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Petra Reski is a journalist working for the German weekly "Die Zeit".
She has written a book entitled "Mafia. Von Paten, pizzerien und
falschen priestern", which, in Italian, would be "Mafia. Di padrini,
pizzerie e falsi sacerdoti". I say "would be" because although the book
has already been translated into many languages, no Italian publishing
house has yet been willing to publish it. Petra describes the Italian Mafia's unstoppable drive into Europe.
According to the "Frankfurter Allgeimeine Zeitung", Petra's book is the
best ever published on this topic. Petra has received threats and has
spent his time defending himself in the German courts against
allegations and complaints lodged by the people named in her book.
The book is deemed to be the German equivalent of the "Gomorra" and
Petra runs the risk of going the same way as Saviano did. In all
probability, the Italian Mafia groups are the biggest business in our
Country. Their turnover is estimated to be 100/150 billion Euro per year. All of it tax-free. The kind of money that needs to be
invested. After Italy, whose markets are full to the brim with mafia
money, the next target is Europe. The GDP of many European Countries is
also reliant on money laundered by the Mafia. We are exporting money and the Mafia. Within a few years, Brussels will be ours, our own "cosa nostra".
Interview held with Petra Reski
"Daniele Martinelli (D.M.): Petra Reski, writer, journalist and author of a book on the "'ndragheta",
written in German and considered in Germany to be the best book ever
written on this subject. Why, in your opinion, are the Mafia groups in
general and the 'ndragheta in particular, so well rooted abroad?
Petra Reski (P.R.): Because foreign laws permit certain things that are prohibited in Italy. In Germany for example, there is no such thing as Environmental Interception in
public areas and it is even difficult to get authorisation for
Interception activities to be carried out in peoples' homes and it is
far easier to invest recycled funds in Germany than it is in Italy. In
Germany there is also no such crime as Mafia collusion, so a Mafia
member can quite happily invest all his money in Germany without any
fear of being checked on.
There have been thousands of cases where, let's call them "pizza makers",
have come to work in Germany, earning 800 Euro per month, only to then
perhaps buy a hotel or even entire streets worth of properties.
D.M.: In other words there must also be some sort of collusion by certain Germans?
P.R.: Obviously! Without some sort of collusion, even in
Germany this would be impossible. Unfortunately, Germans remain
unaffected by any problems they cannot see with their own eyes and they
believe that the mafia is a purely Italian phenomenon, limited to a few
rather backward regions of Southern Italy. Therefore,
they honestly believe that this sort of thing could never happen in
Germany, but instead, Germany is precisely the same as Italy. With the
help of certain politicians, institutions and unscrupulous attorneys,
the very same things that have gone on in Italy over the past 150 have
also been going on in Germany over the past 40 years.
D.M.: But are there certain zones that are more exposed to this phenomenon, or not?
P.R.: Yes, unfortunately all of these mafia members arrived in Germany as immigrants. During the 1940's,
they began to settle in the industrialised parts of Germany. As a
result, the main 'ndragheta centres are located in Duisburg, the entire
Ruhr area, Dortmund and all around Stuttgart.
After the fall of the Berlin Wall in the mid-1990's, part of the 'ndragheta organisation moved to Leipzig and Saxony.
D.M.: In fact you have mentioned the Duisburg affair, where
6 people were murdered by the 'ndragheta, you wrote a book about it and
even received death threats as a result.
P.R.: Yes, let's say that I have received certain veiled
threats that only an Italian would understand perfectly because they
would mean very little to a German. As happened on one particular
occasion, at the presentation of my book in Hartford,
in other words in the Turinga Region. There were a number of German
VIP's who firstly went to great pains to explain that money laundering
was impossible in Germany and then, with a number of Italians present,
proceeded to congratulate me on my courage by saying "Madam, I admire
your courage!" And this only moments after having spoken out in defence
of certain individuals that had taken me to court because of what I
wrote in my book. To me, the message was patently clear. I have lived
in Italy for the past twenty years and for the past twenty years I have
been investigating the mafia so that situation, at that time, reminded
me of Michele Greco who, when appearing in Court in
connection with the maxi-trial, said: "Your Honour, I have an extremely
valuable gift, namely that of inner peace and I wish you and your
family a long life ".
D.M.: But did you reveal anything in your book that may be useful to the judges in proceeding with the inquiry?
P.R.: Yes, obviously, because the Federal Police had been
scrutinising the activities of a number of the clans even prior to the
Duisburg massacre, especially those clans linked to the Duisburg
affair, so those clans would not want to avoid attracting any further public interest.
D.M.: But you went and mentioned certain names in this book, which were censored!
P.R.: Yes.
D.M.: The Italian Government says that everything is under
control and certain people have even gone as far as claiming that the
Mafia doesn't exist.
