Director-General/Executive Director
Your Excellency, dear friend Minister Nordio,
Welcome to Vienna,
Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,
Buon pomeriggio, benvenuti a tutti, grazie per essere qui per l’inaugurazione di questa mostra fotográfica.
The word ‘inspiring’ is very often used, and some would argue that it is overused, in many of our events.
But there is no better word to describe the lives and legacies of Judges Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino.
In life, they took historic strides against the mafia. In death, they moved the world to come together and act against organized crime.
Last year, I was privileged to visit the courtroom in Palermo where judges Falcone and Borsellino led the courageous fight against the mafia.
It was a powerful reminder that all of us who stand against organized crime follow in the footsteps of giants, and of our responsibility to live up to their legacy.
That legacy lives on in the Palermo Convention. It lives on in every gathering of this Conference of Parties, and in every act we take to cooperate against organized crime.
And it lives on in the images on display today.
I want to congratulate and thank the photographers, historians and collaborators who have made this exhibition possible through their passion and dedication.
And I wish to extend my sincerest appreciation to Minister Nordio, and to the Italian government, and particularly the Ministries of Justice, Interior, and Foreign Affairs, for bringing this exhibition to Vienna.
I also want to take this opportunity to thank the Italian government for its strong engagement with the UN throughout Italy’s Presidency of the G7, and I am proud to have been part of that engagement.
I encourage you to take your time to tour the exhibition, to look beyond the surface and to consider the lessons that the Italian experience holds for the world.
An image is worth a thousand words, and every one of these images is a profound story.
Thank you.
