Liberal Reformers
Encyclopedia
Liberal Reformers was a minor libertarian
political party in Italy led by Benedetto Della Vedova
, a former President of the Italian Radicals
.
of those radicals that were opposed to the formation of the Rose in the Fist
alliance together with the Italian Democratic Socialists
, and instead supported an alliance with the House of Freedoms
. The party unites former Radicals, as many former members of the Italian Liberal Party
and of Forza Italia
.
After 2006 general election
(in which Della Vedova was elected MP on Forza Italia's list), the explicit aim of the grouping is to unite the Italian centre-right
into a single party and to strengthen liberal
and secular
positions in it. Liberal Reformers act both as a faction of Forza Italia both as a unifying agent of centre-right liberals.
In October 2006, Liberal Reformers launched a manifesto called "Give a libertarian soul to the centre-right" together with famous journalists (Vittorio Feltri
, Arturo Diaconale, Filippo Facci and Giordano Bruno Guerri), academics and politicians from both Forza Italia and National Alliance
.
On 1 November Della Vedova called on the Italian Radicals to join the centre-right in the next general election. Some days earlier, Della Vedova had wished that he, Marco Pannella
, Emma Bonino
and Daniele Capezzone
will found themselves together again in the centre-right. On 7 November, when Capezzone finally left the Radicals and the centre-left, Della Vedova opened the doors of Forza Italia and the centre-right for him.
In the 2008 Italian general election
RL were part of the list of The People of Freedom
(PdL) and had two deputies elected: Benedetto Della Vedova and Giuseppe Calderisi. Soon after the election, Daniele Capezzone, who had previously joined the centre-right, was appointed by Berlusconi as spokesman of Forza Italia. In 2009 the party was merged into the PdL and its members, led by Della Vedova, formed a new association named Libertiamo
. The party was merged in 2009 into The People of Freedom
. Within the new party Della Vedova distanced from his mentor Silvio Berlusconi
and got very close to Gianfranco Fini
and Generation Italy
instead. In July 2010, Della Vedova left the PdL to become a member of Fini's new party Future and Freedom
.
platform, including a strong support for free market
, privatization
s, deregulation
, lower tax
es and competition in the health care
and education
systems. They also proposed an American-styled reform of Italian political system (their slogan was "America, Market, Individual"), including presidentialism
, competitive federalism
and a first-past-the-post
plurality voting system
. Despite being a small party, the RI were also keen supporters of a two-party system
.
In foreign policy
they were staunchly pro-American
and very supportive of human rights
all over the world. Internationally Liberal Reformers, alongside with the Italian Radicals, were members of the Transnational Radical Party
, a NGO
working at the United Nations
level.
The party had a socially progressive stance on abortion
and stem cell
research, despite not stressing too much the point. The party supported also civil union
s for homosexual
couples, but, differently from other liberal parties, opposed civil unions for opposite-sex couples and same-sex marriage
. Della Vedova explained this position by arguing that there is no need of regulation for free cohabitation of opposite-sex couples and, instead, he proposed swift procedures for divorce
, which are very lengthy in Italy.
Liberal Reformers were very keen on the return of Italy to the use of nuclear energy
(which was prohibited by a referendum proposed by the Radical Party in 1987) and were also the party of the centre-right to be more involved in green politics
, by contesting the hegemony of left-wing politics
on these issues, and proposed a new liberal-green parth for the centre-right. Explicitly inspired by the "Vote blue, go green" campaign of the British Conservative Party
led by David Cameron
, they launched their own campaign on the subject, named "+ Blue, + Green. A competition of ideas. A liberal policy on the environment for the program of the centre-right".
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
political party in Italy led by Benedetto Della Vedova
Benedetto Della Vedova
Benedetto Della Vedova is an Italian politician, formerly the leader of Liberal Reformers, a minor liberal and libertarian party, and currently member of The Liberal Part, a liberal faction within the centre-right People of Freedom party.-Biography:His political experience began in 1994 with the...
, a former President of the Italian Radicals
Italian Radicals
Italian Radicals is an Italian political party which describes itself as a liberale, liberista e libertario political movement .It was...
.
History
RL was founded in 2005 by a split from Italian RadicalsItalian Radicals
Italian Radicals is an Italian political party which describes itself as a liberale, liberista e libertario political movement .It was...
of those radicals that were opposed to the formation of the Rose in the Fist
Rose in the Fist
The Rose in the Fist was a coalition of parties in Italy.The RnP was composed of the social-democratic Italian Democratic Socialists , the libertarian Italian Radicals and some independent members gathered in the Association for the Rose in the Fist The Rose in the Fist was a coalition of...
alliance together with the Italian Democratic Socialists
Italian Democratic Socialists
The Italian Democratic Socialists were a small social-democratic political party in Italy. Led by Enrico Boselli, the party was the direct continuation of the Italian Socialists, the legal successor of the historical Italian Socialist Party...
, and instead supported an alliance with the House of Freedoms
House of Freedoms
The House of Freedoms , was a major Italian centre-right political and electoral alliance led by Silvio Berlusconi. It was initially composed of several political parties:*Forza Italia *National Alliance...
