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image by Marcus Schmöger, 19 July 2002
The flag of the "Democratici", belonging to
"Margherita", sub-coalition of Ulivo.
Marcus Schmöger, 19 July 2002
I am startled to see Italy's new Democrats using the donkey
that has long (since the nineteenth century) symbolized the
Democratic Party in the United States. Is the symbol well
enough known in Italy to be worth imitating?
John Ayer, 20 July 2002
Inside political circles, yes. For the general public, no. But
IMHO they never tried to appeal to a wide audience as a party
with a specific identity, seeing themselves as a temporary step
to a bigger party, either the unified party of the centre-left
"Ulivo" coalition or, as it's now, the
"Margherita" party.
Two things worth noting: the background and the lettering of the
symbol are just the same as seen on Ulivo's symbol, and the
little donkey has a certain "Disney" appeal that a lot
of people in Italy found questionable.
On the other side, the Alleanza Nazionale party (at the right
side of the spectrum, and currently 2nd biggest partner in the
government coalition) tried once to use the elephant in an
election coalition, together with Mr. Segni' s "Pact for
Italy" but the poll result was discouraging and therefore
the symbol was dropped. See <space.tin.it>.
There is a certain trend going on in the Italian political life
to pick up exterior aspects of the US politics, without really
getting to the core.
Alessio F. Bragadini, 20 July 2002
You can see a photo of the flag at <www.democraticiperlulivo.it/bandiera.jpg>.
Logo at <www.democraticiperlulivo.it/logo2000.jpg>.
Dov Gutterman, 22 July 2002
Democratici ("Democratici per l'Ulivo" = Democrats
for the Olive Tree <www.democraticiperlulivo.it>)
- After the fall of the Prodi government in 1998, Romano Prodi
started to build a new party as a merger movement of the centrist
parts of the Ulivo coalition and groups affiliated to it. The
party even attracted the former member of the Greens and mayor of
Rome, Francesco Rutelli, who became candidate for prime minister
for the 2001 elections, but lost against Berlusconi. Under the
leadership of Arturo Parisi the Democratici are part of the
"Margherita" sub-coalition. In the two parliamentary
chambers the "Democratici" members are part of the
"Margherita" group.
The logo of the "Democratici" shows a donkey (as an
allusion to the symbol of the American Democrats) on a field of
white blending into light blue, and the inscription "i
Democratici". The flag is a blueish green with the logo in
the center. The background colour of the flag (blueish green) as
well as the style of the inscription in the logo are the same as
in the symbols of "L'Ulivo", of which the
"Democratici" form part of. Fotos of the flag at: <www.democraticiperlulivo.it/bandiera.jpg>,
<mantini2.jpg>,
<minisini2.jpg>
and <Piazza10.JPG>.
Marcus Schmöger, 1 August 2002
New Flag
image by Marcus Schmöger, 29 June 2002
The new flag of Democratic Party of the Left (Partito
Democratico della Sinistra) is used in all the officials
demonstrations and it is the party logo on red.
Mark Fromm, 21 December 2000
The name Partito Democratico della Sinistra was changed into
Democratici di Sinistra (or I Democratici di Sinitra), this to be
more opened to the other components of the left.
Jérôme Sterkers, 14 November 2001
One can see a photo of the flag at <www.roma.democraticidisinistra.it>.
Party and other logos can be reached through <www.roma.democraticidisinistra.it>
.
Dov Gutterman, 22 January 2002
At the 1st May demonstrations in Munich there are also always
political parties and groups from foreign countries including
Italy. Flag of DS (Democratici di Sinistra = Democrats of the
Left) - The DS is the largest party of the L'Ulivo coalition. The
main fraction of the former PCI (Partito Comunista Italiano =
Italian Communist Party) adopted a new name in 1991: PDS (Partito
Democratico della Sinistra = Democratic Party of the Left). It
has renamed itself again in 1998 (absorbing several smaller left
parties) into DS. The symbol of the DS shows (on a white circle)
a tree on a green base; at the top the black inscription
"DEMOCRATICI DI SINISTRA"; at the bottom the symbol of
the PSE/PES, the European Socialist Party, a red rose in a circle
of 12 black stars (already reported by me 16 May). The flag is
red with the symbol in the center.
Sources:
- own observations at the 1st May 2001 and 2002 demos in Munich
- website of DS at <www.dsonline.it>
Marcus Schmöger, 29 June 2002
In 1998, the PDS (main fraction of the old Communist Party) again changed its
name, this time into DS (Democratici di Sinistra = Democrats of
the Left). The logo and flag were also changed, as already
described.
Marcus Schmöger, 2 August 2002
Previous Flag
image by Marcus Schmöger, 2 August 2002
2.gif)
image by Marcus Schmöger, 2 August 2002
In 1991, the main fraction of the Communist
Party (Partito dei Comunisti Italiani) renamed the party into
PDS (Partito Democratico della Sinistra = Democratic Party of the
Left). The logo and the flag were changed as well. The new logo
showed an oak tree with its roots in the old PCI symbol, as well
as the name of the party. The flag was red with the logo in the
center. Two variants of the logo were also used: either with the
additional inscription "SINISTRA DEMOCRATICA"
(Democratic Left) or the inscription "SINISTRA EUROPEA"
(European Left). However, I have not seen these logo variants
used on flags.
