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Difference between revisions of "Tangentopoli (Italy)"
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The term ''Tangentopoli'' comes from the words ''tangente'', meaning ‘kickback’ or ‘bribe’ in Italian, and poli, from the ancient Greek word polis, meaning ‘city’ (De Mauro and Mancini 2000<ref>De Mauro, T. and Mancini, M. 2000. Garzanti Etimologico: i grandi dizionari. Milano: Garzanti Linguistica</ref>). It is commonly translated in English as ‘Bribesville’ (Clari and Love 1995<ref>Clari, M. and Love, C. 1995. Collins English-Italian, Italian-English Dictionary. Glasgow: Harper Collins.</ref>) or ‘Kickback City’ (Bareggi 2010<ref>Bareggi, M. 2010. Oxford-Paravia Italian Dictionary. Oxford and Milan: Oxford University Press and Pearson Italia.</ref>). | The term ''Tangentopoli'' comes from the words ''tangente'', meaning ‘kickback’ or ‘bribe’ in Italian, and poli, from the ancient Greek word polis, meaning ‘city’ (De Mauro and Mancini 2000<ref>De Mauro, T. and Mancini, M. 2000. Garzanti Etimologico: i grandi dizionari. Milano: Garzanti Linguistica</ref>). It is commonly translated in English as ‘Bribesville’ (Clari and Love 1995<ref>Clari, M. and Love, C. 1995. Collins English-Italian, Italian-English Dictionary. Glasgow: Harper Collins.</ref>) or ‘Kickback City’ (Bareggi 2010<ref>Bareggi, M. 2010. Oxford-Paravia Italian Dictionary. Oxford and Milan: Oxford University Press and Pearson Italia.</ref>). | ||
The word was coined by the Italian media to describe the web of corruption that characterised the political and entrepreneurial scene in the city of Milan (''Treccani Vocabolario'' 2015<ref>Treccani Vocabolario online. 2015. ‘Tangentopoli,’ http://www.treccani.it/vocabolario/tangentopoli/</ref>). This was revealed in February 1992 when Mario Chiesa, a member of the Italian Socialist Party (PSI), was arrested on suspicion of accepting a bribe in order to promote a business deal (Guanci 2011<ref>Guanci, V. 2011. ‘1992, Tangentopoli,’ Treccani Scuola http://www.treccani.it/scuola/maturita/terza_prova/storia_contemporanea_in_immagini/1992_Guanci_Tangentopoli.html</ref>). The PSI disavowed Chiesa, claiming that he had been acting as a lone wolf and did not represent the party (''Corriere della Sera'' TV 2012<ref>Corriere della Sera TV. 2012. ‘Chiesa è un mariuolo’, 15 February http://video.corriere.it/chiesa-mariuolo/66cf2528-5800-11e1-8cd8-b2fbc2e45f9f</ref>). Chiesa retaliated by spilling the dirt on the political system as a whole. His revelations uncovered a web of corrupt relations between political parties, business and organised crime, and provoked a judicial investigation known as Mani pulite (‘Clean hands’) (Guanci 2011<ref>Guanci, V. 2011. ‘1992, Tangentopoli,’ Treccani Scuola http://www.treccani.it/scuola/maturita/terza_prova/storia_contemporanea_in_immagini/1992_Guanci_Tangentopoli.html</ref>). Soon it became clear that what had been going on was not an isolated event confined to Milan, but a nationwide system of political corruption (''Treccani Enciclopedia'' 2015<ref>Treccani Enciclopedia online. 2015. ‘Tangentopoli,’ http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/tangentopoli_(Dizionario-di-Storia)/</ref>). The term Tangentopoli accordingly came to denote a system based on tacit agreements whereby entrepreneurs paid bribes to politicians as an informal ‘tax’ to obtain public contracts, and politicians then used the money to fund their political parties (Della Porta 2015<ref>Della Porta, D. 2015. ‘Tangentopoli,’ Treccani Enciclopedia Italiana http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/tangentopoli_%28Enciclopedia-Italiana%29/</ref>). In its broadest sense, the term became synonymous with any kind of widespread political corruption (''Treccani Vocabolario'' 2015<ref>Treccani Vocabolario online. 2015. ‘Tangentopoli,’ http://www.treccani.it/vocabolario/tangentopoli/</ref>). | The word was coined by the Italian media to describe the web of corruption that characterised the political and entrepreneurial scene in the city of Milan (''Treccani Vocabolario'' 2015<ref>Treccani Vocabolario online. 