Amato's poor cabinet
After receiving the confidence vote in parliament Amato publicly showed his annoyance at the party leaders' demeanor. Yet, the irritation was on both sides. The Green minister Edo Ronchi, shuffled from the Environment to Common Market Policies, even renounced his post. His party, the
Green Federation (Verdi), discussed for hours before deciding to support the government anyway. On the whole Amato has presented only ministers with a low profile and it seems that he has been particularly attentive not to include anybody who could become a contender for his own post as prime minister.
But Amato's critics evidenced also the fact that he has included in his cabinet several Socialists, former cronies of Craxi's. With a Socialist prime minister, the Socialist Party (SDI) obviously reentered the coalition, receiving the Ministry of Finance and several under-secretaries.
Di Pietro´s disapproval
At least one leader contested the whole direction of these decisions: the popular former public prosecutor Antonio Di Pietro, who had been in the first line during investigations against the system of corruption in the early 90s. Now a senator for the Democrats, he denounced the return of Craxism and denied his support in the confidence vote.
An esteemed technician grown at Craxi's court in the 80s, Amato had done quite well during his first term as prime minister. In 1992 he passed a number of serious financial measures in order to save the Italian state from imminent disaster. In this period he was the only one getting away from the ruin of Craxi´s lot without being touched by investigations. Caricaturists therefore like to describe him as a wicked tax collector and agile Mickey Mouse escaping all traps and perils.
Moving the paralyzed
In his second term as stopgap prime minister, however, Amato is now surrounded by an even higher number of conservative friends and enemies trying to avoid any kind of change. Knowing that the decisive theme of his government will be the labor market, on 1st May Amato has already opened a first dispute, when he challenged the labor union leaders to permit more flexibility. The answers were not encouraging, but maybe the polemics that followed are at least a good way for getting the people to the ballot box on referendum day. Indeed, from his coalition partners the new prime minister can expect little support on that issue.
It seems that the instrument of abrogational referendum is nowadays in Italy the only way to get some reforms done. The country suffers from a lot of long-lasting political and social problems. Yet, instead of resolving any of it, the parties have learned to live with and from them. Indeed, most of these structural problems offer the opportunity to ask for money and help from the central state or from Brussels. So the parties have decided to keep the country's puzzle of problems as they are - and administrate them well. Dividing the plunder is still a bargain that allows everybody to survive !
