Police upset over color of Covid masks

The Italian police union has sent a letter to the Interior Ministry insisting the pink Covid-19 masks with which officers have been issued risk damaging their reputation.

Law enforcement officers’ masks should be black, white, or blue, in keeping with their uniform, the union asserted this week.

They asked why, two years into the pandemic, it hadn’t been possible to source more suitable alternatives.

“We do not understand the reason behind the purchase of masks in a color that would appear, at first sight, to be unsuitable for our administration,” the letter reads. It describes the pink mask provision as “puzzling.”

According to Italian media outlets, union leader Osvaldo Paoloni maintains that part of the oath of a police officer is to wear the uniform with decorum at all times and the color of the provided masks undermines that.

“We believe that clothing and accessories used must be appropriate and consistent with the uniform,” he stated. 

The Interior Ministry is yet to comment on the matter.