2015. ‘Tangentopoli,’ http://www.treccani.it/vocabolario/tangentopoli/</ref>). This was revealed in February 1992 when Mario Chiesa, a member of the Italian Socialist Party (PSI), was arrested on suspicion of accepting a bribe in order to promote a business deal (Guanci 2011<ref>Guanci, V. 2011. ‘1992, Tangentopoli,’ Treccani Scuola http://www.treccani.it/scuola/maturita/terza_prova/storia_contemporanea_in_immagini/1992_Guanci_Tangentopoli.html</ref>). The PSI disavowed Chiesa, claiming that he had been acting as a lone wolf and did not represent the party (''Corriere della Sera'' TV 2012<ref>Corriere della Sera TV. 2012. ‘Chiesa è un mariuolo’, 15 February http://video.corriere.it/chiesa-mariuolo/66cf2528-5800-11e1-8cd8-b2fbc2e45f9f</ref>). Chiesa retaliated by spilling the dirt on the political system as a whole. His revelations uncovered a web of corrupt relations between political parties, business and organised crime, and provoked a judicial investigation known as Mani pulite (‘Clean hands’) (Guanci 2011<ref>Guanci, V. 2011. ‘1992, Tangentopoli,’ Treccani Scuola http://www.treccani.it/scuola/maturita/terza_prova/storia_contemporanea_in_immagini/1992_Guanci_Tangentopoli.html</ref>). Soon it became clear that what had been going on was not an isolated event confined to Milan, but a nationwide system of political corruption (''Treccani Enciclopedia'' 2015<ref>Treccani Enciclopedia online. 2015. ‘Tangentopoli,’ http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/tangentopoli_(Dizionario-di-Storia)/</ref>). The term Tangentopoli accordingly came to denote a system based on tacit agreements whereby entrepreneurs paid bribes to politicians as an informal ‘tax’ to obtain public contracts, and politicians then used the money to fund their political parties (Della Porta 2015<ref>Della Porta, D. 2015. ‘Tangentopoli,’ Treccani Enciclopedia Italiana http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/tangentopoli_%28Enciclopedia-Italiana%29/</ref>). In its broadest sense, the term became synonymous with any kind of widespread political corruption (''Treccani Vocabolario'' 2015<ref>Treccani Vocabolario online. 2015. ‘Tangentopoli,’ http://www.treccani.it/vocabolario/tangentopoli/</ref>). | ||
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An analogous practice might be [[otkat]] in Russia (kickback) whereby officials choose a supplier of goods or services for a public contract and receive remuneration from the provider in the form of a fixed sum of money or a percentage of the transaction amount. However, ''Tangentopoli'' differs from [[otkat]] in that in Italy it denotes kickbacks that are mainly used to fund political parties, whereas in Russia the money may be used however the recipient chooses. | An analogous practice might be [[otkat]] in Russia (kickback) whereby officials choose a supplier of goods or services for a public contract and receive remuneration from the provider in the form of a fixed sum of money or a percentage of the transaction amount. However, ''Tangentopoli'' differs from [[otkat]] in that in Italy it denotes kickbacks that are mainly used to fund political parties, whereas in Russia the money may be used however the recipient chooses. | ||
The fact that ''Tangentopoli'' sees politicians asking businesspeople for bribes in return for public contracts suggests a degree of coercion that might make the practice comparable to the system of corruption practised by the mafia, where bribes are characterised by extortion of ''mazzette'' (kickbacks). The main difference between the two practices however is that, in the case of ''Tangentopoli'', it is politicians who ask for kickbacks to allow companies to win public contracts whereas, in the case of the mafia, mafia members extort money from civilians and owners of small businesses in return for protection. The behaviour of both politicians and mafia members is similar in that both are the ‘actors’ who demand kickbacks. Although it is always hard to define which direction corruption takes—who is the agent and who the target—it might be claimed that, in some specific instances, politicians may be seen as the ‘targets’ of corruption, rather than as its instigators. This is the case in situations in which the mafia, being in control of some areas, makes financial demands to politicians in return for their votes and the extortion of votes from civilians. Indeed, the informal systems of the mafia and ''Tangentopoli'' may be closely associated when mafia members put pressure on politicians and convince them through extortion to assign public contracts to companies controlled by the mafia, thereby creating a three-way system of corruption that includes not only