. The party unites former Radicals, as many former members of the Italian Liberal Party
Italian Liberal Party
The Italian Liberal Party was a liberal political party in Italy.-Origins:The origins of liberalism in Italy came from the so-called "Historical Right", a parliamentary group formed by Camillo Benso di Cavour in the Parliament of the Kingdom of Sardinia following the 1848 revolution...
and of Forza Italia
Forza Italia
Forza Italia was a liberal-conservative, Christian democratic, and liberal political party in Italy, with a large social democratic minority, that was led by Silvio Berlusconi, four times Prime Minister of Italy....
.
After 2006 general election
Italian general election, 2006
In the Italian general election, 2006 for the renewal of the two Chambers of the Parliament of Italy held on April 9 and April 10, 2006 the incumbent prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, leader of the center-right House of Freedoms, was narrowly defeated by Romano Prodi, leader of the center-left The...
(in which Della Vedova was elected MP on Forza Italia's list), the explicit aim of the grouping is to unite the Italian centre-right
Centre-right
The centre-right or center-right is a political term commonly used to describe or denote individuals, political parties, or organizations whose views stretch from the centre to the right on the left-right spectrum, excluding far right stances. Centre-right can also describe a coalition of centrist...
into a single party and to strengthen liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
and secular
Secularism
Secularism is the principle of separation between government institutions and the persons mandated to represent the State from religious institutions and religious dignitaries...
positions in it. Liberal Reformers act both as a faction of Forza Italia both as a unifying agent of centre-right liberals.
In October 2006, Liberal Reformers launched a manifesto called "Give a libertarian soul to the centre-right" together with famous journalists (Vittorio Feltri
Vittorio Feltri
Vittorio Feltri is an Italian journalist and editor in chief.-Biography:Feltri was born in Bergamo, Italy. He started his career as journalist in 1962, writing film reviews for the local newspaper L'Eco di Bergamo. In 1977 he moved to the Corriere della Sera.In 1993 Feltri refused the offer of...
, Arturo Diaconale, Filippo Facci and Giordano Bruno Guerri), academics and politicians from both Forza Italia and National Alliance
National Alliance (Italy)
National Alliance was a conservative political party in Italy.Gianfranco Fini was the leader of the party since its foundation in 1995, however he stepped down in 2008 after being elected to the nominally non-partisan post of President of the Italian Chamber of Deputies and was succeeded by...
.
On 1 November Della Vedova called on the Italian Radicals to join the centre-right in the next general election. Some days earlier, Della Vedova had wished that he, Marco Pannella
Marco Pannella
Giacinto Pannella, better known as Marco Pannella is an Italian politician.He is the historic leader of the Italian Radicals...
, Emma Bonino
Emma Bonino
Emma Bonino is an Italian politician, former Member of the European Parliament and current Member of the Italian Senate. She is a leading member of the Italian Radicals, a political party that supports economic and social libertarianism, and human rights...
and Daniele Capezzone
Daniele Capezzone
Daniele Capezzone is a centre-right Italian politician.He currently is the spokesman for the People of Freedom.From July 14, 2001 to November 4, 2006, he was secretary of the Italian Radicals, a liberal, pro-market economy, libertarian movement associated with the Transnational Radical Party...
will found themselves together again in the centre-right. On 7 November, when Capezzone finally left the Radicals and the centre-left, Della Vedova opened the doors of Forza Italia and the centre-right for him.
In the 2008 Italian general election
Italian general election, 2008
A snap general election was held in Italy on 13 April and 14 April 2008. The election came after President Giorgio Napolitano dissolved parliament on 6 February 2008 following the defeat of the government of Prime Minister Romano Prodi in a January 2008 Senate vote, and the unsuccessful tentative...
RL were part of the list of The People of Freedom
The People of Freedom
The People of Freedom is a centre-right political party in Italy. With the Democratic Party, it is one of the two major parties of the current Italian party system....
(PdL) and had two deputies elected: Benedetto Della Vedova and Giuseppe Calderisi. Soon after the election, Daniele Capezzone, who had previously joined the centre-right, was appointed by Berlusconi as spokesman of Forza Italia. In 2009 the party was merged into the PdL and its members, led by Della Vedova, formed a new association named Libertiamo
Libertiamo
Libertiamo is a libertarian association within Future and Freedom , a political party in Italy.The group is the continuation of the Liberal Reformers , an associate party of Forza Italia, formed in 2007 by Benedetto Della Vedova, a former President of the Italian Radicals who disagreed with the...
. The party was merged in 2009 into The People of Freedom
The People of Freedom
The People of Freedom is a centre-right political party in Italy. With the Democratic Party, it is one of the two major parties of the current Italian party system....
