A day of suspension of lessons to allow Muslim students to celebrate Ramadan.
The decision of the school board of the Iqbal Masih comprehensive institute (photo) to close the school on April 10th, the day on which the conclusion of the Islamic anniversary is celebrated, has divided the population of Pioltello, a municipality characterized by a strong Islamic presence on the outskirts of Milan .
The school director Alessandro Fantoni ended up in the crosshairs, receiving threats and insults, and who today “is afraid”. The one who raised the fuss was MEP Silvia Sardone (Lega), who defined the decision as “worrying”, while for the mayor of Pioltello Ivonne Cosciotti (Pd) it was “an act of civility”. There will soon be a check decided by the Minister of Education Giuseppe Valditara , who today invited everyone to “have greater serenity”, explaining that “the regional school office will evaluate whether the decisions taken by the institute are consistent or not with the law”.
«Obviously schools cannot establish new holidays directly or indirectly» , he said: «My goal is to enforce the law, legality, the rules. The school calendar is defined by the Lombardy Region. Schools may make exceptions for proven needs linked to the educational offer plan”.
The Iqbal Masiq institute, a complex with three branches of 1300 students with a Muslim majority, is named after the twelve-year-old Pakistani boy killed in 1995 for his commitment against the exploitation of child labour.