ROMMEL STREET, SICILY

Field Marshal Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel
Image:  Wikimedia Commons

The Mayor of Villabate, a town of 20,450 inhabitants situated eight kilometres southeast of Palermo, has caused something of a "desert storm" by publishing a proposal to name a street in the town after "Desert Fox" Field Marshal Rommel.  The Mayor, Gaetano Di Chiara, says that Rommel deserves to be remembered not as a Nazi but because of his probable involvement in the plot against Hitler and subsequent suicide.

This idea, as you may imagine, has made nationwide headlines but the Mayor has caused a further shock by suggesting that another street in the town be named after Manfred von Richthofen, the "Red Baron"of World War 1.  Mr Di Chiara believes that von Richthofen should be thus honoured because of his daring aviation exploits.

One of the Mayor's opponents is Councillor Antonio Retaggio who has been trying for some time to have a street in Villabate named after anti-Mafia campaigner Giuseppe [Peppino] Impastato who came from neighbouring Cinisi and was killed in 1978.  Mr Retaggio also believes that the town should honour its soldier-hero Giovanni Militello who was captured on the Russian Front and sent to Altengrabow prison camp during World War 11.

Do you think that these streets should be named after Rommel and von Richthofen?