politicians and entrepreneurs, but also the mafia as an active player. An example of such interrelation is provided by ''Mafia Capitale'', a criminal organisation uncovered in 2014 through which mafia exponents controlled many public works in the city of Rome by means of contacts and bribery of politicians and public officials (Micocci 2015<ref>Micocci, S. 2015. ‘Mafia Capitale, il maxi processo spiegato in 5 punti: fatti, indagati e accuse,’ forexinfo.it, 5 November https://www.forexinfo.it/Mafia-Capitale-il-maxi-processo</ref>). While this has been compared to ''Tangentopoli'', it has also been seen as a new form of corruption since it directly involves organised crime (‘Mafia Capitale' 2014<ref>Libero Quotidiano. 2014. ‘Mafia capitale, Di Pietro: “E’ peggio di Tangentopoli, c’è pure la criminalità organizzata”,’ 3 December http://www.liberoquotidiano.it/news/cronaca/11729239/Mafia-capitale--Di-Pietro-.html</ref>). | [[File:Milano Tangentopoli.png|300px|thumb|left|´Si ruba ancora ma per sé stessi ecco perché Tangentopoli no è finita, ''La Repubblica'', 10 February 2012´]]The fact that ''Tangentopoli'' sees politicians asking businesspeople for bribes in return for public contracts suggests a degree of coercion that might make the practice comparable to the system of corruption practised by the mafia, where bribes are characterised by extortion of ''mazzette'' (kickbacks). The main difference between the two practices however is that, in the case of ''Tangentopoli'', it is politicians who ask for kickbacks to allow companies to win public contracts whereas, in the case of the mafia, mafia members extort money from civilians and owners of small businesses in return for protection. The behaviour of both politicians and mafia members is similar in that both are the ‘actors’ who demand kickbacks. Although it is always hard to define which direction corruption takes—who is the agent and who the target—it might be claimed that, in some specific instances, politicians may be seen as the ‘targets’ of corruption, rather than as its instigators. This is the case in situations in which the mafia, being in control of some areas, makes financial demands to politicians in return for their votes and the extortion of votes from civilians. Indeed, the informal systems of the mafia and ''Tangentopoli'' may be closely associated when mafia members put pressure on politicians and convince them through extortion to assign public contracts to companies controlled by the mafia, thereby creating a three-way system of corruption that includes not only politicians and entrepreneurs, but also the mafia as an active player. An example of such interrelation is provided by ''Mafia Capitale'', a criminal organisation uncovered in 2014 through which mafia exponents controlled many public works in the city of Rome by means of contacts and bribery of politicians and public officials (Micocci 2015<ref>Micocci, S. 2015. ‘Mafia Capitale, il maxi processo spiegato in 5 punti: fatti, indagati e accuse,’ forexinfo.it, 5 November https://www.forexinfo.it/Mafia-Capitale-il-maxi-processo</ref>). While this has been compared to ''Tangentopoli'', it has also been seen as a new form of corruption since it directly involves organised crime (‘Mafia Capitale' 2014<ref>Libero Quotidiano. 2014. ‘Mafia capitale, Di Pietro: “E’ peggio di Tangentopoli, c’è pure la criminalità organizzata”,’ 3 December http://www.liberoquotidiano.it/news/cronaca/11729239/Mafia-capitale--Di-Pietro-.html</ref>). | ||
The ''Tangentopoli'' scandal had a significant impact on Italian politics and society. Under strong public pressure and intense investigations, many politicians confessed or resigned; some fled the country, including the leader of the PSI, Bettino Craxi, who fled to Turkey in 1995; while others, including Sergio Moroni, a Socialist MP, committed suicide while under investigation (Montanelli and Cervi 2013: chapter 14<ref>Montanelli, I. and Cervi, M. 2013. Storia d’Italia. L’Italia degli anni di fango 1978-1993. Milan: Biblioteca universale Rizzoli.