prisoner noun pris·on·er ˈpriz-nər ˈpri-zᵊn-ər
A prisoner is a person deprived of liberty and kept under involuntary restraint, confinement, or custody.
If you’re reading this, it means we were colleagues at some point, are part of the same community, or you can relate to the issue I’m writing about.
Knowing you have good friends by your side is comforting, but I prefer not to complain about just anything. This is not a vent, rather an explanation of how I ended up missing on attending my third WordCamp Europe in Kraków, Poland.
Simply put, for the second year in a row, I’ve been stuck in a draining, nerve-racking bureaucratic loop. As a non-EU resident of Italy, I must renew my permit to stay – supposedly – every year. However, three months have passed since I last heard from the authorities. Since residents aren’t eligible for a visa – as the permit (imaginary in my case) grants us the right to travel freely across the EU/Schengen area – the only way to ensure I could make it to Poland on time was to get a temporary permit, a “provvisorio”. I was told this is no longer issued, without any further explanation, by a policeman who was not the friendliest, despite my tax money paying his salary.
So, I did what any desperate person would do and went to the immigration office again to ask for clarification on my case, as I have now also lost three months of the card’s one-year duration. I was denied entry and told – again by another rude serviceman, also paid by my tax money – that all I can do is wait because they do not know where my documents are nor when they will be ready.
As a consequence, not only could I not travel to see my family and friends back home this year, but I also might have to stay at home while the event I worked all year to organise takes place, without being able to make the trip and work on the ground, meet the lovely faces I look forward to, or have any chance to learn and grow as part of this. All because a disorganised and unjust system is run by inefficient, lazy and rude personnel.
Beyond all that, the constant uncertainty and the feeling of being held captive have taken a heavy psychological toll on me. It is extremely disheartening to do everything by the book, only to be met with such indifference and have your basic freedom stripped away.
I initially came to Italy to continue my studies after being accepted at one of the best universities in the country, a chance many people dream of getting. However, the inconsistency of the system made it a nightmare, enough to drive me away as fast as possible, and it keeps me up wondering: is this really worth my best years?
I am not listing my virtues, just how I feel any normal person should act whether at home or abroad. After all, having been here for three years, fluently speaking the language, and engaging in the local society, enjoying the city I’m in and the people being some of the kindest, I can safely call this place home, even if I never cared about passports or sought permanent residency. I have never broken a law nor missed a deadline. I work two jobs while studying and pay my taxes before I even put food on my table. Yet, all that normal human behaviour is countered by systemic disorganisation that treats such people in an inhuman way, especially with many of my Italian friends apologising and implying the system does this on purpose to drive away immigrants.
Fine, if that is the case, the system wins. I will be on my way out as soon as I am done with the degree I have invested time and money to pursue. As soon as I have my right to free movement given back, I will gladly leave this place. I’ll hopefully leave with a degree, memories with lovely people I’ve met along the way, and most importantly an answer: No, this wasn’t worth wasting my best years, hoping to close the Italy chapter as soon as possible, and to move forward to a place that respects its residents and treats them as humans. It’s embarrassing having to write this in 2026.
Here’s a counter I vibe-coded while writing this, on the train, that shows the percentage of me making it to WCEU 2026 on time: