THE ITALIAN CRISIS OF DEMOCRACY: JUST A CONTEMPORARY ISSUE?

On January 8th, 2023, an assault on the Parliament building and the Supreme Court in Brasilia was witnessed, occurring two years after the famous assault by Trump supporters on Capitol Hill. While Europe seems immune to such episodes, a progressive polarization of the political class and voting is being observed, particularly in Italy, France, and England, as brilliantly analyzed by American sociologist Susstein, a professor at Harvard Law School. This is compounded by the growing disinterest of citizens in elections and high percentages of abstentionism. For these and other reasons, an increasing number of experts frequently discuss the ‘crisis of democracy,’ referring to the general spread of disinterest in the political class, which is too often perceived as distant.

As far as Italy is concerned, a part of the problem has deep historical roots. To better understand the current situation, it is necessary to analyze the origins of this feeling, when it arose, and how it took root in the mentality of Italians. Several scholars attribute this lack of national unity to long-term historical causes, starting from historical periods even before the unification of Italy in 1861. For many other experts, such as historian Guido Crainz, a professor of Contemporary History at the University of Teramo, it is also possible to find the origin of these distortions in Italy’s more recent past, in a careful analysis of the history of Republican Italy.

According to Crainz, the roots of the problem, which are still present in Italy today, lie in the distance that citizens perceive towards the state, initially due to the total absence or inadequacy of state intervention in socio-economic spheres, followed by the corruption scandals of the ruling political class. This led to the adoption of a strongly personalistic mentality, and more recently, to a disinterest in politics due to a high level of distrust in the latter.

From the very beginning of the Republic, strong interference aimed at upsetting the balance of Italian democracy was observed, such as in 1947 when Prime Minister De Gasperi excluded the Left from the government under pressure from the American government engaged in the Cold War. In the 1948 elections, the Christian Democracy party won (also thanks to the support of the United States), and a period of strongly liberal economic reforms initiated by Minister Einaudi began, which created high unemployment. But the government responded to the workers’ protests with repression, instead of seeking constructive dialogue with local institutions, trade unions, and companies, which led to the creation of the ‘Celere,’ a still-discussed police force created by Minister Scelba.

The Tambroni government and the failed attempt at an alliance with the Italian Social Movement marked the apex of this period, a glaring example of the distance that already existed between government and citizens. Unfortunately, the protests in Genova in 1960 did not mark a turning point in this sense, as only eight years later, the 1968 demonstrations broke out, followed by a period of violent manifestations called ‘autunno caldo’ (hot autumn). It is interesting to note that until the kidnapping and murder of Aldo Moro in 1978, even red terrorism was to some extent ‘tolerated’ by public opinion. This is a portrait of a country in which, despite institutions being formally democratic with universal suffrage, citizens always perceive too much distance with government action, with the presence of the state.

According to the historian Gambetta, who is a professor of social theory at the European University Institute in Florence, the absence of the state promotes the growth of the mafia. The mafia can provide low-interest loans, protection, and pose as a guarantor of justice, which makes citizens more dependent on them. As a result, the mafia is able to infiltrate more institutions and entrepreneurs, thereby strengthening its reach. This led to a political and economic system in the 1980s and 1990s that was based on client relations, corruption, and blackmail. This system was partially exposed by the ‘Tangentopoli’ scandal, the 1992 ‘Mani Pulite’ investigation, and the discovery of the P2 lodge.

The consequences of this system were the anger and disappointment of the population towards a political class that did not represent them and was absent and distant. Italian citizens no longer trusted the institutions to function properly. Prime Minister Bettino Craxi even publicly justified corruption as an inevitable phenomenon in the course of a democracy. The system of bribes increased the costs of the state and led to an unprecedented increase in the state’s public debt, which was perceived as a waste of resources.

Due to this situation, political movements that question national unity and membership in the European Union could emerge and find support among a population accustomed to the absence of state intervention and clientelistic and individualistic logics.

Therefore, it is now necessary to lay new foundations of trust in the political class and government action. This can be achieved by making huge investments in public education, strengthening the education of young people in active citizenship, and encouraging their participation in the management of the Res Publica. This is important for the future of the country and for the European Democracy.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

• Gambetta, ‘La mafia siciliana’, 1992
• Crainz, ‘ L’Italia repubblicana’, 2000
• Susstein, ‘#Republic, divided democracy in the age of social media’, 2003