One of Italy's largest Chinese communities says it is being unfairly penalized by the government's mandatory COVID-19 Green Pass, which does not recognize vaccines such as the Chinese Sinovac jab. 

The complaints come from the 25,000-strong Chinese community in the city of Prato, a hub for the textile industry. The Green Pass, which shows proof of immunity through vaccination, previous infection or a negative test, also does not recognize Russia's Sputnik V inoculation.

The issue has partly arisen because many have been vaccinated in China with Sinovac but it is not approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA), which dictates what drugs can be administered in the European Union.

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All employees in Italy must carry a Green Pass from October 15 and the legislation has triggered protests across several Italian cities. 

Luca Zhou Long, the head of Prato's Chinese community, wrote to Tuscany's President Eugenio Giani asking him to clear "the bureaucratic hurdle," which is now preventing many Chinese from going to work. 

"It is clear that this situation involves considerable difficulties for production, not due to a lack of vaccination but due to the impossibility to obtain the certificate," Long wrote in the letter, which was made public on Tuesday.

The only vaccines recognized for Italy's Green Pass are those made by Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca. The country's Prime Minister Mario Draghi has also personally expressed skepticism towards Sinovac's jab, saying in June: "The Chinese vaccine ... has shown itself not to be adequate." 

Representatives of the Italian medical authorities have previously vowed to resolve the issue. However, neither the government nor the Tuscan authorities have yet responded to Long's appeal. 

The Chinese community can draw hope from a similar situation in San Marino, a landlocked republic in northern Italy. San Marino has authorized the use of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine, while the Italian ambassador to Moscow, Giorgio Starace, said that Italy would not recognize Sputnik V at the national level without the consent of the EMA. 

Rome ruled earlier this week that residents of the enclave who work in Italy and were vaccinated with the Russian jab would be exempted from having to carry a Green Pass until December 31.