Haiti, Italian engineer kidnapped: he is investigating for kidnapping for extortion purposes

The Public Prosecutor’s Office of Rome has opened a file in relation to the kidnapping of the 74-year-old Italian engineer, Giovanni Calì ’employed by the Italian construction company Bonifiche spa in Haiti. The prosecutors of piazzale Clodio, coordinated by the chief prosecutor Michele Prestipino, are investigating for kidnapping for the purpose of extortion. The investigations were delegated to the carabinieri of the Ros. Read also Calì was taken, together with one of his Haitian collaborators, last Tuesday from the construction site where he was for some surveys. Giovanni ‘Vanni’ Calì “from what his colleagues tell me he is a person who is enthusiastic about his work and cares a lot . For us cooperating, his kidnapping was a shock and we hope that everything will be resolved soon “. This was stated in an interview with Adnkronos Fiammetta Cappellini, AVSI’s project manager in Haiti, who speaks on the phone from the capital Port-au-Prince. “The situation in the country is” certainly very difficult at the moment “and the curve of the tendency to instability and violence” has become very accentuated. In our opinion, too, the danger for the entire population and humanitarian staff is extremely high “, adds. Various areas of Port-au-Prince, continues the aid worker who directs projects for conflict resolution and human rights also in neighborhoods’ hot ‘of the capital, are in the hands of gangs and armed bands, while this phenomenon is less pronounced in the suburbs. Popular neighborhoods, real slums, such as Cite Soleil, La Saline, Martissant and Bel Air have become strongholds of the gangs. ” the police cannot enter and the gangs continue to strengthen in terms of equipment – explains Cappellini – The number of weapons in the country is totally out of control “. Recently, the aid worker says,” the police attempted to break in with its departments special vehicles in one of these neighborhoods and not only was she rejected, but also armored vehicles were stolen from her, which were returned to her only after negotiations. “In these areas, she continues, the violence is so serious. vi that the UN has opened investigations for massacres against the population: in a single episode of violence there were 40 deaths. The level of crime is at dramatic levels and a lot of responsibility is due to the “drift of governance and the inability to manage the country “, remarks the AVSI aid worker, the largest Italian NGO present in the country with 17 international staff, of which 15 are Italians and 300 Haitians. at the time of the kidnapping he was traveling along the road north that leads out of Port-au Prince “in the area of ​​Croix-des-Bouquets,” a neighborhood historically not at risk, but where recently there was the striking kidnapping of a group of Haitian and French religious “.” The kidnappings in Haiti are very frequent, but it is very rare that they touch foreigners – he continues – This is why we said to ourselves that the kidnapping of the French was a very negative signal and unfortunately there was a n the second case in a short time “. Cappellini concludes by claiming that he has so far seen kidnappings resolved” with the payment of a ransom, apart from the case of the French which was perhaps the only one in which money was paid. These groups behind the kidnappings do not have a political agenda or want publicity, but only act for economic reasons “.