Indipendenza Veneta, a pro-independence political movement, says it expects several thousand people to turn up for the rally in the centre of the lagoon city.
It has drawn inspiration from the examples of Scotland and Catalonia, saying more and more regions in Europe are seeking independence from central government control.
Activists dream of carving out a new country in north-eastern Italy which would comprise Venice, the surrounding region of Veneto and parts of the regions of Lombardy, Trentino and Friuli-Venezia Giulia.
It would roughly conform to the historic boundaries of the Venetian Republic, once a prosperous trading power, and would encompass about five million people.
Recent surveys show widespread support for independence among Venetians, who want the issue put to a referendum. » | Nick Squires, Rome | Friday, October 05, 2012
