Euro Crisis Prompts Italian Village to Declare Independence

November 23, 2011

A general view of Filettino, Italy, a small town 70 km east of Rome that is trying to go independent and mint its own money in protest against government austerity cuts, August 2011. (file photo)

Italy's tough austerity drive includes plans to force local authorities to merge, in a bid to rein in public spending. The tiny village of Filettino faces such a prospect - but its mayor is fighting back. The town is bidding to become an autonomous principality with its own currency. And it might just stand a chance

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Deep in the rugged mountains east of Rome lies the quiet village of Filettino.

Not much has changed here for centuries. But the 554 residents are now part of a revolution in the making; Filettino is trying to break away from Italy.

Under the government’s tough $67-billion [50 billion euro] austerity package, all towns with fewer than 1,000 residents are being forced to merge with neighboring communities.

That would see Filettino’s Mayor Luca Sellari out of a job. So he’s leading the fight back.

“We want to manage our resources independently. This town is rich in natural resources and this could provide great economic opportunities. We have about 8,000 hectares of land, and forests that we could cut, but the state doesn’t allow us to do it,” he added. “We have water resources, but these are managed by a company in Rome, and we don’t receive any money."