Speeches

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, as pointed out in your report and in that of Mario Draghi, a solid European single market is essential for the competitiveness of businesses, because it can stimulate economic growth and innovation, guaranteeing market access and eliminating unnecessary bureaucracy. However, Europe needs a strong industrial strategy for technologies and value chains that promotes competitiveness, sustainability and innovation. This strategy must develop a coherent vision, prioritising a regulatory framework, with science-based policies and in-depth impact assessments, providing businesses with the stability they need. From this point of view, we consider the mission letters on the creation of a truly competitive circular economy to be very positive. In recent decades, European companies have invested billions of euros in cutting-edge technologies, have generated enormous progress ineco-design of products, in consumer safety and in the recycling industry, where Italy and Europe hold positions of leadership worldwide, both in terms of industrial innovation and environmental sustainability. Unfortunately, the overregulation of recent years has generated enormous uncertainty, pushing entire industrial sectors to postpone their investments, compromising the overall growth objectives, with a waste of time and resources. In this mandate it will therefore be necessary to avoid at all costs producing further legislative initiatives motivated by falsely environmentalist logics and not based on scientific evidence, which risk penalizing European companies. It will be imperative to ensure compliance with European standards by third countries, ensuring standards that reduce dependence on foreign suppliers and strengthen the competitiveness of European industry and economies to meet the challenges of global competition from China and the United States.

Madam President, I too would like to remind you that in Italy today we are celebrating the liberation from Nazi-fascism, from Nazi-fascist oppression. This liberation and this celebration is for us an honor to all those who lost their lives to give Italy freedom, to the many European and American soldiers who came to Italy to give Italy freedom and to the many Italians who fought for freedom. But it is above all also a commitment, because what happened in those years in Lazio with the Nazi-Fascist occupation does not happen anymore. Regurgitations of oppression towards those who may have different religions, those who have different sexual orientations are around the corner and it is the task of this European Parliament everywhere to fight them.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, yesterday evening one of our colleagues, Alessandra, was brutally attacked and beaten here in Strasbourg. I wonder: that Europe is a Europe where you are not free to walk the streets in a city like this, which is home to all parliamentarians? I think that you, President, should ask the Mayor of Strasbourg and the police to be able to guarantee the safety and security of the Members of Parliament, who are here once a month, because what happened yesterday in Alessandra can happen to any other colleague. It is truly unbelievable that there is a "hunt for the MEP" on the streets of Strasbourg, without adequate protection of the presence. If they don't want us, we're going to vote in one seat and we're going to leave France, that's not a problem.

(IT) Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, if this debate had stopped at the word 'Europe', or if after the word 'Europe' it had written 'also based on the events of 7 October', 'on the Nazism that emerged on 7 October', we would probably be talking today about something much more serious, much more serious. We wanted a debate of this kind, almost making us imagine that Italy is not a democratic country: in Italy the apology of fascism is a crime, it is provided as a crime and people who have been guilty of this crime will be prosecuted. But are we sure that these days Nazism and fascism have been adequately fought by those who want to somehow justify what happened on October 7? How many voices have been raised, by the same people who complain about the behavior that took place in Rome, towards what happened to Israeli women on October 7? A ferocious Nazism that we have seen live in the story of the New York Times: the violence suffered, the women raped, killed, torn from their homes. Nazism has come back powerfully, outside Europe and in Europe in the lack of strong condemnation of those events, as if we wanted to forget it, condemn it, as if we wanted to imagine that there was a responsibility, on the other hand, that had generated these behaviors. There are no good dictators and bad dictators, there is no good violence and bad violence, there is no good fascism and bad fascism! And so we must imagine that this Parliament, just as it has the capacity to raise its voice against those who praise fascism by raising its hand to heaven and making the Roman salute, equally strongly condemns, without ifs and buts!, the terrorist violence that was put in place on 7 October and does not hide behind a responsibility that is to be attributed to Israel.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, tomorrow there will be a great event here, the awarding of an extraordinary woman, Mahsa Amini, who unfortunately will not be here with us, because Iran does not give her permission to come to Strasbourg to collect this award. The discrimination we are witnessing against him today is just one of the many discriminations that Iran puts in place against minorities, continuously. Just think of what Azerbaijani minorities in Iran suffer every day, for example, because they are not given the right to express themselves in their own language and write their own documents, because they are not given the opportunity to declare their own culture. They are not granted any rights, the regions where they live are underfunded. Every day in Iran there is discrimination against a minority and I wonder: How long can the European Union accept this? How long will it not agree to put in place real sanctions to punish this state that makes anti-democracy and persecution of minorities its rule?

