The story of a fight for love and human rights - The Repubblica article

The Alessandro's red rose against the Schengen borders

It will start on May from Rome - Piazza del Popolo using his black motocycle 650cc Honda Transalp driving till Sremska Mitrovica with a special gift: a red rose. Alessandro Arbitrio is one of the 20.000 italians that every year start a sentimental relationship with an extracomunitarian partner. His partner name is Tamara, she is serbian and off course the red rose is for her. "I will use my motocycle to meet my partner because in this way I will better represent the condition of our relationship under burocratic storms more dangerous of the wind and the rain".

The relationship between Tamara and Alessandro begins 4 years ago. The moto-tour will show to the people the fight that Alessandro Arbitrio, 44 years old, manager, started since the beginning using all the tools available. "The razzism is against some italian citizens: against who is having a sentimental relationship with no-EU partners. We are under discrimination related to other italian citizens.What an italian couple will say if they will be pushed to get married ?"

Yes, because when he will be able to do it (he is waiting for the divorce) Alessandro will get married with Tamara. But without feeling it "We feel good being together but we don't feel to get married so in a hurry because both of us has a divorce behind themself. At the end if the law will not change we will do it to be a 'normal' pair".

During this 4 years of fight for Tamara, Alessandro made a lot of battle and the last one in the post office : "Yes I was in queue all the night in front of the post office to present the documents to employ Tamara as a worker using the law 'decreto flussi 2006'. I was not alone there. I know a lot of people that was in queue trying to employ the no-EU partner". The other battles are regarding a lot of embassies: "Every time that Tamara wants to be in Italy she has to ask and get a touristic visa that when we are lucky is for 90 days per year. Moreover our embassy is fixing the meeting to present the documents after months and the visa is not garantee at all. In the past I argued with them so the situation is more difficult now. Thank to Schengen we asked 2 times the visa to the German embassy, 2 times to the Spanish, once to the Norway and once to Portugal. Is thousand of euros". Arbitrio hope to don't be alone. He would like that the day of his trip (he will fix the date soon) it will be a lot of people in Piazza del Popolo in Rome. Hoping that others will pass the borders with a red rose in hands. (glialtrinoi@repubblica.it)