by Vincenzo Sparviero
CELLINO SAN MARCO – He was denied a driver's license renewal because he was gay: a sensational case of homophobia, according to the Radicals, who yesterday submitted a parliamentary question, making the story of Cristian Friscina, a 33-year-old from Cellino, a national issue.
«Less than a month ago, the Catania Court, in a second-instance judgment, ordered the Ministry of Defense and Transport to pay a whopping €20,000 in compensation to a gay Sicilian man who had been denied a driving license because of his sexual orientation. Today, it's the turn of a young gay man from Brindisi, to whom we express our deepest sympathy and solidarity, to be denied the renewal of his driving license based on a communication sent by the Bari Military Hospital.
Paolo Patanè, national president of Arcigay, emphasizes this.
«"The young man from Puglia had been sent to the military hospital after he came out as homosexual during his medical examination for military service," he added. "The medical report revealed conditions that could compromise driving safety, and the boy's homosexuality would raise doubts about whether he still meets the physical and mental fitness requirements for driving a license.".
«"It's pure ignorance: for years," Patanè continues, "homosexuality has no longer been considered a pathology, and it's time everyone finally became aware of it.".
«"The repeated case of a homosexual being denied a driving license, beyond pure discriminatory folly, is illustrative of a country in a state of perpetual confusion. Radical MPs yesterday submitted an urgent parliamentary question to the Minister of Transport and Defense. We demand," he concludes, "that the Minister for Equal Opportunities take immediate action to eliminate this insane discrimination to protect this latest victim of homophobic delusion.".
Cristian Friscina – a graduate in Communication Sciences, city secretary of the "SEL" party and a job at the Curtipetrizzilandia amusement park (on the estate of Franco Carrisi, brother of singer Al Bano, in Cellino) – had filed an appeal through his superiors against the decision not to renew his license.
«"Just yesterday," the young man explains, "I received a note mentioning that my appeal had been granted. I don't know if this means I've resolved my issues; I need to talk to my lawyer.".
This young man's problems began when he presented documentation certifying his homosexuality and was thus "exempted" from military service. The documents were then forwarded to the Ministry of Transport, which, when it came time to renew his license—after ten years—alleged a lack of "psycho-physical driving ability" related to his gay status.
Friscina discovered this almost by chance, when he was actually told that his renewal application had a "block".
«The “block” – says Friscina – was linked to the realization that during the medical examination for military service I had declared myself gay».
An outing that almost left him stranded after ten years.
«"I've had my license since 1999 and I've never had an accident or received a ticket," he says. "According to the documentation, I shouldn't get a regular license but one issued to people with disabilities: this is truly discrimination.".
