Silvio Berlusconi and his allies got "slapped in the face", again

Tuesday, June 13 2011. Italian Northern League's Roberto Calderoli states he's fed up with getting slapped in the face, as Silvio Berlusconi suffers the umpteenth defeat in a referendum.

Left-wingers celebrate victory in referendum

It's not a favourable period for Silvio Berlusconi. And it's not a favourable period for his allies. After the crushing local election defeat at the end of May – when both PdL (The People of Freedom) and Northern League reckoned a huge loss in votes – in last weekend Italians mass participation represented another overwhelming setback for the prime minister.

Calderoli (right) with Northern League's leader Umberto Bossi

Even though Berlusconi has downplayed the significance of the vote, Roberto Calderoli, member of the Senate of Italy and Minister for Legislative Simplification, is the one to speak out for his party: they are tired of being involved in Silvio's defeats.

In 2009 Silvio Berlusconi picked as one of his favourite pieces the resumption of nuclear power programme. Unluckily for him, just three months before the referendum, a huge earthquake – and an even more devastating tsunami – stroke Japan, creating one of the most serious incidents in the history of nuclear power in Fukushima. The final outcome of the incident still needs to be fully evaluated.

It's been relatively easy for the anti-nuclear movement – particularly strong in Italy – to reach (and exceed) the legal number of 50% of the voters plus one (indications shows that around 57% of the electorate took part in the referendum). Greenpeace called it a historic result, it comes few weeks after German chancellor Angela Merkel declared that Germany will cast nuclear power plants by 2022.

Actually Berlusconi tried anything in order to undermine the referendum results. Amongst his moves, he temporarily shelved his initiative for new power plants, then appealed against the referendum, saying that it was no longer needed (and hoping to avoid the defeat in the other three questions). But he did not succeed. Few days before the referendum – on June 7 – the Constitutional Court unanimously voted to let the referendum go ahead.

Bossi and Berlusconi: a friendship coming to an end?

And – as the prime minister knew already – it tuned out top become a major defeat for the forces of the Italian cabinet. The overwhelming majority (almost 95% of the voters) voted in favour of the four questions, related to the nuclear power, to the privatisation of water (two questions, voting “yes” meant saying rejecting it), and abrogation of the “legitimate impediment” (which allows the prime minister and cabinet ministers to avoid criminal trial's hearings).

Today the Rubygate trial will resume: other slaps in the offing?

Video from our YouTube Channel: Berluschannel 

Silvio Berlusconi and the biased journalists

Monday, May 23 2011. Looks like too many Italian journalists have a soft spot for Silvio Berlusconi, as the Italian Authority for Communications Guarantees fines 5 news service on different TV broadcasters for sympathising a bit too much with the prime minister.

RAI TG1's head: Minzolini

As everyone knows, Silvio Berlusconi is the ultimate defender of democracy and democratic rights, so you would think he would not approve a biased TV service.

On the other hand, after a Berlusconi's People of Freedom (PdL) party and its Northern League (Lega Nord) ally suffered setbacks in the first turn of local election in several Italian cities (including the financial capital Milan, Berlusconi's home town), he needs all the possible support in order to fight back the communist hordes flooding his beloved country (before final run-off of local voting will take place on May 29-30).

To start his counter-offensive against the reddish enemy, Silvio Berlusconi delivered a string of interviews on several TV channels, last Friday, in order to warn Italian citizens about the extremists' threat and trying to gather in votes from the right-wingers.

But the visibility Silvio Berlusconi is receiving is not fair, according to Autorità per le Garanzie nelle Comunicazioni (Authority for Communications Guarantees, commonly known with the acronym AGCM). That's why Agcom has fined the involved broadcaster, totalling 800,000 euro (approx £700,000).

The involved TV broadcasters are – more or less – under Berlusconi's control, belonging to state-owned RAI or Berlusconi's Mediaset: RAI TG1 (is lead by Augusto Minzolini, one of the most loyal journalist around), RAI TG2, Canale5 TG5, Rete4 TG4 (lead by most loyal and greatest Berlusconi-worshipper ever, Emilio Fede) and Studio Aperto (Italia1 news service, who's head is Mario Giordano, another long-time partisan).

Mediaset has already stated that they will appeal against Agcom's decision, and it's hard to think that Berlusconi would keep silent: the battle will linger on, until the end of the month.

Berlusconi's interview on Studio Aperto

Video from our YouTube Channel: Berluschannel