Berlusconi's Mussolini remark sets off outrage
Source: AFP |
January 28, 2013, Monday
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ITALY'S gaffe-prone former premier Silvio Berlusconi sparked outrage yesterday with remarks praising wartime dictator Benito Mussolini despite Il Duce's persecution of Jews and allowing thousands to be deported to Auschwitz.
"The racial laws were the worst mistake of a leader, Mussolini, who however did good things in so many other areas," Berlusconi, who is angling for a return to politics in elections next month, said on the sidelines of a Holocaust Remembrance day ceremony in Milan.
Starting in 1938, Mussolini promulgated a series of decrees known collectively as racial laws that barred Jews from the civil service, the armed forces and the National Fascist Party. The laws also banned intermarriage.
Mussolini's Italy participated in the deportation of Jews to the Auschwitz death camp, and 7,500 are estimated to have been victims of the Holocaust.
Italy "does not have the same responsibilities as Germany," added Berlusconi, a billionaire media tycoon known for his outspoken outbursts.
On Saturday, Chancellor Angela Merkel said Germany had "an everlasting responsibility for the crimes of (the Nazis)."
In Italy, Berlusconi's remarks sparked outrage among center-left politicians.
Disgrace and insult
"Berlusconi's words are a disgrace and an insult to history and memory. He should apologize to the Italian people today," Dario Francheschini, head of the center-left Democratic Party which is the front-runner ahead of the February poll, said in a Twitter message.
Left-wing MEP Debora Serracchiani said in a statement: "It is simply disgusting that even on Remembrance Day Berlusconi goes about rehabilitating the actions of the dictator who dragged Italy into the Second World War."
She added: "By so doing, Berlusconi bears a very heavy moral and political responsibility," noting that the media baron "has wide media influence and heads a party that wants to govern".
Antonio Di Petro, head of the small anti-corruption Italy of Values party, dismissed Berlusconi as "nothing more than a caricature" of Mussolini.
The flamboyant, scandal-plagued Berlusconi, who has had three stints as prime minister, heads the center-right People of Freedom Party but has not decided whether to seek a fourth term or settle for a cabinet post if the party wins in February.
"The racial laws were the worst mistake of a leader, Mussolini, who however did good things in so many other areas," Berlusconi, who is angling for a return to politics in elections next month, said on the sidelines of a Holocaust Remembrance day ceremony in Milan.
Starting in 1938, Mussolini promulgated a series of decrees known collectively as racial laws that barred Jews from the civil service, the armed forces and the National Fascist Party. The laws also banned intermarriage.
Mussolini's Italy participated in the deportation of Jews to the Auschwitz death camp, and 7,500 are estimated to have been victims of the Holocaust.
Italy "does not have the same responsibilities as Germany," added Berlusconi, a billionaire media tycoon known for his outspoken outbursts.
On Saturday, Chancellor Angela Merkel said Germany had "an everlasting responsibility for the crimes of (the Nazis)."
In Italy, Berlusconi's remarks sparked outrage among center-left politicians.
Disgrace and insult
"Berlusconi's words are a disgrace and an insult to history and memory. He should apologize to the Italian people today," Dario Francheschini, head of the center-left Democratic Party which is the front-runner ahead of the February poll, said in a Twitter message.
Left-wing MEP Debora Serracchiani said in a statement: "It is simply disgusting that even on Remembrance Day Berlusconi goes about rehabilitating the actions of the dictator who dragged Italy into the Second World War."
She added: "By so doing, Berlusconi bears a very heavy moral and political responsibility," noting that the media baron "has wide media influence and heads a party that wants to govern".
Antonio Di Petro, head of the small anti-corruption Italy of Values party, dismissed Berlusconi as "nothing more than a caricature" of Mussolini.
The flamboyant, scandal-plagued Berlusconi, who has had three stints as prime minister, heads the center-right People of Freedom Party but has not decided whether to seek a fourth term or settle for a cabinet post if the party wins in February.
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