Camillo De Pellegrin, mayor of Val di Zoldo, celebrated the approval, in the Senate, of the decree restricting the recognition of Italian citizenship by descent.
“For us today is a historic day,” he told the Veneto newspaper“The Gazetteer”. Indeed, it will be memorable — especially because of the hundreds of processes he will have to complete in the coming months.
The city, with just over 2.700 inhabitants (half are residents abroad), became a symbol of resistance against the volume of requests for recognition of Italian citizenship. Now, with the new law about to come into effect, the queue is likely to grow even more — with lawsuits already underway and many more planned.
Italian courts continue and will continue to recognize the rights of descendants based on constitutional interpretations that diverge from the new rule. And, as case law weighs in, the effect may be the same: the accumulated work will multiply.
“Historic day”, but what comes next?
The changes to the decree should only affect requests filed after March 27, 2025. Until then, the mayor — or the former mayor, depending on the pace of the elections — will have a thankless task: finishing old processes, dealing with new ones that will arrive from the courts, and preparing for a new flood of requests based on future decisions.
Meanwhile, in Zoldo Valley, tourism is not taking off, public services remain discreet, and the population is shrinking. Not even Italians dream of moving there.
But the mayor smiles. After all, few can say they had a “historic day” with so much paperwork waiting.
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