Mafia Biz in Italy

Опубликовано: 05 Февраль 2008

The Italian retailing association Confesercenti warned in an Oct. 22 report that Mafia extortion is spreading from small to larger businesses and that Mafia activity is expanding in the south of the country. 

The Mafia, involved in everything from food manufacture and construction to tourism and real estate, is a leading business in Italy, with a turnover of $120 billion per year, or seven percent of the country’s economy, according to a new report.
 

Confesercenti reports that 20 percent of Italian businesses pay regular fees to criminals in order to work undisturbed. In the south, the proportion is far higher. In Sicily, for example, eight out of 10 businesses regularly pay monthly protection to the Mafia.

 

The report named and shamed several of Italy’s large construction companies for allegedly ignoring organized crime. Confesercenti head Marco Venturi recommended this week that firms that report extortionists to the police should receive tax exemptions, that companies associated with the Mafia be disqualified from public contracts and that honest businesses create an “extortion-free” business association.