Eight Ways to Say Yes

Italy's government falls victim to popular calls for a cleanup

WHO COULD BLAME ITALIANS FOR CHOOSING change -- lots of change? Disgusted by a yearlong parade of elite politicians and businessmen charged with corruption, thievery and underworld connections, voters last week gave a resounding yes to eight referendum questions, thereby fundamentally altering the way candidates for the Senate are elected. Acknowledging this display of popular will as a signal that Italians feel their political system no longer works, Prime Minister Giuliano Amato resigned after 10 months of holding together a much reviled coalition Cabinet. Referring to the voters' decision to repudiate nearly 50 years of Italian party politics, Amato declared, "The...

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