The remembrance day for people thrown into karst pits known as foibe in Slovenia and western Croatia was declared in March 2004 with a nearly unanimous decision by the Italian parliament.
In Rome, Senate President Marcello Pera, three ministers and Mayor Walter Veltroni laid a wreath at the Altar of the Homeland.
A special commemoration was held by the Basovizza pit near Trieste, where the minister for communications, Mario Landolfi, told the press that "peace is created through justice, and Europe cannot be created without eliminating all the roots of disputes which still exist and which, unfortunately, refer to events on the east Italian border".
"It is necessary that others too, apart from Italy, admit the truth and take action," ANSA quoted Landolfi as saying.
Asked by a reporter about a possible meeting between the presidents of Slovenia, Croatia, and Italy, Landolfi said everything was welcome if it helped to come out of the mire and led to the settlement of issues which refer to the past, among which is the issue of Italian refugees' real estate.
Landolfi said it was necessary to arrive at a just solution which would provide the basis for long term good neighbourly relations.
Speaking at a ceremony in Rome, Foreign Minister Gianfranco Fini said that Italy wanted Croatia's integration into Europe but that Croatia must first come to terms with the past, according to ANSA.
In the government, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi addressed representatives of associations of esuli, Italian refugees who left the Croatian Istria and Dalmatia regions at the end of World War Two.
"Regarding damages to esuli, Slovenia decided to deposit the amount determined in contracts in an international bank in Luxembourg. Croatia hasn't done this yet. Croatia must adapt to the EU and we can use our position. Croatia can join (the EU) only if our country agrees. We intend to use the situation so that we can eliminate discrimination (against Italians) in the purchase of real estate (in Croatia). We must insist on that so the Croatian government will put to parliament the adoption of an appropriate provision," Berlusconi was quoted as saying by La Repubblica daily on its web site.
The foibe victims remembrance day was accompanied by exhibitions, lectures and initiatives supported, in many cases, by esuli associations and branches of Deputy PM Gianfranco Fini's National Alliance party.
Although the day was commemorated throughout the country, some institutions saw disputes between organisers and Fini's party and some Italian politicians who maintain that the party distorts and politicises history.