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to remind the House today of Silvio Berlusconi. Silvio Berlusconi was one of our colleagues. And I just want to say to all of our colleagues, to those who crossed paths with him in the corridors, to those with whom he spoke, to those with whom he voted together, to those with whom he sometimes, perhaps, confronted himself even harshly, I want to say to all of these colleagues: be proud to have known him, because such a man will not be easy to find in the history of Europe and our country. We are proud of this and will always honour your memory as Members of Parliament.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, when I arrived here in Parliament this morning, I was thinking of finding a Chamber full of MEPs, of listening to speeches all aimed at reaffirming the position that the European Parliament has always had: defending Ukraine and condemning the Russian invasion. I am sorry to note that so many colleagues have chosen not to take part in this debate - the House is sadly half-desert - and I am sorry to note that some colleagues have preferred political controversy to reflection on what a year of war means. Forza Italia has always remarked, in every vote and in every act, its condemnation of the invasion of Ukraine. There is not a single act in this European Parliament that goes differently. It is regrettable that some Socialist colleagues, instead of using the time they were given to talk about the invasion of Ukraine, used it to attack Italy and to attack a political leader like Silvio Berlusconi. They made a mistake and I hope they understand.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, when I read Article 21 of the Constitution in Italy, I probably do not reflect on the fact that freedom to demonstrate is not always taken for granted. It is normal for us Europeans to have the freedom to take to the streets, to be able to express our ideas. For many who live elsewhere, in countries like Iran, this right does not exist and for this right one dies, one is hanged in the public square. Let us remember in this House what happened today, when poor Majidreza Rahnavard was hanged only because he had demonstrated. He was 23 years old, he had a life ahead of him, he went to the streets to defend his ideas, to protest against the injustice of the death of Mahsa Amini. And then this Parliament must reflect on what Iran is becoming and must develop every form of defense and sanction against a country that denies this right.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, what is democracy? Democracy is the people's vote. In Sweden, 82% of Swedish citizens voted in September; They chose freely, without constraint, without violence, went to the polling booth and cast a vote. The same thing happened in Italy on September 25. 64% of Italians went to the polling booth and made their choice, reasonably, consciously. This is democracy: It is the right of citizens to be able to choose freely from whom they are governed and this Parliament cannot decide what is right or wrong, we cannot believe that a government is not in line just because it does not have the same ideas that maybe we have in our hearts. We must be rational in judging governments and we must judge governments by acts, by what they will do. I have heard, I must tell the truth, so much nonsense about my country, about Italy. We are clear, very clear, about our foreign policy. We were the first to condemn the invasion of Ukraine and our line will absolutely not change with the new government, just as it had not changed with previous governments. Here, we must be aware that the acts that hurt are those that perhaps happened here today in this Parliament, when a correct amendment, which wanted to try to restore the correct education of Palestinian children, was rejected and was not put to the vote. These are the acts that hurt: the rampant anti-Semitism which unfortunately is also present in this Parliament and is finding a great deal of space in Europe.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the story of Daphne Caruana Galizia is the story of Ján Kuciak: journalists killed during their investigations under socialist governments. So I want to take this opportunity to recall in this House the statements that the socialist governments have made to seek truth and justice, to ask for truth and justice. Let us remember their statements. What you heard was the noise of silence. And silence in these cases kills twice.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, in late August there will be a meeting between President Macron and the President of Zimbabwe, demonstrating a return to normality in relations between the European Union and this country, which culminated in the elimination of certain sanctions against certain individuals. On the other hand, the fact that Zimbabwe is moving towards a positive assessment is also demonstrated by the holding of the by-elections, which saw the opposition win with many seats, demonstrating that the country is moving towards a new democratization, there have been neither clashes nor accusations of fraud. The time has come for the European Union, also in the light of the meeting that will take place at the end of August with Macron, to lift the latest sanctions against this country, which can truly become a strong border against the advance of terrorism, jihadism - let us remember what happened in Mogadishu - and we must put Zimbabwe in a position to cope with the jihadist advance in the region.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, as former president of the Israeli delegation, I can only applaud the agreements of Abraham which projected the possibility of a new peace in the Middle East region and, above all, made known to the European Union the United Arab Emirates, their ability to grow new generations who preach tolerance, respect for religions, the ability to propose school programs that make new generations grow, focused on the values of peace and tolerance. The programs of study, in fact, provide for the fight against jihadism, provide for a deep religious respect and these programs of study are at the forefront and are the basics substantially because we have then arrived at these historic agreements of Abraham. The European Union must value these agreements, look at the possibility of finding a new peace in the Middle East, starting precisely from the Abraham Accords.