Party of Italian Communists
Encyclopedia
The Party of Italian Communists (Partito dei Comunisti Italiani, PdCI) is a communist
political party in Italy. Its long-time leader is Oliviero Diliberto
.
(PRC) by Armando Cossutta
, the original leader of the PRC. The main reason for the split was the unwillingness of the majority the Communist Refoundation Party to participate in the operation that toppled the Prodi I Cabinet
. Fausto Bertinotti
had kept the party in alliance with The Olive Tree coalition for two years, but was leaving because of disagreement over social policy
. Leaving would have left the government without a majority in the Chamber of Deputies
. The issue was hotly debated within the party, and in the end a few votes, coming from the Trotskyist
factions, finally decided. Soon after the party joined the D'Alema I Cabinet with Oliviero Diliberto
as Minister of Justice
.
Most PRC MPs followed Cossutta into the new party, but the PRC secured more voters: in the 1999 European Parliament election
the PdCI won 2.0% of the vote, while the PRC had the 4.3%.
for the 2001 general election
, in which The Olive Tree lost to Silvio Berlusconi
's House of Freedoms
. The PdCI won 1.7% of the vote and a hanful of deputies and senators.
In the 2006 general election
, the party was a member of the winning The Union
coalition, and won 16 out of 630 deputies. The Together with the Union
electoral list consisting of PdCI, Greens
and United Consumers
won 11 out of 315 senators. Since 2001 Diliberto had become the undisputed leader of the party and since 2005 clashes between him and Cossutta became frequent. In April 2007 the party president and founder finally left the party.
and other left-wing
forces (among them the recently-founded Democratic Left
) the formation of a "United Left", "a left without adjectives". On 8–9 December 2007 the PdCI participated in the foundation of The Left – The Rainbow
. In the 2008 general election
the list gained 3.1% of the vote, thus failing to win any seats in the Italian Parliament.
On 20 July 2008 Diliberto was re-elected party secretary in a national congress. In that occasion, after having declared the experience of a "united left" finished, he proposed to PRC the re-unification of the two parties and a "communist constituent assembly". In the run-up to the 2009 European Parliament election
PdCI is looking forward to a "communist joint list" with the PRC, Critical Left
and the Workers' Communist Party
, but PRC leaders were not so convinced about it, even if they did not rule out the possibility, especially if a 5% threshold will be introduced.
For the 2009 European Parliament election
the PdCI formed a joint list known as Anticapitalist List
with the PRC, Socialism 2000
and United Consumers
Originally also Critical Left
was to join, but finally chose to step aside. The list received just 3.4% of the national vote and failed to return any MEPs.
Soon after the election Marco Rizzo
, a leading member of the party, was expelled from the party after disagreements with Diliberto and launched a new grouping called Communists – People's Left.
In December 2009 the Anticapitalist List was trasformed into Federation of the Left
(FdS). The FdS held its first congress on 20–21 November 2010. Diliberto was elected spokerperson of the group by the national council.
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
political party in Italy. Its long-time leader is Oliviero Diliberto
Oliviero Diliberto
Oliviero Diliberto is an Italian politician. He is the current leader of the Party of Italian Communists.- Early life :...
.
Foundation and early years
The PdCI was founded in 1998 as a split from the Communist Refoundation PartyCommunist Refoundation Party
The Communist Refoundation Party is a communist Italian political party. Its current secretary is Paolo Ferrero....
(PRC) by Armando Cossutta
Armando Cossutta
-Life:Born in Milan, Cosutta joined the Italian Communist Party in 1943, and took part in the Italian resistance movement as a partisan. After World War II, he became one of the leading members of the party, representing the most pro-Soviet Union tendency; his belief in that country as the...
, the original leader of the PRC. The main reason for the split was the unwillingness of the majority the Communist Refoundation Party to participate in the operation that toppled the Prodi I Cabinet
Prodi I Cabinet
The Prodi I Cabinet was the cabinet of the government of Italy from 18 May 1996 to 21 October 1998.-Sources:*...
. Fausto Bertinotti
Fausto Bertinotti
Fausto Bertinotti is an Italian politician and former leader of the Partito della Rifondazione Comunista. On April 29, 2006, after the center-left coalition's victory in the Italian general election, he was chosen by the new parliament as President of the Chamber of Deputies .-Trade...
had kept the party in alliance with The Olive Tree coalition for two years, but was leaving because of disagreement over social policy
Social policy
Social policy primarily refers to guidelines, principles, legislation and activities that affect the living conditions conducive to human welfare. Thus, social policy is that part of public policy that has to do with social issues...
. Leaving would have left the government without a majority in the Chamber of Deputies
Italian Chamber of Deputies
The Italian Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Parliament of Italy. It has 630 seats, a plurality of which is controlled presently by liberal-conservative party People of Freedom. Twelve deputies represent Italian citizens outside of Italy. Deputies meet in the Palazzo Montecitorio. A...
