"It's a shame, but it will be inevitable." The parish community of Sant'Anna is even considering closing the church steps with an artistic fence to protect them from what they call "daily assaults" and a state of decay that, according to parishioners, has been dragging on for years. This is the harshest passage in the document released after the latest edition of the international Sa Ruga festival, the event that enlivens the streets of Stampace, but which also brings the relationship with residents and the daily management of the neighborhood back to the forefront.
Yesterday, controversy erupted following the conclusion of the event that drew thousands of people to the neighborhood, which was closed to traffic for three days, sparking discontent among some residents. The Archconfraternity of Sant'Efisio admitted denying the historic square to the jugglers of Sa Ruga, calling it a "demonstration incompatible" with the activities of the Stampace religious association. The association harshly attacked the decision to also close off the martyr's church: "It's like having arrested Sant'Efisio again," declared the organizers, who also acknowledged the inconvenience, adding that they are in discussions with the municipality regarding the opening of the parking lots of the San Giovanni di Dio and the former military hospital to neighborhood residents. In the evening , Marta Mereu, president of the municipal culture commission, defended the event, also in an attempt to mend the rift .
But today, after Sant'Efisio, another religious institution in the neighborhood is taking decisive action: the parish of Sant'Anna . The community first specifies that it has never questioned the cultural and artistic value of the event. " No one, neither the parishioners of Sant'Anna nor, as far as we know, the Archconfraternity of Sant'Efisio, has ever questioned the value and artistic and cultural quality of the 'Sa Ruga' event ," the document states. Any criticism, the signatories add, remained within the scope of the " legitimate and sacrosanct right to criticism and civil dissent ."
The protest concerns the inconvenience caused to the neighborhood during the three days of the demonstration and, above all, what is described as a persistent lack of attention towards Stampace Alto during the rest of the year.
The document extends its discussion to all of Stampace's problems and directly implicates the municipal administration. The first issue raised concerns the quadrilateral area between Via Ospedale, Via Santa Margherita, and Via Azuni . According to the parish, the neighborhood lacks effective access control, cameras at entrances, and constant police surveillance. The community complains about a sporadic presence of local police, which becomes widespread during events, with parking restrictions, traffic closures, barriers, and traffic restrictions.
Hence the question posed to the municipal administrators: " Why must the Stampace Alto neighborhood always and exclusively have to endure inconveniences, restrictions, and sanctions such as the total closure of the entire neighborhood for three days over an entire weekend? "
The parish even raises the possibility of moving the event to other neighborhoods in the city. " After thirteen years, thirteen years, wouldn't it be appropriate to also offer this spectacle to the residents of Marina, Castello, Villanova, Is Mirrionis, Cep, and Sant'Elia ?" the text reads. A question with which the signatories intend to highlight the burden of the restrictions, which, in their opinion, would still fall on the same residents.
The most sensitive issue concerns the church steps, which the community identifies as private property of the Collegiate Church. According to parishioners, the space has been the target of vandalism for years, especially at night, when groups of people use it as a meeting place and to consume food and drinks, leaving behind dirt and waste.
The document also denounces incidents involving fireworks, loud noises, and improper use of the steps, to the point where, according to the community, they transformed them into a sort of unruly gathering place.
The complaint extends to the condition of the neighborhood's streets, particularly Via Azuni , where parishioners complain of dirt and the deterioration of the paving stones. The complaint also includes what they claim are insufficient repairs carried out during Holy Week and the Vespiglia festival.
But once again, the steps are the focus of the protest. "Why is Stampace Alto remembered only on these occasions and not on the nights when the neighborhood (and especially the beloved Sant'Anna steps) is ravaged by hordes of modern-day vandals, transformed into a landfill and an open-air urinal?" the signatories ask, directly implicating the municipal administration.
Another contested element is the lack of adequate involvement of residents in the organization of the 2026 edition . According to the parishioners, the residents learned of the event mainly through the no-parking and no-entry signs placed in the streets, along with the barriers and the presence of security personnel .
"No communication. Not even a scrap of a poster has arrived at the parish," the document reads, despite the steps being made available for performances for three evenings.
The community also claims that it was difficult to meet local children, teenagers, and young people in the audience, a factor interpreted as a sign of residents' lack of involvement in initiatives that directly affect their place of residence.
The final part of the document contains the announcement that most clearly demonstrates the parishioners' stance: the possibility of closing the steps with an artistic fence to protect them from the reported incidents . This could be a problem for Sa Ruga because the Sant'Anna steps are one of the main venues for the event.
The community recognizes that this would be a painful choice: "Even if this choice sounds like a defeat (walls and barriers are always an unconditional surrender...), it is still an extreme act of self-defense."
The final passage is clear: " The parish community is studying – precisely to protect it from the daily attacks to which, defenseless, it must be subjected – the closure of the Sant'Anna Staircase with an artistic gate ."
Then, a few words that sum up the community's bitterness: "It's a shame, but it will be inevitable. With all due respect to everyone."