In power for three weeks, the government of Giorgia Meloni in Italy had been adopting a pendulum behavior: the attempt to show itself aligned with its predecessor Mario Draghi on the external plane while, internally, betting on rupture, with somewhat strident measures.
A diplomatic friction with France in recent days, however, meant that the prudent and pragmatic stance outside, hard line and ideological inside, did not last long. “The government works in the field of symbolic politics. It deals with issues that are neither strategic nor essential, but serve to mark the field from an ideological point of view, define a cultural perimeter and signal a political change”, he tells Sheet political scientist Alessandro Campi, professor at the University of Perugia.
For him, by prioritizing measures associated with the restoration of order, the prime minister emphasizes issues dear to the electorate that led to the victory of the ultra-right alliance formed by her party (Brothers of Italy) and those of Matteo Salvini (Liga) and Silvio Berlusconi ( Strength Italy).
In European dress, Meloni had made his first trip after taking office to Brussels, seat of the European Union. There, she took smiling photos and made statements in a friendly tone, far from the “end of the mamata” for the block she spoke about in the campaign. The first meeting with an international leader had already been with Frenchman Emmanuel Macron, in Rome. “Let’s get along,” she said at the time.
In recent days, however, with the justification of fighting irregular immigration, the Italian government has targeted NGOs that help shipwrecked and boats at risk and opened a confrontation with Paris. In addition to the migration issue itself, a short circuit in communication turned into a diplomatic conflict.
Last week, Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi tried to prevent foreign humanitarian service ships from docking on the Italian coast in the Mediterranean, where the migratory flow from North Africa, with more than 126,000 people since January, has already exceeded the total. last year. For days, four ships were waiting with about a thousand castaways — international law provides that disembarkation in such cases takes place in the nearest country.
Initially, the government tried to carry out selective exit, accepting people with fragile health. Faced with worsening conditions on board, all refugees from three ships were allowed to disembark. The fourth, the Norwegian Ocean Viking, operated by the NGO SOS Mediterráneo, headed for the French coast.
It was there that the situation between Rome and Paris worsened. Due to a mismatch of information that has not yet been clarified, on Tuesday (8) Meloni even thanked France for the initiative to “share the responsibility”. The Élysée did not admit the alleged agreement and raised the tone, saying that the legal responsibility in the case was Italian. By now, Meloni’s effort at prudence had gone down the drain.
“Italy was very inhumane, the authorities were not professional,” said French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin. Finally, “on an exceptional basis” and under harsh criticism from the opposition led by Marine Le Pen, the country allowed the boat to dock at the port of Toulon on Friday morning (11).
The decision did not end the tension. Darmanin said that, as a result, France will suspend participation in the European refugee resettlement system, invite other countries to do the same — isolating Italy — and reinforce, with 500 police officers, surveillance of the land border between the countries.
Meloni called Paris’ reaction “aggressive, incomprehensible and unjustified” and made a provocation comparing the number of refugees on the vessel to the total that has entered Italy via the Mediterranean this year. “The ship Ocean Viking is the first by an NGO to dock in France, with 230 immigrants. And that generated a very harsh reaction against Italy, which received almost 90 thousand.”
Italy is the country most affected by the migratory crisis in the region – 86,000 people disembarked this year, in the account that includes other flows towards Europe –, but it is fourth in the ranking of asylum applications in the EU. There are 53,000, behind Germany (190,000), France (120,000) and Spain (65,000).
Despite the undesired outcome, the message of “naval blockade”, a campaign slogan, was given. The prime minister reinforced that she was chosen for her program in the areas of security and combating irregular immigration. “Citizens have asked us to defend the borders, and this government will not betray its word.”
In addition to the hardening of this former ultra-right flag, the management also put in place controversial measures in public safety and in the fight against Covid-19. In its first decree-law, it announced a new article of the Penal Code, with the intention of ending clandestine parties, such as raves – the text opens a gap for protests to be criminalized and their organizers, punished with imprisonment.
In the same act, health professionals who were not vaccinated against the coronavirus were readmitted to hospitals and offices after the forced removal by the previous government, which focused the fight against the pandemic on mandatory immunization for a series of categories and activities. With Meloni’s review, about 4,000 people will be able to resume work.
The attitudes of a “right-wing government that does right-wing things”, according to Campi, signify a change of course due to the fact that the last Executive formations were of a technical nature or of “national union”, as defined by Draghi, without the choice of voters. This time, Meloni and his allies are legitimized by the polls to put in place a government with a political profile.
The choice also helps to shift the electorate’s focus away from pressing issues, such as the rising cost of living. While discussing immigration and raves, Meloni was buying time to launch a €9 billion package to reduce the impact of prices on household and business spending, approved on Thursday.
Still on their honeymoon with the government, voters seem to approve of the ideological tone. Since the election in late September, the prime minister’s party approval has risen nearly three percentage points, from 26% to 28.9%.
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