U.Z.C. – The secret story

Following the end of World War II, the Italian Government acquired jurisdiction over two borderland territories, inhabited by large linguistic minorities, that were dangerously contended by two different neighboring countries. On one hand there was Trentino – Alto Adige (South Tyrol/ Südtirol), where the German-speaking community claimed their right to self-determination and wanted to be reunited with Austria; on the other, there was the Venezia-Giulia Region (Julian March), claimed by the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, led by General Tito. In order to face the threat to Italian unity in both regions, Italian Prime Minister Alcide De Gasperi created the UZC, “Ufficio Zone di Confine” (Agency for the Supervision of Borderland Territories), a special agency that operated in both territories. The control of the agency fell in the hands of the young Giulio Andreotti, member of the Constituent Assembly and Undersecretary of the Council of Ministers of Italy. In 1946 the UZC Agency was established and was active until 1954 with the aim to defend Italian National identity and sovereignty in the territories that were most impacted by nationalistic issues, and, in the case of Trieste – Capital of the Julian March and the entire Friuli-Venezia Julia region – where political and ideological tensions were hardest.

The aim of the documentary is to follow the difficult transition of these disputed territories in the aftermath of WWII and the means used by the newly formed Italian Republic to maintain its territorial integrity, by not only dealing with the “public” official activities of UZC Agency, but also by focusing on its “confidential” activities.