Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni one more time sparked a political earthquake — this time in Parliament, during a debate before the European Council.
Her speech was interrupted twice by the talker of the House, Lorenzo Fontana, after the emotion among the opposition MPs reached out. There were screams, any parliamentarians were not crying. What did Meloni say to trigger specified a reaction?
It was a mention to the Manifesto of Ventotene — a paper created in 1941 on the island, where during planet War II there was a prison for opponents of Fascism. The manifesto was written by Altiero Spinelli and Ernesto Rossi, considered the perfect fathers of united Europe. For many it is inactive almost sacred. However, Meloni decided to callback passages that are not mentioned today.
During the debate on the ReArm Europe plan promoted by Ursula von der Leyen, Meloni recalled that the manifesto had advocated a federation of European states to prevent future wars. But this does not end with the transmission of the document. There were besides words that the European revolution must be socialist and private property should be abolished or limited. Moreover, parliamentary democracy was referred to as "ballast during the revolution".
For Meloni — and many others — these words present sound alarming, especially in the context of the current actions of the European Commission and the European Parliament: from controversial climate regulation, through the political crisis in Romania, to trying to circumvent the will of European voters.
The mainstream media frequently overlooks 1 fact: Meloni did not scope for the manifesto for no reason. She did so in consequence to the Saturday pro-European demonstration in Rome, where respective speakers — including members of the opposition — were quoting the Manifesto of Ventotene as a model for the future of the Union. So Meloni said,
"I do not know if this is your Europe, but it is surely not my Europe."
Her words about the manifesto’s seemingly not reading it (“because the alternate would be frightening”) caused rage. As the Prime Minister began quoting the first passages of the document, the opposition erupted:
‘Hannibal!’ “Kneel before the founding fathers!” they shouted from the hall.
The left, both Italian and European, reacted predictablely. Meloni was accused of "robbing quotes out of the historical context". erstwhile wellness minister accused her of “fascism apology”. For many, it is simply a typical reaction erstwhile there are no substantive arguments: to cast the opponent's fascism and close the discussion.
But Meloni did something that no Italian Prime Ministers had done over the years: she openly questioned the foundations on which the "one right" version of European integration is inactive being tried. She challenged the founding myth, showed disturbing elements that had been overlooked besides long.
Was Meloni right? This is simply a subject for a wider debate. But 1 thing is certain: she posed a question that is increasingly heard in European capitals — what kind of Europe do we want?