</ref>). The ‘moralisation campaign,’ headed by magistrate and future politician Antonio Di Pietro, won enthusiastic public support (Pollo 1996<ref>Pollo, P. 1996. ‘L’ex pm ha superato la soglia dell’eroe. Otto italiani su dieci lo sostengono,’ Corriere della Sera, 11 December http://archiviostorico.corriere.it/1996/dicembre/11/superato_soglia_dell_eroe_inattaccabile_co_0_96121114618.shtml </ref>). More broadly, the widespread public indignation provoked by the ''Mani pulite'' operation resulted in significant changes on the political scene. At one point, more than half of the members of parliament were under investigation, while 400 city and town councils were dissolved as a result of corruption charges (Koff 2000: 2<ref>Koff, S. and Koff, S. 2000. Italy: From the 1st to the 2nd Republic. London and New York: Routledge.</ref>). Political parties including Christian Democracy, the PSI and the Communist Party, which had dominated the political scene for decades, lost public confidence and were eventually dissolved. By contrast, populist parties which pursued anti-corruption campaigns, such as the Northern League, won increased public support (Montanelli and Cervi 2013: chapter 15<ref>Montanelli, I. and Cervi, M. 2013. Storia d’Italia. L’Italia degli anni di fango 1978-1993. Milan: Biblioteca universale Rizzoli.</ref>). The scandal accordingly led to a radical restructuring of the ‘First Republic,’ that is, the political sysem that had operated in Italy since the end of the Second World War, and its replacement by a reformed electoral system that came informally to be known as the Second Italian Republic (Koff 2000: 1-3, 31<ref>Koff, S. and Koff, S. 2000. Italy: From the 1st to the 2nd Republic. London and New York: Routledge.</ref>). The scandal also had important economic implications, provoking a sharp fall both in the value of the Italian currency and in international confidence in the country’s reliability as a haven for investment (Barbacetto, Gomez and Travaglio 2002: 32-3<ref>Barbacetto, G., Gomez, P. and Travaglio, M. 2002. Mani Pulite. La Vera Storia. Rome: Editori Riuniti.</ref>) | The ''Tangentopoli'' scandal had a significant impact on Italian politics and society. Under strong public pressure and intense investigations, many politicians confessed or resigned; some fled the country, including the leader of the PSI, Bettino Craxi, who fled to Turkey in 1995; while others, including Sergio Moroni, a Socialist MP, committed suicide while under investigation (Montanelli and Cervi 2013: chapter 14<ref>Montanelli, I. and Cervi, M. 2013. Storia d’Italia. L’Italia degli anni di fango 1978-1993. Milan: Biblioteca universale Rizzoli.</ref>). The ‘moralisation campaign,’ headed by magistrate and future politician Antonio Di Pietro, won enthusiastic public support (Pollo 1996<ref>Pollo, P. 1996. ‘L’ex pm ha superato la soglia dell’eroe. Otto italiani su dieci lo sostengono,’ Corriere della Sera, 11 December http://archiviostorico.corriere.it/1996/dicembre/11/superato_soglia_dell_eroe_inattaccabile_co_0_96121114618.shtml </ref>). More broadly, the widespread public indignation provoked by the ''Mani pulite'' operation resulted in significant changes on the political scene. At one point, more than half of the members of parliament were under investigation, while 400 city and town councils were dissolved as a result of corruption charges (Koff 2000: 2<ref>Koff, S. and Koff, S. 2000. Italy: From the 1st to the 2nd Republic. London and New York: Routledge.</ref>). Political parties including Christian Democracy, the PSI and the Communist Party, which had dominated the political scene for decades, lost public confidence and were eventually dissolved. By contrast, populist parties which pursued anti-corruption campaigns, such as the Northern League, won increased public support (Montanelli and Cervi 2013: chapter 15<ref>Montanelli, I. and Cervi, M. 2013. Storia d’Italia. L’Italia degli anni di fango 1978-1993. Milan: Biblioteca universale Rizzoli.</ref>). The scandal accordingly led to a radical restructuring of the ‘First Republic,’ that is, the political sysem that had operated in Italy since the end of the Second World War, and its replacement by a reformed electoral system that came informally to be known as the Second Italian Republic (Koff 2000: 1-3, 31<ref>Koff, S. and Koff, S. 2000. Italy: From the 1st to the 2nd Republic. London and New York: Routledge.</ref>). The scandal also had important economic implications, provoking a sharp fall both in the value of the Italian currency and in international confidence in the country’s reliability as a haven for investment (Barbacetto, Gomez and Travaglio 2002: 32-3<ref>Barbacetto, G., Gomez, P. and Travaglio, M. 2002. Mani Pulite. La Vera Storia. Rome: Editori Riuniti.</ref>) | ||