‘Hanger war’ and more: Chinese merchants fight over logistics turf in Prato, Italy
In the city of Prato in Tuscany, Italy, incidents of crime involving the Chinese mafia are on the rise, not least in the the textile industry where feuds such as a “hanger war” among Chinese manufacturers have taken place. While the key fight is in the logistics arena, the overall atmosphere of tension has local officials on the alert. Italian academic Alessandro Albana surveys the situation.
For people who are not born and raised in Italy, Tuscany likely brings to mind the artistic elegance of Florence, the uniqueness of the bending tower of Pisa and the beauty of the green hills of Chianti. The city of Prato may be very much unknown to them, even though it is among one of the urban centres of the region with very distinctive characteristics.
A small, pleasant city with several architectural places of interest, Prato sits less than 20 km (12.5 miles) away from Florence. The establishment and development of a blossoming textile sector is a distinctive factor in the history of Prato; the textile district of the city is, to this day, the largest in Europe.
Against this backdrop, since the late 1980s, the city has become the destination for an increasing number of Chinese migrant workers, mainly from Zhejiang and Fujian. Currently, over one tenth of the urban population are of Chinese origin, making Prato the Italian city with the highest Chinese/Italian population ratio. In the decades that followed the early arrivals of Chinese migrants, Chinese entrepreneurs took over the local textile industry, acquiring or establishing almost the entire existing fast fashion firms in the city.
Chinese migrants were mainly seen as a threat in terms of economic security, but seemed not to represent a relevant issue as far as public safety was concerned.
From economic to crime and safety concerns
In Prato, the presence of a large Chinese community with a vibrant economic momentum raised concerns that local Italian firms and enterprises, if not entire industries, might be taken over by Chinese agents. But in the city, as well as within the wider public debate, seldom was the presence of the Chinese correlated with public safety or crime. From a (rather widespread) conservative-populist perspective, Chinese migrants were mainly seen as a threat in terms of economic security, but seemed not to represent a relevant issue as far as public safety was concerned.
During the last few years, however, Prato has witnessed a surge of alarming and unprecedented offences involving Chinese citizens, firms and entrepreneurs within the industrial district. Investigations on such offences are underway, but strictly secretive. According to public prosecutor Luca Tescaroli, violence escalated since June 2024 in a distinctive way, revealing troubling similarities to Mafia organisations, which are of course well known and understood in Italy.
Salvatore Calleri, an adviser to the Italian Parliament Anti-Mafia Commission, provided little but crucial additional information. According to Calleri, the surge and radicalisations of violent acts are part of a feud involving a Chinese group that has been active in Prato and other parts of Italy for some time, against a “new” organisation, allegedly completely unfamiliar to Italian authorities.
... it is in logistics, rather than in the textile or fast fashion sectors, that the Chinese criminal organisations focus upon. The reason is pretty simple: the profitability of logistics is much higher, and Prato is a strategic spot for that industry.
Whereas it has not been possible to collect details and comprehensive information regarding the feud, authorities, journalists and activists who are familiar with the issue all agree that the radicalisation and increasing resort to violence are due to criminal groups’ ambition to control the logistic industry in the city. Currently, in fact, it is in logistics, rather than in the textile or fast fashion sectors, that the Chinese criminal organisations focus upon. The reason is pretty simple: the profitability of logistics is much higher, and Prato is a strategic spot for that industry.
Assaults on entrepreneurs and workers, and even arson attacks on factories and vehicles have become increasingly frequent in the area. According to a recent court verdict, in July 2024, six individuals arrived in Prato from China, assaulted a Chinese entrepreneur and were later convicted for attempted murder. In addition, there is an ongoing investigation into the potential involvement of Chinese criminal organisations headquartered in Prato in the homicide of two Chinese citizens in Rome in April this year.
Such episodes are but a few cases punctuating the spread of assaults and violence taking place within the Chinese fast fashion circles in Prato. Such facts have come to be related to what judicial authorities and media describe as the “coat hanger feud” or “hanger war”, whereby a few Chinese manufacturers in Prato took over the supply of coat hangers and other goods, demanding that other entrepreneurs and firms in the industry purchase such products from them. It has been portrayed as a systematic, mafia-style criminal mechanism which includes blackmail, threats and widespread violence targeting individuals and companies that do not comply.
... whereas the manpower in the district used to consist largely of Chinese workers, in recent years, most of the workers employed in the Chinese firms have come largely from other countries, especially from Pakistan.
Increasing scale of violence
“These events are not entirely new” contends Zheng Ningyuan — an activist and founder at Wuxu, an organisation operating several cultural and political initiatives in Prato — in an interview with the author. What has changed in the past years, according to Zheng, is the scale of violence, which has grown dramatically and become much more evident to the authorities and the local population.
The increasing resort to violence and a more assertive attitude from Chinese criminal organisations has emerged throughout a period of significant changes concerning the labour and ethnic landscape of the textile and other industries in Prato. In fact, whereas the manpower in the district used to consist largely of Chinese workers, in recent years, most of the workers employed in the Chinese firms have come largely from other countries, especially from Pakistan. Such processes contributed to trigger unprecedented worker mobilisations, including several strikes, against the systematic exploitation and widespread violation of labour rights committed by Chinese firms.
As worker protests grew, so did the response of the Chinese companies. Witnesses and evidence testify to workers and unionists being assaulted and beaten, either by their bosses or by unidentified individuals, allegedly — at least in some cases — affiliated to the Chinese mafia. Clashes have become so frequent and violent that, recently, two agents of a special branch of the Italian police were reportedly injured by 15 Chinese individuals trying to break into a sit-in involving workers.
Some believe that the establishment of such a prosecutor’s office might help authorities investigating Chinese criminal groups and make their activities more difficult to be conducted.
Law enforcement is not the only answer
If the atmosphere in the textile district of Prato is becoming increasingly tense, police and judicial authorities in the city strive to adjust to an evolving scenario. For instance, contrary to other cities in Italy, Prato lacks a public prosecutor’s office specialising in countering mafia-related activities. Some believe that the establishment of such a prosecutor’s office might help authorities investigating Chinese criminal groups and make their activities more difficult to be conducted. Yet addressing such issues requires more than just law and order.
In fact, according to Zheng, “judicial authorities alone are unlikely to be effective, especially when it comes to labour rights, where the unions play a key role” in understanding, mobilising and supporting workers.
In Prato, a city which has turned into the epitome of the Chinese presence in Italy, a new picture of the Chinese community seems to be emerging. Recently, according to Tescaroli, the hanger war seems to be de-escalating, at least as far as assault and violence are concerned. It remains to be seen whether such a calm is apparent and temporary or not. Most importantly, the world where the Chinese mafia in Prato has thrived is shrouded in mystery and poorly understood. It will take time, effort, skills and a great deal of commitment for Italian authorities, unions and civil society to understand, deal and confront that world, provided public interest to do so is actually there and will not falter soon.
