The Italians are turning a page in their history: Giorgio Napolitano died this Friday in Rome. At 98 years old, the former President of the Republic embodied post-war political Italy. He was one of the major players in the Italian Communist Party’s transition to the West and Europe. Parliamentarian, minister, before becoming head of state for nine years, this man of the left had recorded the fall of Berlusconi and the establishment of rigor in the nation’s accounts.
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With our correspondent in Rome, Anne Tréca
For 70 years, Giorgio Napolitano guided the evolution of the left in Italy. Former leader of the Communist Party, in 1978 he was the first communist received in Washington. Against Moscow, the one Henry Kissinger called “ my favorite communist » had chosen European social democracy of which he became a fervent supporter.
The first elected communist to become President of the Republic, he was even re-elected as head of state. Which is very rare in Italy. In 2011, in the midst of the financial crisis, he took note of Berlusconi’s failure and replaced him with former European Commissioner Mario Monti. It was the era of “presidential governments”, unelected personalities chosen for their technical skills when Italy was on the verge of bankruptcy.
Enough to displease a part of the left for whom Napolitano twisted the arm of the Constitution by withdrawing from the mainly honorary powers hitherto given to the presidents of the Republic. But for most Italians, the country is today mourning a great statesman who knew how to save the country from bankruptcy.
The current President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, recalled the European commitment of the former member of the Parliament of Strasbourg, who led “ important battles for social development, peace and progress in Italy and Europe “. In a telegram to his widow, Pope Francis saluted a man who had devoted his political action to preserving “ unity and harmony ” from his country.