Marcus Schmöger, 2 August 2002
image by Marcus Schmöger, 2 August 2002
Photo of the flag at <www.singio.org>.
Dov Gutterman, 13 September 1999
It is "Juvenile Left" flag
Santiago Dotor, 13 September 1999
The youth organization of the DS (formerly PDS) is the
"Sinistra Giovanile" (Juvenile Left). The flag shows
the logo (a yellow outline of a rose with inscriptions
"sinistra giovanile" and "sg") as well as the
inscription "Sinistra giovanile".
Marcus Schmöger, 2 August 2002
see also: <www.democraticidisinistra.it>
image by Marcus Schmöger, 15 July 2002
Logo of DE ("Democrazia Europea"). No flag found. DE
belongs to the right-center coalition House of the
Liberties (Casa delle Libertà) led by prime minister
Berlusconi.
Marcus Schmöger, 15 July 2002
DE ("Democrazia Europea" = European Democracy <www.democraziaeuropea.it>)
- The DE is a small christian-democratic party, founded in 2000,
under the leadership of Sergio d'Antoni (former leader of the
CISL trade union) and Giulio Andreotti. For the 2001 elections it
presented an own list, but failed at the 4%-hurdle (2,4% and 3,2%
of the votes for the Camera and the Senato, respectively). It has
recently joined the UDC coalition.
The logo shows on a blue background the name of the party (in
white) and a white sail (?) with red cross, obviously an allusion
to the old symbol of the "Democrazia Cristiana". The
logo at <www.democraziaeuropea.it/images/logo.gif>.
A variant of the logo at <cedweb.mininterno.it:8890>.
At <www.democraziaeuropea.it/richiestadelsimbolo.asp>
they mention "bandiere" (flags) as "materiale
elettorale" (election material), so I guess they indeed have
flags. This is further substantiated by a photo at <www.graffitipress.it>
. However, this foto is not sufficient to draw a good image of
the flag.
Marcus Schmöger, 7 August 2002
image by Marcus Schmöger, 7 August 2002
"Verdi Federalisti" (Federalist Greens <www.verdifederalisti.org>)
- The "Verdi Federalisti" are one of the smaller
ambientalist parties in Italy; they distinctly claim not to be
"left" (like the "Federazione dei Verdi") nor
"right" nor "center". The logo shows at the
bottom the green inscription "VERDI Federalisti" on
white; at the top on a yellow field a green semi-circle made up
of sketches of human beings, alternately male and female, the
whole semi-circle appearing like a sun made of human beings. Logo
at <cedweb.mininterno.it:8890>.
The flag obviously shows the logo on a green field. An animated
image of the flag can be found at their homepage <www.verdifederalisti.org>.
Marcus Schmöger, 7 August 2002
image by Marcus Schmöger, 19 July 2002
Italian Green Party (Verdi) flag according to TV (RAI) article
about demonstrations against use of depleted uranium bombs in
strike against FRY, in front of NATO air force base in Aviano,
Italy. Information about the party is at: <www.verdi.it>.
Ivan Sarajcic, 30 April 1999
The Verdi (Greens) use a green flag with their logo.
Marcus Schmöger, 19 July 2002
Verdi ("Federazione dei Verdi" = Federation of the
Greens <www.verdi.it>) -
The history of the Italian Green parties is a difficult one, as
(similar to other countries) there have been several ecologist
parties, that mainly differ in their more left-wing or more
centrist political position. The main current, however, is
represented by the current "Federazione dei Verdi".
Coming together from several left-radical and radical-liberal
fractions (for instance from the Partito Radicale), in 1986 the
party was founded as "Verdi-Sole che ride" (Greens-Sun
that smiles), recurring to the symbol of the party, the smiling
sun. First elected to the parliament in 1987, they united with
another group, the "Verdi-Arcobaleno" (Greens-Rainbow)
in 1990. For the 1994 parliamentary elections they formed part of
the left coalition "Progressisti", for the 1996 and
2001 elections part of the Ulivo coalition (center-left); in 2001
they had formed a loose coalition with the SDI under the name
"Girasole" (Sunflower). The current leader is Grazia
Francescato. Interestingly, the first Green mayor of a major city
in the world was elected in Italy: Francesco Rutelli as mayor of
Rome. A former member of the Partito Radicale (see 5.2.4) until
1989, he was mayor of Rome from 1993 to 2001; for the 2001
parliamentary elections he even became the leader of the
center-left Ulivo coalition, but now as a member of the centrist
Democratici (belonging to the Margherita subcoalition). In the
Senato the Verdi are an own parliamentary group with 10 (out of
325) seats; in the Camera dei Deputati the seven (out of 630)
deputies belong to the mixed group ("Misto"). The logo
shows a yellow smiling sun ("La sole che ride") on a
green field, underneath the inscription "Verdi". The
flag is green with the logo in the center. Fotos of the flag at
<www.verdi.it/stra12.jpg>,
<stra3.jpg>,
<laico1.jpg>,
<laico5.jpg>,
<laico4.jpg>
and <bannerav.jpg>.
