Roberto Saviano on the Kinahans, living under threat from the Mafia and similarities between Ireland and Italy
Journalist Roberto Saviano reflects on his life under police protection after exposing the Italian mafia in his book 'Gomorrah'. He discusses the cultural code of silence and the parallels between organized crime in Italy and Ireland.
Why it matters
Saviano's experience highlights the dangers faced by investigative journalists and the global reach of organized crime syndicates.
The moment Roberto Saviano ’s life changed was when he decided to speak some names aloud.
It was September 2006, he was a 26-year-old crime journalist, and he had just published Gomorrah, a book about the mafia’s stronghold in his home region of southern Italy which would become an international bestseller.
Saviano was an invited speaker at a pro-rule of law demonstration marking the start of the school year in the central square of Casal Di Principe, deep in the heartland of the Casalesi mafia clan where he grew up.
Looking out into the square, he noticed relatives of well-known mafia bosses among the young people who had gathered. He decided to break the omertà – the deeply rooted cultural code of silence that shields the mafia – and name the bosses aloud.
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