2,000,000 March in Rome against proposed liberalisation of Labour Laws/Terrorism

Irish Blissett | 23.03.2002 17:04

Reports on IMC Italy (1) say that up to 2,000,000 people are marching in Rome today against proposed changes in the country’s labour laws which would make it easier for employers to fire and hire workers. The demonstration, which follows close on the heels of a similarly massive demonstration against neo-liberal economic policies in Barcelona went ahead despite calls from the Berlusconi government to suspend it in the wake of the controversial murder of Italian government adviser Professor Marco Biagi (2).

A document (3) published on Thursday 21st March on the website www.caserta24ore.org styled as a communiqué from ‘The Red Brigades Combatant Communist Party’ claimed responsibility for the murder and was deemed ‘credible’ by the Italian Police on the strength of its ‘language and content’. This statement has been widely posted on activist sites all over the net in the last 24 hours.

Luca Casarini, spokesman for the Tutti Bianche and the most visible ‘face’ of the No-Global movement in Italy, has released a statement (4) characterizing the murder as ‘a horrible pro-regime homicide’. It has been widely condemned by the left in Italy which quickly moved to use today’s demonstration as a show of opposition to terrorism.

The murder, and the way in which it was quickly linked by the Berlusconi Regime to the Left in Italy, raises memories of the 70’s in Italy and of the ‘strategy of tension’ (5) which saw state sponsorship of terrorist acts which were then blamed on the left. This occurred at a time when left movements in Italy were in the ascendant. This historical background to this week’s events explains the context and importance of Casarini’s Statement on the Biagi murder and of the COBAS statement (6) on the same subject.

Berlusconi is historically linked to this dark side of Italian Political history through his association with the notorious P2 group (5).

(1)

http://www.uk.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=25755&group=webcast
(2)

http://www.indymedia.nl/2002/03/2800.shtml
(3)

http://www.indymedia.ie/cgi-bin/newswire.cgi?id=1191
(4)

http://www.uk.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=25651&group=webcast
(5)

http://www.indymedia.ie/cgi-bin/newswire.cgi?id=1175
(6)

http://www.uk.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=25650&group=webcast

Irish Blissett

Comments

Hide the following 11 comments

Eye on Italy

23.03.2002 17:28

This is being reported by the mainstream media as a march against "terrorism," which by the implications of that phrase, now means, against Muslims and pro-USA. But it is a protest against the P2 and it's affiliated secret societies reign of terror.

Moloch

3 millions

23.03.2002 17:58

Forget the media. Even with 20 millions in the street they would still lie !

What about a 2 or even 3 Millions march in London ? do you think it's possible ?

3 Billions

Thats the way to do it!

23.03.2002 19:17

we should all be inspired by the events in Rome. but the question is what can we do in the UK? After all the document that the workers in Italy are protesting so well about was co-signed by a Tony Blair. We in the UK should rise to the acaion and follow the lead of the Italin and Spainish working classes. Ovely the British working class is not at the stage of there Itain comrades, but we should still push it as much as possable. I do not think in the UK at the moment we are going to see 2 million on the streets but a very good opperturay would be May 1st. On May 1st all groups, parties and trade union etc should throw away secterism and all try to make the biggest united demo we can.

rich
mail e-mail: .
Homepage: .

Vatican freemasonry terrorism?

23.03.2002 22:45

liz taylor

23.03.2002 23:50

liz taylor

They're all at it

24.03.2002 00:29

They're all at it

Comments that this is just a friendly Italian wave - an alternative to clutching your bollocks - well maybe

Big fuss

24.03.2002 01:04

Last November, most of Namibia went on strike against neo-liberalism and the US bombing of Afghanistan. Yet, the media ignored it. In September, Cosatu staged a successful general strike in South Africa, but the world ignored it. In Nigeria, the nation is currently in the midst of a general strike, but no-one is interested. Why is it that most of Africa is rejecting the economic orthodoxy forced upon them and is staging demonstrations far larger than the one in Rome and on a more regular basis, but no-one could care less? What are the views of blacks worth less than whites?

Dan Brett
mail e-mail: dan@danielbrett.co.uk

Even Yasser

24.03.2002 01:12

how significant

Never heard about it

24.03.2002 12:11

Don't be so arsey Daniel Brett!

I and possibly other regular readers of Indymedia don't recall anyone posting anything about Namibia etc on Indymedia, maybe, just maybe because it's a poor 3rd world country unlike Italy where ownership of computers and access to computers is miles higher. Thus the flow of information is more remote?

I don't read the corporate media whether this may have been reported, so get off my case.But cheers for the person who let us know about the Gen strike in Nigeria.

Aah.. isn't that what Indymedia is all about? Not slagging people off for not acknowledging things they do not know about, and ridiculously accusing people of being racist?

Ill informed

Was it 2 million or 3 million

25.03.2002 23:52

What is the actual number of demonstrators that took part in this massive protest? Sometimes I see 1 million, sometimes 2 million and sometimes 3 million. Which one is correct?

confused

Watch those ...

26.03.2002 10:55

http://www.repubblica.it/gallerie/online/politica/tremilioni/index.html

waiting for the general strike