Writer, investigative journalist, playwright and Antimafia activist who was killed by the Mafia. He was the founder of the “I Sicilian” monthly magazine. His motto in life was: “is there any use in living if you don’t have the courage to fight?”
Born and raised in Palazzolo Acreide (Syracuse), Fava moved to Catania to study law graduating in 1947. In 1952 he became a professional journalist and joined, as editor in chief, the “Espresso Sera” daily newspaper in Catania — the main city on Sicily’s east coast. In 1980 he became editor in chief of the “Il Giornale del Saud” where he formed a team of young journalists that turned the paper into an independent, investigative journal. At the time, not much was known about the owners, but it became clear that some of them had connections with the Mafia. Fava was fired.
In 1983, Fava and his team of independent journalists founded the progressive monthly magazine “I Sicilian”. The magazine denounced the connections between Mafia, politics and business in Catania. In the first edition of I Siciliani Fava published an article “I quattro cavalieri dell’apocalisse mafiosa” (“The four horsemen of the Mafia apocalypse”), exposing the corruption and political influence peddling by the four Knights that tied together the local Mafia, high finance and political figures:Carmelo Costanzo, Francesco Finocchiaro, Mario Rendo and Gaetano Graci
On January 5, 1984, Fava was killed while he was waiting to pick up his granddaughter. The week before he had been a guest on national TV denouncing the sway the Mafia held in Parliament. In 1994, Maurizio Avola, a nephew of Santapaola, confessed the killing of Fava, and became a “pentito”. He also confessed some 70 other murders. Fava’s son, Claudio, is a Member of the European Parliament.
Read More:
1. Fondazione Giuseppe Fava, http://www.fondazionefava.it/sito/
2. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giuseppe_Fava
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