sono raggiunti comunque da episodi o da fatti inquietanti anche se non costituenti reati."
“The misunderstanding that is often played with goes as follows, they say: that politician was close to a mafia person, that politician was accused of having interests that converged with the mafia organisation, however the magistracy has not convicted him, thus that politician is innocent. But that's not true! This argument is not valid because the magistracy can only do an investigation that is of a judicial nature. He can say that there are even serious suspicions, but I don't have the judicial certainty that allows me to say that that man is a mafia man. However, given that from the investigations, many facts of this sort have come out, other bodies, other powers, that is the politicians, that is the disciplinary organisations of the various administrations, that is the town councils, or whatever bodies, should have already drawn the necessary conclusions of this closeness between politicians and mafia people that were not crimes, but that anyway made the politician untrustworthy in handling public affairs. These decisions have not been taken because the people have hidden behind the shield of the verdict. They say: this guy has never been convicted, and therefore he is an honest man… but just tell me… do you not know dishonest people who have never been convicted because there is not sufficient evidence to convict them? There's a strong suspicion that should, at least, persuade the parties to do a hefty clean up, not only with honest beings, but to appear honest by cleaning up internally all those who have been touched by episodes and events that are disconcerting …”
Istituto Tecnico Professionale, di Bassano del Grappa. 26/01/1989.
Un altro paese (2005), by Marco Turco:
Website with info and news about these cases: http://www.19luglio1992.com/ (Website by Paolo Borsellino's brother, Salvatore Borsellino)
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