P.R.: As far as?
D.M.: Yes, well, Dell'Utri has said this on numerous occasions.
P.R.: Yes, that's true! In Germany they also say that the Mafia doesn't
exist. That's funny because it reminds me about a mafia member who was
active in Milan in the 60's and stated after his arrest that: "what is
the Mafia? A type of cheese?" and the same is true of Germany.
Because, for many Germans, the mafia is the stuff of folklore, films
like the Godfather and of novels, they don't even have the slightest
idea about their gentle-natured pizza maker that greets them, and I
know this is also true of those that were killed in Duisburg, who were
known as good neighbours, very friendly and approachable. This kind of
thing is impossible for the average German to understand.
As regards the German politicians, over and above their direct
involvement in specific cases, admitting that the mafia does exist in
Germany represents a major problem because it would lead to an even
greater problem in terms of public conscience, above all because the
only problem acknowledged by the German Government are the Islamists, not the Mafia.
D.M.: But these names that you revealed in your book, did
you uncover them during your investigations or how else did you manage
to put together all of these clues that paint such a varied and
disturbing picture of the Mafia situation in Germany?
P.R.: Actually I was drawn in because I was always only
concerned with the Mafia situation in Italy and so this was the doing
of Duisburg and the work done by Italian journalists, to whom I owe a debt of gratitude,
because they are far better than the German journalists at telling the
truth, since they were the first to name the names of the Italians
involved in the 'ndragheta's activities in Germany.
D.M.: Such as? The names?
P.R.: I can't name names because...
D.M.: You can't name names?
P.R.: In factual fact, my interest was sparked after having
read the Italian newspapers and having investigated the matter in
Germany, together with the facts that emerged from the German Police Force's investigations.
D.M.: You are currently living in an undisclosed location
due to the death threats, but how many court cases have resulted to
date because of this book?
P.R.: We are currently involved in the fifth court case and
there are a further two criminals complaints that have been lodged, one
of which has been archived, so we will have to wait and see what
happens
D.M.: But why?
P.R.: To date I have been served with an urgent interdict
to protect the personal details of the two individuals that I spoke
about in my book. On this occasion the application in question was
granted by the Court of Munich and Duisburg. Now we are appealing the
decision because I was accused of slander and various other offences...
D.M.: Are you afraid?
P.R.: No
D.M.: So you will continue to do your job?
P.R.: Certainly! Absolutely. Also because I would never
have dreamt that my investigation work was as real as has been
subsequently confirmed.
D.M.: But in your opinion, do the European Economies really need the Mafia, or not?
P.R.: As regards the situation in Germany, all I can say is
that many people have chosen to look the other way when it comes down
to Mafia investments, and they continue to do so. Particularly after
the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Mafia's money was unfortunately more
than welcome in East Germany and, even now, often we know things but
prefer to make out that we don't. Money laundering is deemed to be a
minor offence in Germany. So we must keep our eyes open because this is
the kind of thing that destroys not only the economy, but also
democracy in general. When a member of the 'ndragheta buys a hotel or a
building, he is destroying fair competition. And this
obviously also poses a problem for democracy in that, as landowners,
these people also expect to exert a certain amount of influence on
German politics.
D.M.: And as far as you are aware, what is the situation
regarding the mafia in Holland, Belgium, Great Britain, Norway and the
entire Scandinavian area in general?
P.R.: All I know is that what I have said with regard to Germany is not very different in these other Countries.
D.M.: Mafia groups imported from Italy?
P.R.: Yes, imported from Italy. But the biggest problem is that Mafia association is not classified as a punishable offence in those Countries. In Germany for example, the penalties specified for
criminal association are negligible. In Germany, a mafia member is able
to move around freely. Perhaps this is the biggest issue: collusion
with the Mafia needs to be classified as a crime throughout the whole
of Europe, then we could simply go ahead and arrest any known clan
member arriving from San Luca. Mafia members living in Germany don't
make any mistakes.
D.M.: And as regards your book, was it written only in German?
P.R.: We are in the process of having it translated into 5 languages other than Italian, unfortunately.
D.M.: Why is this?
P.R.: I don't know why this is. I must say that there are
many good books around, about the Mafia, written by Italian authors
with extensive knowledge regarding the Mafia. As far as one publishing house is concerned, the Mafia is not a new topic, so I can understand their reticence.
D.M.: But the German title of "Gomorra" given to your book, is it accurate or not?
P.R.: As regards Saviano. I find it scandalous that a
person like him must remain in hiding while the gangsters walk around
freely. I find it equally scandalous that an individual gets buried
under court cases, all because of a book. It goes to show just how much
they fear us."
From Beppe Grillo's blog (beppegrillo.it) with Creative Commons License
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