The youth organization of the Greens, the "Giovani
Verdi" (Young Greens) have their own slightly different
logo, but obviously no own flag. Logo at <www.verdi.it/gvsimb.gif>.
Marcus Schmöger, 31 July 2002
.gif)
image by Marcus Schmöger, 7 August 2002
F.d.L. ("Federazione dei Liberali" = Federation of
the Liberals <www.luda.it/liberali>)
- The F.d.L. is one of the parties coming from the old PLI. I
haven't found a flag. The logo is described in the statute (Art
2.2):
"La FdL adotta il simbolo della bandiera tricolore rigida
sormontata dalla scritta " Liberali " su fondo azzurro
con, in caratteri dorati, le stelle dell'Unione Europea."
(The FdL adopts the symbol of the rigid tricoloured flag
surmounted by the inscription "Liberali" on a blue
field, with the stars of the European Union in golden.)
see <www.luda.it/STATUTO.html>.
Image of the logo at <cedweb.mininterno.it:8890>.
Marcus Schmöger, 7 August 2002
image by Marcus Schmöger, 16 August 2001
A right-of-centre party
G. Vacca, 22 September 1997
I located a variant of this
flag at <www.racine.ra.it>.
Dov Gutterman. 9 January 1999
Forza Italia, the ruling party of Silvio Berlusconi. Image is
using the following sources: <www.smev.de>
and <www.forza-italia.it>.
Marcus Schmöger, 16 August 2001
FI ("Forza Italia" = Go, Italy <http://www.forza-italia.it>)
- The FI has been founded for the 1994 elections as a new force
on the center-right, instead of the already moribund Democrazia
Cristiana. Founding-father and leader was and is Silvio
Berlusconi, the current Italian prime minister (and by far most
influential single person in the Italian television and other
media). Originally a merger movement of the right center without
the usual party organization, it has become a more or less normal
party over the years, however largely focused on Berlusconi.
It currently holds 176 out of 630 seats in the Chamber of
Deputies (Camera dei Deputati) and 81 seats out of 325 in the
Senate (Senato). In the European Parliament the FI deputies
belong to the European People's Party (Christian Democrats).
The logo shows the fluttering FI flag on a white circle; it can
be found at <www.forza-italia.it/Fi.jpg>
and <cedweb.mininterno.it:8890>.
The flag is diagonally divided green-white-red with the diagonal
inscription (in white) "FORZA ITALIA". Fotos of the
flag (with Berlusconi) at:
<www.forza-italia.it/foto15.html>,
<foto19.html>
and <foto21.html>.
Marcus Schmöger, 19 July 2002
Forza Italia Giovani (Go, Italy Juveniles)
image by Marcus Schmöger, 23 July 2002
Flag of the "Forza Italia Giovani" (Go, Italy
Juveniles), the Youth Organization of the Forza Italia. The flag
shows on a white background the round logo of the Forza Italia,
around it the black inscriptions "Giovani" (juveniles)
and "Per la libertá" (for the freedom). Fotos of this
flag in use can be found at <www.forzaitaliagiovani.it/archiviofoto012.jpg>,
< 018.jpg>,
<congressogiovani01.gif>
and <copertina008z.jpg>.
Marcus Schmöger, 23 July 2002
image by Marcus Schmöger, 16 August 2001
For the recent elections the Forza Italia
formed a coalition together with other right and center parties
(including Alleanza Nazionale and Lega Nord). This coalition (Casa
delle Liberta = House of the liberties) uses a logo. This logo is
also used on a flag with blue field as can be seen at <www.smev.de>.
Marcus Schmöger, 16 August 2001
"Casa delle Libertà" (House of the liberties <www.casadelleliberta.net>)
- For the 2001 elections this was founded as a center-right
coalition of five parties/party groupings. These five
parties/party groupings form five parliamentary groups
accordingly (FI, AN, Lega Nord, UDC, NPSI). Under the leadership
of FI leader Silvio Berlusconi as prime minister the "Casa
delle Libertà" forms the current government coalition. The
earlier version of this coalition (Polo della Libertá) (for the
1994 and 1996 elections) contained the FI, the AN, the CCD and
the Lega Nord (in 1994, in 1996 it stayed apart).
According to the logos at thewebsite <www.casadelleliberta.net>,
the CdL currently contains the following parties: FI, AN, Lega
Nord, CCD, CDU, PDC, Nuovo PSI.
The logo of the CdL comes in several variants; the one used on
flags can be found at: <www.forza-italia.it/Cdl.jpg>
and <cedweb.mininterno.it:8890>.
The flag is blue with the logo. However, this can only be rarely
seen; I only have the one foto from the German news magazine
"Der Spiegel" at <www.smev.de>.
Marcus Schmöger, 19 July 2002
