335. The Scenes that Shocked Italians
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| Childhood should be remembered with joy |
The father with 5 others entered the school through a side entrance, proceeded to Johnny’s classroom and was asked to leave with his father. On the boy’s refusal, the headmistress sent the children to the gym and we do not know what happened. The next thing we see of Johnny is what his aunt filmed on her mobile phone as he was being dragged through the side alley at the back of the school. The plaintiff cries for help from Johnny can be heard on the video- they are not the cries of a spoilt, arrogant child, but they are feeble cries of a desperate child who is in obvious distress, and helpless. Cries like “Help me aunt.” “Grandad…” “I don’t know what to do…” “I’m suffocating…” And all the while the child is being dragged by the legs with his torso on the pavement of the street.
One of the men had grabbed the boy’s feet, and another grabbed the shoulders, one of these men being the father, the other some say, a consultant psychiatrist of the court. At a certain point the man gripping Leonardo by the shoulders dropped him and the boy was dragged along the pavement to a car. You can hear a man shouting angrily, “shut him in the car… shut him in the car…” The aunt was also screaming, “leave him alone!” “ This is not the way to treat a child.” “ You will go to jail for this.”
As I was watching these horrible scenes on television, I simply could not believe my eyes that this was happening in a civilized country as Italy, in the north at that, in the 21st century. Quite honestly it reminded me of the times of the “Reformation” in England where before hanging Catholics, they were drawn and quartered. In today’s society not even the worst criminal is treated in such a way and it is inconceivable that a defenseless minor was subject to such treatment. At the basis of situations such as this one is that parents disregard a child has an non-denying right to a mother, a father and four grandparents and until this is acknowledged there can be no peace for the child concerned… or the parents for that matter.
No matter which parent is right or wrong- and it seems in this case both are wrong- or what the court sentence said by giving custody to the father; what that child underwent was a criminal offence against humanity and the responsibility of those involved should not be overlooked, but be punished as such.
More next time…
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Video: http://video.corriere.it/bambino-prelevato-agenti/560742d4-137b-11e2-ad6a-6254024087b3
