A town in northern Italy has been instructed to remove a road sign proclaiming its Christian values as it breaches the highway code.
Pontoglio, a small town of 7,000 residents in the north-west Italian region of Lombardy, put up the new sign below its official town marker. It set out for visitors and newcomers the exact standards of behaviour expected of them, as Breitbart London previously reported.
Now the Prefect of Brescia, Valerio Valenti, has told mayor Alessandro Seghezzi to scrap the controversial new signs claiming that they don’t comply with the highway code.
The offending signs are ‘brick’ coloured, which on Italian roads signify a local tourist attraction. No such venue is being advertised in this case, and therefore the town risks being fined for displaying them, reports Italian newspaper Giornale di Brescia.
The road sign reads: “Pontoglio, town of western culture and profound Christian tradition. Those not intending to respect this culture and local traditions will be invited to leave.”
The sign, which was put up with the blessing of the local council, is not explicitly aimed at any group but was nevertheless referred to locally as the “no Islam sign”. Centre-right Mayor Seghezzi explained his motivations for the sign in a letter in which he wrote it represented:
“…an invitation to respect the culture and traditions. A culture that is based on mutual respect: from the woman to music, from the costumes, from customs to the traditional rites. Respect for others, is for us, the first real form of civilisation and liberty.”
The Brescian branch of the General Investigations and Special Operations Division — the Italian law enforcement agency which investigates terrorism, organised crime and serious offences like kidnapping and extortion — has reported the matter to the local prosecutor who is said to be considering if any criminal offence has been committed.