Why Does Italy Put Up with Berlusconi?

  • Photo-Illustration by Josue Evilla for TIME / Alessandra Benedetti / Corbis

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    Berlusconi's weakness is human but not forgivable, considering the conditions, roles and characteristics — age, among other things — of the protagonists. There is a dramatic aspect to this frenetic quest for approval; a touch of Tiberius (as described by Suetonius) and a helping of Hugh Hefner (the playboy posing) in the Premier's twilight. But beneath the melodrama, there are serious issues at play.

    The left in Italy has never attempted to explain Berlusconi; it has been happy merely to condemn. The right has never explained him either, being too busy applauding and defending. Recent revelations, however, demand an effort of intellectual honesty from both sides. Try to imagine French President Nicolas Sarkozy or British Prime Minister David Cameron coming under suspicion of something like this. They'd be rushing to defend themselves — but not with video messages, sworn statements or the announcement of a new relationship, as Berlusconi has done. They'd be running to court, where everyone would be able to see who had gone too far: the accusers or the accused.

    This has nothing to do with the spectacular inconsistencies of a supposedly conservative leader's life and political manifesto. That's a question for consciences (and for the Catholic Church, if it's interested). Nor is this a political judgment: there will be time for that at the next election, which could be earlier than the scheduled date of 2013. No, what is at issue here are serious, precisely formulated charges: an organization set up for the purposes of prostitution, using the staff, premises, television channels and protection services of the head of government. The allegations should be proved or disproved in court. This time, not knowing the truth is a price we Italians cannot afford to pay. We owe an answer to young Italians: What is happening to us?

    "The world's seventh-largest economy needs reform," wrote the Financial Times . "One in four youths is unemployed; growth is less than anaemic; foreign investment is falling; national debt has hit 1,800bn euros. The cancer of organised crime needs excising. The list goes on. Yet instead of solutions to these problems, the country is likely to be treated to another instalment of Berlusconi versus the judiciary."

    This spectacle must be averted. You can't keep complaining about the referee. At some point, you might as well abandon the match. Italy's game is called democracy, so we have to play and win, particularly on the 150th anniversary of the country's unification. The other option is to turn a birthday into a funeral, which is not a great idea.

    This time, Silvio Berlusconi cannot, and must not, hide. For years he has been our good buddy. He has forgiven us, egged us on, absolved us, justified us, built up our hopes and kept up our spirits. But there is a line between complicity and embarrassment, and another, deeper one separates embarrassment from disgust. The first line has been crossed; in a democracy, the second should never be overstepped. Because it is humiliating, because it is dangerous and because Italy deserves better.

    Faced with the snowballing avalanche of accusations, Silvio Berlusconi has said, "I'm having fun." The rest of Italy is less amused.

    Severgnini is a columnist for Corriere della Sera and the author of Berlusconi Explained to Posterity and Friends Abroad (Rizzoli)

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