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Rise and fall of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi between Mafia and Masonic Lodges | |
| Anonymous Coward User ID: 773305  United States09/24/2009 03:22 AM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | [link to www.heralddeparis.com] Rise and fall of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi between Mafia and Masonic Lodges By Angela Corrias on September 23, 2009 LONDON (Herald de Paris) - Much of Italian and international press has been giving lately a rough time to Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi, adding to his already tottering reputation saucy details from his famous parties in Sardinia. To further undermine his leverage as Italy’s Prime Minister, Mr Berlusconi doesn’t spare bad jokes and legal actions against the most diverse range of targets, be them European Commissioners or media outlets. With his desperate moves, Mr Berlusconi proves nervous and clearly shows he’s aware of his imminent political decline. Many are the reasons why the EU has expressed its concern about the Italian government’s policies, ranging from immigration bills, heavily influenced by the racism-sodden leaders of the Northern League, and the freedom of press: it’s no mystery that Italian media have always been strictly connected with political parties, both from centre-right or centre-left, and served more to carry out personal interests than provide bias-free information. There is, for example, the national La Repubblica, owned by Rodolfo De Benedetti, the other Italian media tycoon, supposedly of leftist policies, certainly close to centre-left parties and habitué at the meetings of the Bilderberg Group. And of course there is the huge and diverse media empire belonging to the current premier, ranging from private TV channels, daily newspapers, weekly magazines; let alone the fact that being premier, his coalition appoints the members of the national TV Commission. Most international media, however, neglect to give the bigger picture of the Italian situation, and always more often tackle only trivial aspects of the Belpaese’s domestic affairs, without mentioning what really matters, namely Berlusconi’s political and economic origins. How did he become the arrogant and disrespectful politician the country today has as premier? And, especially, why are most outlets avoiding such important topics, preferring to devote space to torbid issues such as his young escorts and wild parties? Italian PM can be considered the product stemming from the explosive collaboration between the Mafia and Italy’s P2 secret Masonic Lodge, of which he’s been member number 1816 since January 26th 1978. The P2, through its chief Licio Gelli, is the CIA’s Italian referent and responds to the international Masonry. In Italy Free Masonry was forbidden in 1925 under Mussolini’s rule, causing that during the Resistance, many masons joined anti-fascist and underground groups. Once the Fascism was over, the Italian lodges came back to life strongly influenced by the North American Masonry, committed to prevent a free and democratic reconstitution and making it a powerful tool with the sole aim to establish political egemonic powers, in open contrast with the ancient traditions that forbade Lodges to practice political activity. It was the time of the post-war economic aid to Italy, plan decided during the Truman administration to put pressure on Italian Prime Minister in order to keep left coalitions away from the Parliament and reconstitute new masonic lodges with strong anti-socialist and anti-communist principles. The bonds between the US and Italian masonries were established thanks to the activity of Frank Gigliotti, agent of the OSS (Office of Strategic Service, forerunner of the CIA) and close to the Sicilian Mafia. Frank Gigliotti’s disappearance from the scene seems to coincide time-wise with Licio Gelli’s arrival. After Italy’s liberation from the Nazi-Fascist regime in 1944, Licio Gelli, former fascist chief and officer of the RSI (Repubblica Sociale Italiana, the last attempt to recover the fascist regime after Mussolini’s death), became a collaborator of the US secret services, recruited by James Angleton, pro-monarchy and pro-fascism OSS member. Gelli’s admission within the Italian masonic scene found some hindrance due to his fascist past of persecution towards partisans as well as masons, but thanks to the help of masonic leaders such as Giordano Gamberini, close to the CIA, in 1965 he was initiated and in 1966 appointed as the Maestro of the P2 Lodge. In contrast with the masonic common rule, Gelli was renowned for his obsession for secrecy: he was the only one to know who the members were, they didn’t even know each other, and although according to the tradition members was supposed to approve new members’ application, within the P2, only Gelli was entitled to decide who could or could not be part of it. Also, associates of the other lodges were supposed to meet regularly, while