Welcome Guest   |  Login   |   Signup
JG Logo
Sat, May 26, 2012
Archive Search

Italy's Berlusconi Remains in Power After Tense Confidence Vote
December 14, 2010

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, right, greeting senators prior to a crucial confidence vote later in the day at the Parliament in Rome. Italy was on tenterhooks as the beleaguered leader faced a crucial referendum that could bring down his government. (AFP Photo/Filippo Monteforte) Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, right, greeting senators prior to a crucial confidence vote later in the day at the Parliament in Rome. Italy was on tenterhooks as the beleaguered leader faced a crucial referendum that could bring down his government. (AFP Photo/Filippo Monteforte)
Share This Page
2
0
0
0
Share with google+ :


Post a comment
Please login to post comment

Comments

Be the first to write your opinion!

Rome. Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi confirmed his status as one Italy’s great survivors on Tuesday, winning a key confidence vote after brushing off scandals that have plagued his 16-year political career.

One of the world’s most flamboyant and controversial leaders, the 74-year-old Berlusconi snatched victory in Parliament from a position of weakness following the rebellion of his once-loyal ally, speaker of Parliament Gianfranco Fini.

The outspoken media and construction industry tycoon burst onto a corruption-ridden political scene in the early 1990s, winning parliamentary elections in 1994 with a new party called Forza Italia (“Go Italy”).

His populist style earned him the adoration of part of the Italian public, but he is loathed by others and has been increasingly dogged in recent years by sleaze scandals and a series of embarrassing international gaffes.

His political nous — and, his critics would say, his powerful role in Italy’s media industry — have allowed Berlusconi to survive the notorious rough and tumble of Italian politics for nearly two decades.

Berlusconi has been charged with corruption in connection with a bribe payment in return for witness evidence favorable to the prime minister, but he escaped sentencing because the case had expired under a 10-year statute of limitations.

Despite numerous other charges, he has never been convicted of any crime.

He was estimated to be Italy’s wealthiest person between 1996 and 2008. He is now Italy’s third richest.

He likes to play up his Latin-lover persona, and some of his most damaging scandals have involved a parade of alluring young women.

His second wife, Veronica Lario, filed for divorce after some lurid allegations emerged last year.

Among the prime minister’s most shocking blunders have been likening a German member of the European Parliament to a Nazi concentration camp guard and calling newly elected US President Barack Obama “sun tanned.”

His first stint as prime minister in 1994 lasted only a few months.

In 2001, he won elections after a heavy media campaign.

The media magnate remained in power until 2006 in the longest premiership in the history of post-war Italy.

He has been credited by some with ensuring stability, but critics said Berlusconi’s stewardship spelled disaster for the country’s public accounts.

Berlusconi defied his critics and opponents to win once more in 2008.

Many critics and analysts have predicted his demise over the past two years because of a series of corruption and sex scandals, including most recently allegations over his relationship with a nightclub dancer called Ruby.

The prime minister has dismissed the allegations as “colossal lies.”

 
Agence France-Presse