Difference between revisions of "Raccomandazione (Italy)"

Commonplace though the practice is, there is nonetheless widespread condemnation of ''raccomandazione'' in Italian society, and the 2012 Anti-Corruption Law (n. 190) attempted to make it illegal by defining it as ‘traffic of illicit influences’.  Yet from a strictly legal point of view, court decisions have continued to decree that it is not a crime in the context of putting in a good word for someone.  If, however, ''raccomandazione'' is supplemented with gifts or payment to a civil servant, it constitutes bribery or corruption in a penal sense.  ''Raccomandazione'' persists in Italy in its various forms, even though measures for accountability and transparency have been enacted in the public administration since the 1990s. Simultaneously, the possible benefits made available through the public sector (especially jobs) have diminished through budget cuts and the shrinking of the welfare state.  However, a new cultural awareness emphasising meritocracy has gained increasing consensus among the younger generations of Italians:  they often hesitate to ask for ''raccomandazioni'' or will protest more readily when they find that an injustice or a crime has been committed through the use of connections.

Commonplace though the practice is, there is nonetheless widespread condemnation of ''raccomandazione'' in Italian society, and the 2012 Anti-Corruption Law (n. 190) attempted to make it illegal by defining it as ‘traffic of illicit influences’.  Yet from a strictly legal point of view, court decisions have continued to decree that it is not a crime in the context of putting in a good word for someone.  If, however, ''raccomandazione'' is supplemented with gifts or payment to a civil servant, it constitutes bribery or corruption in a penal sense.  ''Raccomandazione'' persists in Italy in its various forms, even though measures for accountability and transparency have been enacted in the public administration since the 1990s. Simultaneously, the possible benefits made available through the public sector (especially jobs) have diminished through budget cuts and the shrinking of the welfare state.  However, a new cultural awareness emphasising meritocracy has gained increasing consensus among the younger generations of Italians:  they often hesitate to ask for ''raccomandazioni'' or will protest more readily when they find that an injustice or a crime has been committed through the use of connections.

# Allum, P. 1973. Politics and Society in Post-War Naples.  Cambridge:  Cambridge University Press.  

# Allum, P. 1973. Politics and Society in Post-War Naples.  Cambridge:  Cambridge University Press.  

# Galt, A. 1974. ‘Rethinking Patron-Client Relationships:  The Real System and the Official System in Southern Italy’, Anthropological Quarterly, 47(2):  182-202.   

# Galt, A. 1974. ‘Rethinking Patron-Client Relationships:  The Real System and the Official System in Southern Italy’, Anthropological Quarterly, 47(2):  182-202.   

# Silverman, S.F. (1965) ‘Patronage and Community-Nation Relationships in Central Italy’, Ethnology, 4 (2):  172-89.

# Silverman, S.F. (1965) ‘Patronage and Community-Nation Relationships in Central Italy’, Ethnology, 4 (2):  172-89.

# White, C.C. 1980. Patrons and Partisans:  A Study of Politics in Two Southern Comuni. New York:  Cambridge University Press.

# White, C.C. 1980. Patrons and Partisans:  A Study of Politics in Two Southern Comuni. New York:  Cambridge University Press.