Former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was honored this Wednesday (14) with a state funeral at Milan Cathedral and a day of national mourning, to the applause of his supporters and criticism from his detractors.
Thousands of people applauded the late former Italian head of government outside the cathedral as Berlusconi’s coffin was lifted from the hearse in front of his children and friends.
Silvio Berlusconi, who passed away on Monday at the age of 86, was a controversial figure for nine years (1994-1995, 2001-2006, 2008-2011), media mogul, conservative and right-wing and Prime Minister of Italy.
He was the target of corruption allegations and was at the center of the sex scandals that would culminate in his expulsion from the Italian Senate in 2013.
In 2022, the billionaire returned to the political spotlight as a senator and leader of the party he founded, Força Italia, a member of the right-wing and far-right coalition currently in power, led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Most Italians identify Berlusconi as Italy’s most influential figure in recent decades.
However, Italians also remain very divided on whether their influence has been positive or negative.
Political opponents are now questioning not only the Meloni government’s decisions to hold a state funeral, an honor bestowed on all former prime ministers, but also the declaration of a national day of mourning, which is rarely invoked.
“Berlusconi divided Italy. For thirty years he insulted opponents, punished magistrates and did not recognize laws. What are we talking about?” asked Marco Travaglio, a journalist who has been critical of Berlusconi for a long time.
However, thousands of Italians filled the square in front of Milan Cathedral to watch the funeral on two giant video screens.
Hungarian President Viktor Orban and the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani were among the foreign dignitaries who attended the funeral.
Meloni, who first entered government as a minister in a coalition with Berlusconi, also attended the funeral ceremonies alongside Lega party leader Matteo Salvini, whose party has long been an ally of Berlusconi’s Forza Italia.
Opposition politicians also attended a tribute to a political figure with whom they had much disagreement.
Barbara Cacellari, a member of the Forza Italia party and former candidate for the European Parliament, said the protests over Berlusconi’s state funeral showed a lack of respect.
“A person must be respected. Berlusconi is a person who represents the history of this country,” said Cacellari.
Supporters of Berlusconi’s legacy cite his success in uniting Italy’s centre-right after the post-war political scene collapsed with the ‘clean hands’ corruption scandal of the 1990s.
The list of political damages presented by Berlusconi’s opponents is long, including conflicts of interest related to his “media” empire, dozens of lawsuits related to private matters, revelations of sexual parties, such as the famous Bunga-Bunga in his “villa” near Milan, and questionable associations, including his friendship with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
Source: DN
