The voluntary civil protection, in recent years become a national phenomenon lend a hand. "It turned out on those occasions that what was missing was the solidarity of the people, but an organized system of public who could use it and appreciate it. In this sense, they moved the allegations of President Sandro Pertini, who, on the occasion of the earthquake ' Irpinia, denounced, addressing the nation, irresponsibility, inertia, delays of a disorganized public administration and unable to bring relief to the disaster with the immediacy demanded. who assumed character of participation and organization particularly significant phenomenon is born under the influence of large emergencies that have occurred in Italy from the flood of Florence in 1966 to the earthquakes of Friuli and Irpinia. At these events occurred, for the first time after the war, a large spontaneous mobilization of people of all ages and condition, flocked in their thousands from all over the country in disaster areas to make themselves available and "
The same President Appeals to Italians, with these words:
"I want extend to you an appeal of Italian and Italian, without rhetoric, rising from my heart .... here is not about politics, this has to do with human solidarity, all Italians and Italian must be mobilized to go to the rescue of these brothers affected by this disaster. "
Since then it has begun the 'Volunteering rise of civil protection, a modern expression of the collective consciousness of the duty of solidarity, to bring together religious and secular forces of nature , joined in a common sense of urgency to rescue those in need and to affirm, in the greater sharing of hardship and toil, the right to be helped with the professionalism that each volunteer is a carrier and with the love that show all the volunteers choosing, voluntarily and freely to run to the aid of anyone who needs them. Over the past decade, an enlightened legislation has recognized the value of volunteering associated (Framework Law 266/91), as an expression of solidarity, participation and pluralism, encouraging and supporting both culture and organizational development.
When in 1992 was established by Law 225/92, the National Civil Protection Service , including voluntary organizations has been explicitly recognized the role of "structure national operators, part of the public system, like other institutional components such as the National Body of Fire Brigades, the Armed Forces, Police Forces, the State Forestry Corps, etc.. The growth of the voluntary civil protection is continuous, healthy growth throughout the country.
The strong opening of the innovative Civil Protection Department of the Prime Minister, and systematic attention to minimizing the "barriers" between voluntary bureaucratic and the State, also made of daily administrative decisions and courageous, has contributed to the birth of a national identity of volunteering Civil Protection, which proved crucial in major emergencies in recent years, and which now tends to bring back and re-create, even as a result of the reforms on administrative decentralization (D. Lgv. 112/98), within the self (regions, provinces and municipalities).
The shared objective with the voluntary associations of civil protection is to create a service in each territory for a speedy response to the needs of civil protection, capable of integrated operations, where appropriate, with other levels of assistance provided in organizing the National System of Civil Protection (vertical subsidiarity), making the most of the forces of active citizenship and organized this in every town in Italy (horizontal subsidiarity), in full integration with the institutional forces in the area.
Volunteer organizations willing to cooperate in the public system of civil protection, enroll in special books or records, regional and national.
At the moment, in the National Civil Protection Department are recorded about two thousand five hundred organizations (including the so-called "communal groups" emerged in some Italian regions), for a total of over one million three hundred thousand volunteers
These national associations and local associations, among them of their coordinates on the territory of municipalities, provinces and regions, so as to form, if necessary, a single structure easy and quick to call for assistance. The higher the level of organization of the associations are stronger their effectiveness and independence. available. Of these, sixty thousand are ready to intervene in a matter of minutes on its territory, while some three hundred thousand are ready to intervene within hours.
Inside voluntary organizations exist all the professionalism of modern society, with all trades and this mix is \u200b\u200ba resource, both in numbers and quality, fundamental especially in large emergencies, when the success of interventions depends on the contribution of many different specializations (from doctors to engineers, nurses, electricians, cooks to carpenters). Some organizations have chosen the path of a specific specialization, such as groups of divers and dog lovers, amateur groups, cavers, volunteering for fire fighting.
Although the work of volunteers is absolutely free , the legislature has taken steps to protect the volunteer workers: when used in civil protection activities they do not lose the day, which is reimbursed by the State to the employer, public and private. The
irreplaceable role now assumed by the voluntary civil protection, in its role as natural guardian of each territory and strength of civil protection and security of each community, not only deserves full recognition, but also a growing public support for the equipment of means, materials, equipment, training, preparation and updating, as necessary for the optimal use of energy that are offered to help the community.