. The issue was hotly debated within the party, and in the end a few votes, coming from the Trotskyist
Trotskyism
Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. Trotsky considered himself an orthodox Marxist and Bolshevik-Leninist, arguing for the establishment of a vanguard party of the working-class...
factions, finally decided. Soon after the party joined the D'Alema I Cabinet with Oliviero Diliberto
Oliviero Diliberto
Oliviero Diliberto is an Italian politician. He is the current leader of the Party of Italian Communists.- Early life :...
as Minister of Justice
Italian Minister of Justice
This is a list of Italian Ministers of Justice since 1946.-External links:* *...
.
Most PRC MPs followed Cossutta into the new party, but the PRC secured more voters: in the 1999 European Parliament election
European Parliament election, 1999 (Italy)
The European Parliament election of 1999 in Italy was the election of the delegation from Italy to the European Parliament in 1999.-References:...
the PdCI won 2.0% of the vote, while the PRC had the 4.3%.
Oliviero Diliberto
Diliberto, who had been elected party secretary in 2000, led the party to continue its alliance with the other parties of the centre-leftCentre-left
Centre-left is a political term that describes individuals, political parties or organisations such as think tanks whose ideology lies between the centre and the left on the left-right spectrum...
for the 2001 general election
Italian general election, 2001
A national general election was held in Italy on May 13, 2001 to elect members of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic. The 14th Parliament of the Italian republic was chosen....
, in which The Olive Tree lost to 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...
's 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 PdCI won 1.7% of the vote and a hanful of deputies and senators.
In the 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...
, the party was a member of the winning The Union
The Union (political coalition)
The Union was an centre-left coalition of political parties in Italy. It was led by Romano Prodi, Prime Minister of Italy from April 2006 to April 2008, and former President of the European Commission.-Parties:...
coalition, and won 16 out of 630 deputies. The Together with the Union
Together with the Union
Together with the Union was an electoral coalition in the 2006 Italian Senatorial election. The alliance consisted of:*Federation of the Greens *Party of Italian Communists *United Consumers...
electoral list consisting of PdCI, Greens
Federation of the Greens
The Federation of the Greens is a green political party in Italy, which includes also a large eco-socialist faction. Since 2009 the party leader is Angelo Bonelli.-Early years:...
and United Consumers
United Consumers
The United Consumers is a political party in Italy led by Bruno De Vita.Since the 2006 general election the party was affiliated to The Union, the centre-left coalition led by Romano Prodi, and in that occasion it took part to a joint list with the Federation of the Greens and the Party of Italian...
won 11 out of 315 senators. Since 2001 Diliberto had become the undisputed leader of the party and since 2005 clashes between him and Cossutta became frequent. In April 2007 the party president and founder finally left the party.
Out of Parliament
In 2006 the PdCI proposed to the PRC, the Federation of the GreensFederation of the Greens
The Federation of the Greens is a green political party in Italy, which includes also a large eco-socialist faction. Since 2009 the party leader is Angelo Bonelli.-Early years:...
and other left-wing
Left-wing politics
In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...
forces (among them the recently-founded Democratic Left
Democratic Left (Italy)
Democratic Left was a democratic socialist political party in Italy.It was founded on 5 May 2007 by splinters of the Democrats of the Left centred around Fabio Mussi and Gavino Angius, who opposed the merger of the DS into the Democratic Party...
) the formation of a "United Left", "a left without adjectives". On 8–9 December 2007 the PdCI participated in the foundation of The Left – The Rainbow
The Left – The Rainbow
The Left – The Rainbow , frequently referred as Rainbow Left , was a left-wing federation of parties in Italy....
. In the 2008 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...
the list gained 3.1% of the vote, thus failing to win any seats in the Italian Parliament.
On 20 July 2008 Diliberto was re-elected party secretary in a national congress. In that occasion, after having declared the experience of a "united left" finished, he proposed to PRC the re-unification of the two parties and a "communist constituent assembly". In the run-up to the 2009 European Parliament election
European Parliament election, 2009 (Italy)
European elections to elect 72 members of the European Parliament representing Italy were held on Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 June 2009, as decided by the Italian government on December 18, 2008...
PdCI is looking forward to a "communist joint list" with the PRC, Critical Left
Critical Left
Critical Left is a communist political party in Italy.-History:Originally a Trotskyist faction within the Communist Refoundation Party , it broke ranks on 8 December 2007 to become an independent political party. From 2006 to 2008 SC had a member of the deputy, Salvatore Cannavò, and a senator,...
and the Workers' Communist Party
Workers' Communist Party (Italy)
The Italian Communist Workers' Party is a party of the far left. It was created in 2006 by the Trotskyist breakaway wing of the Communist Refoundation Party led by Marco Ferrando ....
, but PRC leaders were not so convinced about it, even if they did not rule out the possibility, especially if a 5% threshold will be introduced.