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, there can never be a real commercial partnership with Africa if sanctions that are very often anti-historical against certain countries are not lifted and if it is not clearly decided to combat the phenomenon of jihadist insurrection. The jihadist insurgency, which has worsened in Cabo Delgado since 2017, is pouring into neighboring countries, and the attacks in Tanzania last Saturday demonstrate this, despite the sending of troops destined to face the jihadist phenomenon. The European Union is not acting clearly against this phenomenon, despite the fact that some countries, such as Zimbabwe, have decided to make the fight against jihadism their flag. And President Macron understood this, so much so that he met the President of Zimbabwe, and our colleague Elmar Brok will travel to that country to examine the situation in the light of the presidential elections in 2023, and the European Investment Fund has also allocated over 12 and a half million euros for local entrepreneurs. This is good, but the time has come to discuss the legitimacy of still maintaining sanctions that block the economy of this country, which, I repeat, is the only country that is really fighting a great fight against jihadism. We can't wait for the situation to degenerate.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, today in the European Parliament we have the courage to address this issue, but let us ask ourselves what the Member States of the European Union are doing. Italy does nothing. Italy has always instrumentally denied the existence of this problem. In 2015, the then Foreign Minister Gentiloni, who is now Commissioner of the European Union, signed a cooperation and patrol agreement with China and a subsequent agreement, in 2017, was signed by the Deputy Minister of the Interior. A constant collaboration with the Chinese police, which then found its maximum explanation in the arrest that was made inside the Senate, right at the entrance of the Italian Senate, of the President of the Uyghur Parliament. We also think that there is no Italian newspaper that is engaged in the decryption of files. We must therefore ask ourselves what the individual European states are doing to avoid what is happening in this region of China.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, I consider this resolution to be too weak; It is too weak because the situation in Guatemala has reached a very high level of guard. Just think of what Secretary-General Guterres said last Thursday, when he spoke clearly about the persecution that more than 15 justice officials are suffering in Guatemala. Among these 15 officials there is also the great Erika Dávila, who has written memorable pages in the fight against corruption in Guatemala and who does not find a just defense and is forced into exile, is forced to leave the country she has always tried to defend. Hers is a story, that of Dávila, of continuous difficulty and precisely because she is a woman. Let us not forget that Guatemala has recently passed a violent law against abortion, in favor of sexual discrimination and probably Dávila pays for being a woman. His history, the difficulties of his career show how much he had to fight every time to overcome these difficulties. Then we ask the Commission for a strong presence, a strong position against these injustices that the judges suffer.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the by-elections of 26 May in Zimbabwe were observed by a number of ambassadors, those of the United States, Great Britain, Sweden and the Netherlands, who assessed these peaceful by-elections and found that the democratic process had been respected. The clashes of 2018 seem to have been overcome when, by force and military power, other principles were affirmed. And then we must ask ourselves whether it is not time to re-evaluate the role of Zimbabwe and the fight against jihadism and whether Europe must make every effort to maintain relations with Zimbabwe and prevent it from being given as a partner to Putin's Russia. For this reason, we ask the Council to consider confronting this State to scale up the sanctions that have been imposed on it over time, because Zimbabwe can truly be an extraordinary partner in the fight against jihadism, which is afflicting all African countries.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, the consequences for Europe would be serious if Sudan fell into chaos. Sudan borders Libya and Egypt, that is, the gates of Africa that enter Europe. We would be witnessing a terrible development of illegal migrants, people smuggling and arms smuggling, so it is in the interest of the European Union, as it is in the interest of the great powers, that there be a stabilisation of the political situation in Sudan. That is why all parties involved, from civil society to the elite and the military, must find a solution that allows this country to move back towards a democratic solution, which will then come with the 2023 elections. I personally oppose the economic sanctions announced by the World Bank, through its president David Malpass, who wants to block economic aid to Sudan: 3 billion dollars, the announcement made in November 2021 by the Biden administration to block 700 million dollars in favour of this country and also what is written in the resolution that is proposed to us by our colleagues in Parliament, where they make EU aid conditional on regaining stability, because this aid is intended for the civilian population, it is intended for the desperate, for the many who suffer daily, are certainly not advantages for the elite. We only risk creating chaos if we make the disbursement of aid conditional on renewed political stability. Instead, I repeat, it is necessary that all actors come to the same table, from the elite to civil society to the military, to find a solution that gives a new order to things. We read the agencies of a few days ago, when the US special envoy for the Horn of Africa David Satterfield will be in Khartoum in the coming days to try to find a democratic way and to meet the military. We know that Washington bases good relations on the military government, also because the military has guaranteed compliance with Abraham's agreements with Israel. We look with great interest and favor to the work of the envoy for the Horn of Africa David Satterfield and we hope that from these meetings can be born a new agreement between civil society and the military to find a new government for this country.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, today we are dealing with an important subject: the violence that women in Yemen suffer as a result of the violence perpetrated by the Houthi militias. There are numerous cases of many activists and educators who are arrested for no reason, who are kidnapped in their homes: 181 women have been incarcerated in the last year alone, very often on laughable charges, and their children are then transported to prisons. It is a situation of incredible violence, which is constantly being committed against women in this country. Violence perpetrated by the Houthi militia and which Parliament must absolutely monitor. We call for a resolution, we call for strong action by the European Parliament to end violence against women in Yemen.