Victory in Italy as court blocks privatisation

July 27, 2012
Model of the earth with slogans in Italian
On 20th July, the Italian Constitutional Court declared unconstitutional Article 4 of the Decree Law 138 of August 13, 2011, by which, the Berlusconi government re-introduced the privatisation of local public services. At that time, the government had ignored the results of the referendum of 12 and 13 June 2011 in which Italians had rejected privatisation. The ruling also blocks all subsequent amendments, including those of the Monti government.

The ruling clearly explains that the referendum was violated by Article 4 and declares that the law passed by the Berlusconi government violated Article 75 of the Constitution. It strongly confirms the citizens’ will and is a warning to the Monti government and all future powers, to listen to the population and respect the Constitution. This victory shows clearly that what 27 million Italians have chosen has to be respected: water and public services should remain public.

Read the article on the CGIL website (Italian)