For the 2009 European Parliament election
European Parliament election, 2009 (Italy)
European elections to elect 72 members of the European Parliament representing Italy were held on Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 June 2009, as decided by the Italian government on December 18, 2008...
the PdCI formed a joint list known as Anticapitalist List
Anticapitalist List
The Anticapitalist List was a communist coalition of political parties in Italy, formed in the run-up to the 2009 European Parliament election in order to overcome the 4% threshold introduced by the new electoral law....
with the PRC, Socialism 2000
Socialism 2000
Socialism 2000 is a democratic socialist political association in Italy led by Cesare Salvi.-History:The group was launched in August 2000 as a left-wing faction within the Democrats of the Left . Socialism 2000 was since then part of the internal left of the party...
and United Consumers
United Consumers
The United Consumers is a political party in Italy led by Bruno De Vita.Since the 2006 general election the party was affiliated to The Union, the centre-left coalition led by Romano Prodi, and in that occasion it took part to a joint list with the Federation of the Greens and the Party of Italian...
Originally also Critical Left
Critical Left
Critical Left is a communist political party in Italy.-History:Originally a Trotskyist faction within the Communist Refoundation Party , it broke ranks on 8 December 2007 to become an independent political party. From 2006 to 2008 SC had a member of the deputy, Salvatore Cannavò, and a senator,...
was to join, but finally chose to step aside. The list received just 3.4% of the national vote and failed to return any MEPs.
Soon after the election Marco Rizzo
Marco Rizzo
Marco Rizzo is an Italian politician and Member of the European Parliament for the North-West with the Party of Italian Communists, Member of the Bureau of the European United Left - Nordic Green Left and is vice-chair of the European Parliament's Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer...
, a leading member of the party, was expelled from the party after disagreements with Diliberto and launched a new grouping called Communists – People's Left.
In December 2009 the Anticapitalist List was trasformed into Federation of the Left
Federation of the Left
Federation of the Left is a communist coalition of political parties in Italy.The coalition is the evolution of the Anticapitalist List and includes:*Communist Refoundation Party...
(FdS). The FdS held its first congress on 20–21 November 2010. Diliberto was elected spokerperson of the group by the national council.
Leadership
- Secretary: Armando CossuttaArmando Cossutta-Life:Born in Milan, Cosutta joined the Italian Communist Party in 1943, and took part in the Italian resistance movement as a partisan. After World War II, he became one of the leading members of the party, representing the most pro-Soviet Union tendency; his belief in that country as the...
(1998–2000), Oliviero DilibertoOliviero DilibertoOliviero Diliberto is an Italian politician. He is the current leader of the Party of Italian Communists.- Early life :...
(2000–present)- Coordinator: Marco RizzoMarco RizzoMarco Rizzo is an Italian politician and Member of the European Parliament for the North-West with the Party of Italian Communists, Member of the Bureau of the European United Left - Nordic Green Left and is vice-chair of the European Parliament's Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer...
(1998–2009)
- Coordinator: Marco Rizzo
- President: Armando CossuttaArmando Cossutta-Life:Born in Milan, Cosutta joined the Italian Communist Party in 1943, and took part in the Italian resistance movement as a partisan. After World War II, he became one of the leading members of the party, representing the most pro-Soviet Union tendency; his belief in that country as the...
(2000–2006), Antonino Cuffaro (2007–present)
- Party Leader in the Chamber of DeputiesItalian Chamber of DeputiesThe Italian Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Parliament of Italy. It has 630 seats, a plurality of which is controlled presently by liberal-conservative party People of Freedom. Twelve deputies represent Italian citizens outside of Italy. Deputies meet in the Palazzo Montecitorio. A...
: Oliviero DilibertoOliviero DilibertoOliviero Diliberto is an Italian politician. He is the current leader of the Party of Italian Communists.- Early life :...
(1998), Tullio Grimaldi (1998–2001), Marco RizzoMarco RizzoMarco Rizzo is an Italian politician and Member of the European Parliament for the North-West with the Party of Italian Communists, Member of the Bureau of the European United Left - Nordic Green Left and is vice-chair of the European Parliament's Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer...
(2001–2004), Pino Sgobio (2004–2008) - Party Leader in the SenateItalian SenateThe Senate of the Republic is the upper house of the Italian Parliament. It was established in its current form on 8 May 1948, but previously existed during the Kingdom of Italy as Senato del Regno , itself a continuation of the Senato Subalpino of Sardinia-Piedmont established on 8 May 1848...
: Luigi Marino (1998–2006), Manuela Palermi (leader of the PdCI-GreenFederation of the GreensThe Federation of the Greens is a green political party in Italy, which includes also a large eco-socialist faction. Since 2009 the party leader is Angelo Bonelli.-Early years:...
's group, 2006–2008) - Party Leader in the European ParliamentEuropean ParliamentThe European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
: Lucio Manisco (1998–2004), Marco RizzoMarco RizzoMarco Rizzo is an Italian politician and Member of the European Parliament for the North-West with the Party of Italian Communists, Member of the Bureau of the European United Left - Nordic Green Left and is vice-chair of the European Parliament's Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer...
(2004–2009)