Neuchâtel's close-knit Italian community in shock

Two people died on Wednesday when a coach bringing Italian football supporters from Neuchâtel to a Champions League match in Turin crashed in northern Italy. The trip was organized by the 'Juventus club of Neuchâtel', a fan club run by Italian immigrants in the area. The Italian community in the canton is large and well organized around a huge variety of social clubs. In Neuchâtel, one immigrant out two is either Portuguese or Italian. Approximately 8,800 Italians live in the canton according to an official 2006 survey, and many of them congregate in more than 40 Italian-run restaurants or cafés and 33 associations. That is why the Italian flag - which happens to have a similar red, white and green tricolour to the canton's official shield - is often seen hanging from window ledges alongside the Swiss one when major sports events such as football matches take place. The coach that crashed on Wednesday was carrying a large number of  Italians who live in Neuchâtel. 
On Thursday  the community was in a state of shock. “It makes me sad and angry towards the bus-company. How can you let a 81 years old man drives a bus ?”, asked Fabrizio, a young Italian from the small town of Le Locle.
 
Magdalena Perrenoud, president of the Italian citizen committee of Neuchâtel, told Swisster:  “Every Italian is affected. As soon as we knew, we were extremely shocked. Many Italians called me to express their sadness."

 
The Juventus Neuchâtel supporters club is well known among the Italian community. Its main activity consist in providing its members with the opportunity to follow the renowned Turin football club, Juventus, in the Italian championship and Champion’s League. For less than 200 francs, members of the club have access to the stadium in the northwest Italian city and travel is included. The next trips were planned for Juventus against Roma on November 1, and against Milan on December 14.
Sports and football in particular are prime rallying point for the local Italians. The Milan-Neuchâtel fan club and Inter Milan-Neuchâtel fan clubs are also very active, and often gather for il posticipio, the Sunday evening football match. The café Le cercle national in the city of Neuchâtel and the Royal Pub in Saint-Blaise are often crowded on Sundays evening.  
Besides football, there is Boccie, a northern Italian form of petanque or bowls. Three clubs cater for enthusaists and in summer, many Italians gather in local squares to play the game.
Other associations also maintain strong ties between the local Italians. The San Vincenzo de Paoli association last month celebrated its 50th anniversary. It was created in 1958 to help Italian immigrants to settle in Switzerland. Every week, about 20 members of the association visit Italians in hospital or people that are very sick at home.
 
The Italian citizen committee forms the core network for Italians living in canton Neuchâtel. Next Monday, they are due to meet at a city hall in Neuchâtel to discuss the consequences of a 60 percent cut in the Italian foreign ministry's budget for expats. Italian Senator Claudio Micheloni - one of the first elected representatives of the country's huge migrant community abroad - will be there. Micheloni's parents moved to Switzerland in 1960. The committee is also working on Italian Christmas celebrations in December when all the associations and Italian children will gather at the University.
The biggest wave of immigration from Italy to Switzerland occurred in the 1960s and 1970s. Today Italians form is the largest single national group in Switzerland with more than 291,000 people, even though their number has fallen in recent years. They even outnumber the number of native Swiss-Italian speakers from the canton of Ticino in southern Switzerland, and are organised in a similar manner to those in Neuchâtel throughout the country.

Even if Italians are well integrated or settled  - many married Swiss partners, or have taken Swiss nationality as well  - “we have not forgetten where we come from,” Magdalena Perrenoud insisted.
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