Italian police oppose pink mouth masks: ‘They don’t do justice to the uniform’

The surprise was great when boxes of new mouth masks were emptied out in police stations across Italy; The masks were pink. In, among others, Bologna, Venice and Syracuse in Sicily, customers refuse to wear masks. They say “they don’t do justice to the uniform.”

“With tact and respect”

Since the beginning of January, the wearing of a medical type FFP2 face mask has been made mandatory in all interior regions of Italy. So two police officers on patrol will have to wear this mask in the car and somewhere inside.

But pink really thrives on it light blue From cars and dark blue to uniforms, according to the SAP police union. The reason why the union asked the chief of police, Lamberto Giannini, for clarification on the extradition. “Based on the oath taken, the uniform shall be worn with decency and respect for the position,” the union wrote in a letter. “Pink detracts from power.”

Neutral colors

The union is calling for Giannini to intervene immediately and to provide the police with masks of more neutral colors “such as white, blue or black”.

On the SAP police union’s Facebook page, reactions to the message were more moderate. “It’s important that we get it, color doesn’t matter,” one wrote. Another: “I didn’t know we had masks for every shift, or are those things in bags that we can only use if we come into contact with someone who has tested positive for the virus?”

Lack of protective equipment

Since the beginning of the epidemic, the Italian police, especially prison staff, have complained about the lack of protective equipment. Earlier this week, the guards’ union complained that the 6,000 FFP2 masks provided were not enough for all employees.

Neither the Interior Ministry nor police chief Giannini would comment on the report.