NEW CRIMINAL PHENOMENON
It is called 'Archeomafia' and regards
art, antiques and museums.
In its report, Ecomafia
2000, Legambiente denounces that criminal organizations
cash 300 billion lire annually from aggressions against
Italy's cultural heritage.
Italy's heritage has seen the theft of more than half
a million artistic and archeological objects in the last
30 years.
It is believed that after drug trafficking, the 'art
business' is the most profitable, far outweighing that
of waste trafficking.
Severe measures are needed and archeological sites and
museums now insufficiently guarded will have to be presided.
Legambiente, however, declared itself satisfied of the
effect of government action in the area of illegal building.
The government's decision to send bulldozers to sites
around Italy where illegal building flourished stemmed
the flow of cement across green areas.
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