On October 5, 2008, Vicenza overwhelmingly said no to a second U.S.
military base. In a referendum that had officially been suspended just four
days before it was to take place, 24,094 voters, determined to express
themselves, showed up to cast their votes. The referendum asked local
residents if they agreed with the City of Vicenza taking up measures to
purchase the Dal Molin area, the site of the proposed base, in order to
designate its use in the public interest and to protect the environmental
integrity of the site. With a resounding no to the new base, 23,050 voters,
or 95.66%, voted in favor of the referendum.
The people of this city in northern Italy had been asking to have a say in
this issue that has dominated local politics since May of 2006, when news
of the proposed base first began to leak out. More than two years later, it
had finally been called following a vote by the newly-elected city council this
past June. Vicenza´s mayor, Achille Variati, had been elected in a runoff
vote in April of this year on a platform that opposed the base and supported
a local referendum.
As the date of the referendum neared, a campaign against this expression
of democracy began. The Special Commissioner appointed by the
government, Paolo Costa, called the referendum "anti-democratic" and
Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi went so far as to write an open letter to
Mayor Variati, in which he described the referendum as "seriously
inopportune."
A legal battle against the referendum was lead by Roberto Cattaneo, an
official in Berlusconi´s Forza Italia party, member of the Vicenza Provincial
Council and a former employee of the existing base of Camp Ederle.
Cattaneo is also the leader of the Committee Si Dal Molin, which is in favor
of the base, but judging by the lack of any public events, has a rather small
popular following. Cattaneo presented a case before the TAR, a regional
administrative court, in early September calling for the referendum to be
blocked. His case maintained, as the national government had been doing
for some time, that the city had no authority to purchase the area and the
referendum was therefore inappropriate.
The administrative court ruled against the case on September 18, stating
that the referendum was of a purely explorative nature and could therefore
proceed. Cattaneo then appealed to the Council of State, who overturned
the previous court´s decision - in record time - and suspended the
referendum.
On the evening of October 1, as they learned of the court´s decision, the
people responded with outrage and over 12,000 poured into the main
square in Vicenza for a demonstration that had been organized just hours
before.
Vicenza´s mayor took to the stage and said "If they won´t let us vote inside
the polling places, then we´ll vote outside the gates." And so it was, with
new meaning given to the term "popular referendum."
Despite this being an "unofficial" vote, it was organized with strict adherence
to the rules. City residents were required to go to their normal polling place
and identification was required. Some city council members also served as
polling place supervisors and a committee to guarantee the results,
including a notary, was nominated. In all, over 500 volunteers were on hand
to make sure everything went smoothly.
The center of operations was organized on one of the main squares in the
historic center of the city, allowing for complete transparency and public
observation of the vote. A press center was also organized, with everything
from wireless internet access to separate areas for the press to arrange
interviews.
Voting started at 8am. By noon, nearly 10,000 people had already voted,
including a man who had just celebrated his 100th birthday. Voter turnout
at times overwhelmed some of the 32 polling places throughout the city,
with long lines forming.
Voters often offered a contribution towards the expenses of the referendum
before even voting. Many brought warm drinks and food to the volunteers at
the polling places.
At 9pm the polls closed and the vote count began at the center of
operations, with hundreds of citizens present to follow the results. Just after
midnight the results were announced: 95.66% had voted in favor of the
referendum, and against the new U.S. military base. The people had
spoken.
In addition to the local referendum, other cities throughout Italy also
organized symbolic votes in solidarity with the people of Vicenza, from Val
di Susa in the north to Cagliari in Sardinia, an island that has seen the
devastating effects of military bases.
Aware that the impact of this base is hardly limited to the city of Vicenza, an
online vote was also organized allowing people all over the world to
participate symbolically in the referendum. Over 30,000 people voted, with
80.7% against the base.
The unofficial nature of the referendum has been cause for criticism by
supporters of the new base, including Cattaneo, who brought about the
legal case that ultimately suspended the vote. He has been kindly invited by
the mayor of Vicenza to organize his own referendum in favor of the base
and to bring 24,000 citizens out to vote.
As Mayor Variati said following the vote on Sunday, "This wasn´t an official
referendum, but a referendum obstructed and denied by public officials."
Some were afraid to take part in the vote, many others, instead, felt they
had to participate. 24,000 "conscientious objectors", aged 18 to 100, took
to the polls. They paid no heed to what had been said or written by
everyone from Prime Minister Berlusconi, to Defense Minister La Russa, the
Council of State, Governor of the Veneto Region Galan, all the way down to
Cattaneo. They cast their votes to say we don´t want to see further
militarization of our city.
This wasn´t a "normal" referendum, with so many public authorities against
it. And for that very reason, the result was exceptional.
It was an extraordinary example of citizens taking democracy into their own
hands, a victory over apathy. And it wasn´t the first time it had happened in
Vicenza, where for over two years the people have not only succeeded in
blocking construction of a base they don´t want, but also in creating a
community which takes an active role in the politics that affect their lives
and the lives of others around the globe.
Viva la democrazia!
---
Enzo Ciscato, Presidio permanente No Dal Molin (
http://www.nodalmolin.it).
Stephanie Westbrook, U.S. Citizens for Peace & Justice - Rome (
http://www.peaceandjustice.it)