P2 members were not allowed to meet. During Gelli’s management of the P2 a series of acts aimed at undermining Italian democracy took place: attempts of coups, attacks against civilians and politicians were part of the wider strategy of tension of the late 1960s and 1970s, whose goal was to prevent the “communist danger” from spreading. Mr Berlusconi’s economic and political business profited greatly from the P2’s support, and his destiny mirrored in many aspects the one of shady banker Michele Sindona, also P2 member, who managed to put together a wide network of enterprises with the pyramid structure technique and the support of Cosa Nostra, the Sicilian Mafia. He was found guilty of bankruptcy for 258 billions Lire and sentenced to fifteen years of jail, ban from public office, disqualification for ten years from every commercial activity and indemnfication. In 1986 Sindona was also condemned for being the instigator of lawyer Giorgio Ambrosoli’s murder. By carrying out the strategy of tension in the aftermath of World War II, controlling national newspapers such as Il Corriere della Sera, operating in strict connection with the Sicilian and American Mafia, appointing its own members as MPs, directors of the main media outlets, heads of the main industries and entreprises, this secret Masonic Lodge has ruled much of Italian history from behind the scenes, and started to come to light only in 1981, when magistrates Giuliano Turone and Gherardo Colombo ordered to search Licio Gelli’s house, finding the members list and documents concerning their activities. As had happened for Michele Sindona, also Mr Berlusconi’s rise was backed by a warm media campaign celebrating him as a selfmade man, whose fortune had raised only thanks to his personal ability. This is not the case, as all economic and political fortunes of P2’s members were carefully decided and backed by Gelli and all aimed at specific higher goals. By the late 1970s, members of the secret lodge were infiltrated in every pivotal circuit of the public life: secret services, mass media, bank sector, judiciary system, government, army, all ministers and both chambers of Parliament, police services. Unlikely the other lodges, that never reached more than 250 members, the P2 could rely on at least 400 loyal men at its service, becoming the biggest and most powerful Masonic Lodge in Italy. Says Giacomo Foddai, former head of Carabinieri (the military police) in the northeastern area of Sardinia during the Cold War: “There was the rumour that if you wanted to progress with your career you needed to be a P2 member, then when it came to light, little by little this membership became a hindrance and reason for discrimination.” The presence of the P2 behind all worst terrorist attacks of cold-war Italy during the strategy of tension, such as the kidnapping and killing of Christian Democrat’s president Aldo Moro in 1978, clearly tells how this Masonic Lodge could count on the “State secret” as all highest offices of state were involved. Thanks to the benefits coming from belonging to this secret lodge, Mr Berlusconi has built his economic empire through shady financial transactions between Italy, Switzerland, Panama, Luxumbourg for his affairs in Middle East and Lybia, and relations with the Sicilian Mafia and Banda della Magliana, Rome’s version of the mob. Already in 1987, Berlusconi was questioned by judge Giorgio Della Lucia over the reason why he had hired as “collaborator” Mafia boss Vittorio Mangano, who lived in his villa in Arcore and was previous offender for crimes such as drug trafficking, money laundering, arm trafficking. It will come out that Berlusconi’s residence had been used as hideaway by more than one Mafia bosses. Far from being the selfmade man part of Italian media acclaimed, Mr Berlusconi is nothing more than one of P2’s products, useful to carry on with their illegal plans to destabilize the country, started with the communist “danger” hysteria during the Cold War and continued with shady financial and political activities in the post-Cold War era that saw, among the other attacks to Italian democracy, the killings of anti-Mafia judges Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino, who were dangerously nearing the truth. The prudence Berlusconi’s government is showing towards globalization and reckless liberalizations, carried out by centre-left parties instead, is not making him many friends among international bankers, but fomenting hostility also due to the staunch resistence Minister of Economic Affairs Giulio Tremonti is showing against Italian Central Bank’s president Mario Draghi who, on the other hand, would like to appoint the Bank as main regulator of the country’s economic policies. Today Berlusconi is not bound to accept his stint is over: international pressure to lead him to a tranquil retirement is becoming harsher as current Italian Prime Minister doesn’t seem to step back from the frontline. |
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