. Within the new party Della Vedova distanced from his mentor Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi , also known as Il Cavaliere – from knighthood to the Order of Merit for Labour which he received in 1977 – is an Italian politician and businessman who served three terms as Prime Minister of Italy, from 1994 to 1995, 2001 to 2006, and 2008 to 2011. Berlusconi is also the...
and got very close to Gianfranco Fini
Gianfranco Fini
Gianfranco Fini is an Italian politician, President of the Italian Chamber of Deputies, leader of the center-right Future and Freedom party, and the former leader of the conservative National Alliance and the post-fascist Italian Social Movement...
and Generation Italy
Generation Italy
Generation Italy is a faction within Future and Freedom , a political party in Italy.Although most of its members come from the conservative National Alliance and were earlier members of the Italian Social Movement , the foundation was considered the cradle of social liberalism within The People...
instead. In July 2010, Della Vedova left the PdL to become a member of Fini's new party Future and Freedom
Future and Freedom
Future and Freedom , whose complete name is Future and Freedom for Italy is a centre-right political party in Italy....
.
Ideology
Liberal Reformers had a libertarianLibertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
platform, including a strong support for free market
Free market
A free market is a competitive market where prices are determined by supply and demand. However, the term is also commonly used for markets in which economic intervention and regulation by the state is limited to tax collection, and enforcement of private ownership and contracts...
, privatization
Privatization
Privatization is the incidence or process of transferring ownership of a business, enterprise, agency or public service from the public sector to the private sector or to private non-profit organizations...
s, deregulation
Deregulation
Deregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or...
, lower tax
Tax
To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
es and competition in the health care
Health care
Health care is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers...
and education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
systems. They also proposed an American-styled reform of Italian political system (their slogan was "America, Market, Individual"), including presidentialism
Presidential system
A presidential system is a system of government where an executive branch exists and presides separately from the legislature, to which it is not responsible and which cannot, in normal circumstances, dismiss it....
, competitive federalism
Federalism
Federalism is a political concept in which a group of members are bound together by covenant with a governing representative head. The term "federalism" is also used to describe a system of the government in which sovereignty is constitutionally divided between a central governing authority and...
and a first-past-the-post
First-past-the-post
First-past-the-post voting refers to an election won by the candidate with the most votes. The winning potato candidate does not necessarily receive an absolute majority of all votes cast.-Overview:...
plurality voting system
Plurality voting system
The plurality voting system is a single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member constituencies...
. Despite being a small party, the RI were also keen supporters of a two-party system
Two-party system
A two-party system is a system where two major political parties dominate voting in nearly all elections at every level of government and, as a result, all or nearly all elected offices are members of one of the two major parties...
.
In foreign policy
Foreign policy
A country's foreign policy, also called the foreign relations policy, consists of self-interest strategies chosen by the state to safeguard its national interests and to achieve its goals within international relations milieu. The approaches are strategically employed to interact with other countries...
they were staunchly pro-American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and very supportive of human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
all over the world. Internationally Liberal Reformers, alongside with the Italian Radicals, were members of the Transnational Radical Party
Transnational Radical Party
The Transnational Radical Party is a political association of citizens, parliamentarians and members of government of various national and political backgrounds who intend to use nonviolent means to create an effective body of international law with respect for individuals and the...
, a NGO
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
working at the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
level.
The party had a socially progressive stance on abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
and stem cell
Stem cell
This article is about the cell type. For the medical therapy, see Stem Cell TreatmentsStem cells are biological cells found in all multicellular organisms, that can divide and differentiate into diverse specialized cell types and can self-renew to produce more stem cells...
research, despite not stressing too much the point. The party supported also civil union
Civil union
A civil union, also referred to as a civil partnership, is a legally recognized form of partnership similar to marriage. Beginning with Denmark in 1989, civil unions under one name or another have been established by law in many developed countries in order to provide same-sex couples rights,...
s for homosexual
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
couples, but, differently from other liberal parties, opposed civil unions for opposite-sex couples and same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....
. Della Vedova explained this position by arguing that there is no need of regulation for free cohabitation of opposite-sex couples and, instead, he proposed swift procedures for divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
, which are very lengthy in Italy.
Liberal Reformers were very keen on the return of Italy to the use of nuclear energy
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
(which was prohibited by a referendum proposed by the Radical Party in 1987) and were also the party of the centre-right to be more involved in green politics
Green politics
Green politics is a political ideology that aims for the creation of an ecologically sustainable society rooted in environmentalism, social liberalism, and grassroots democracy...
, by contesting the hegemony of left-wing politics
Left-wing politics
In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...
on these issues, and proposed a new liberal-green parth for the centre-right. Explicitly inspired by the "Vote blue, go green" campaign of the British Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
led by David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
, they launched their own campaign on the subject, named "+ Blue, + Green. A competition of ideas. A liberal policy on the environment for the program of the centre-right".
Leadership
- President: Benedetto Della VedovaBenedetto Della VedovaBenedetto Della Vedova is an Italian politician, formerly the leader of Liberal Reformers, a minor liberal and libertarian party, and currently member of The Liberal Part, a liberal faction within the centre-right People of Freedom party.-Biography:His political experience began in 1994 with the...
(2005–2009) - Spokesman: Marco Taradash (2005–2009)
- Coordinator: Giuseppe Calderisi (2005–2009)
- Secretary: Carmelo Palma (2005–2009)