Party of Italian Communists
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| Party of Italian Communists | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Secretary | Oliviero Diliberto |
| President | Antonino Cuffaro |
| Founded | 11 October 1998 |
| Headquarters | Piazza Augusto Imperatore, 32 00186 Rome |
| Newspaper | La Rinascita della sinistra |
| Membership (2006) | 40,000[1] |
| Ideology | Communism, Eurocommunism |
| Coalition | The Left – The Rainbow |
| International | none |
| European party | none |
| European Parliament Group | European United Left–Nordic Green Left |
| Website | http://www.comunisti-italiani.it |
The Party of Italian Communists (Partito dei Comunisti Italiani, PdCI) is a political party in Italy.
[edit] History
It was founded in 1998 as a split from the Communist Refoundation Party (PRC) by Armando Cossutta, the original leader of the PRC. The current party leader is Oliviero Diliberto.
The main reason for the split was the unwillingness of the majority the Communist Refoundation Party to participate in the operation that toppled the government of Romano Prodi. Fausto Bertinotti had kept the party in alliance with the Olive Tree coalition for two years, but was leaving because of disagreement over social policy. Leaving would have left the government without a majority in the lower house of the parliament. The issue was hotly debated in the party, and in the end a few votes, coming from the Trotskyist faction, finally decided.
Members of the Party of Italian Communists in the European Parliament still sit in the European United Left - Nordic Green Left group with their erstwhile PRC comrades.
In the 9-10 April 2006 general elections, the party was a member of the winning The Union (L'Unione) and won 16 out of 630 deputies. The alliance of Greens, Communists and Consumers won 11 out of 315 senators.
In April 2007, Armando Cossutta, after two years of bickering with Oliviero Diliberto, finally left the party. In the meantime the PdCI, at its IV national congress, re-proposed to the PRC, the Greens and other leftish forces (among them the brand new Democratic Left) to form a United Left, "a Left without adjectives". Along that path the PdCI will probably find again Cossutta, who, although being a staunch communist, is a keen supporter of the establishment of a United Left ranging from the PRC to the SDI.
On 8–9 December 2007, the PdCI participated in the foundation of The Left – The Rainbow.
[edit] Leadership
- Secretary: Armando Cossutta (1998–2000), Oliviero Diliberto (2000–...)
- Coordinator: Marco Rizzo (2004–...)
- President: Armando Cossutta (2000–2006), Antonino Cuffaro (2007–...)
- Party Leader in the Chamber of Deputies: Oliviero Diliberto (1998), Tullio Grimaldi (1998–2001), Marco Rizzo (2001–2004), Pino Sgobio (2004–...)
- Party Leader in the Senate: Luigi Marino (1998–2006), Manuela Palermi (leader of the PdCI-Green's group, 2006–...)
- Party Leader in the European Parliament: Luigi Vinci (1998–2004), Marco Rizzo (2004–...)
