Mani pulite (Italian for clean hands) was a nationwide Italian police investigation into political corruption held in the 1990s, following the scandal of Banco Ambrosiano in 1982, which implicated mafia, Vatican Bank and P2. It led to the demise of the so-called First Republic, resulting in the disappearance of many parties. Some politicians and industry leaders committed suicide after their crimes were exposed. The corruption system that was uncovered by these investigations was usually referred to as Tangentopoli, or "bribeville". In broad terms, political corruption is the misuse of public (governmental) power for illegitimate, usually secret, private advantage. ... Banco Ambrosiano (which was closely related to the Vatican Bank) was an Italian bank which collapsed spectacularly in 1982. ... 1982 (MCMLXXXII) is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Mafia, also referred to in Italian as Cosa Nostra (lit. ... The neutrality of this article is disputed. ... P2 is the common name for the Italian Freemasonic lodge Propaganda Due (Italian: Propaganda Two). ... A politician is an individual involved in politics to the extent of holding or running for public office. ... In common usage, leadership generally refers to: the position or office of an authority figure, such as a President [1] a group of influential people, such as a union leadership [2] guidance or direction, as in the phrase the emperor is not providing much leadership capacity or ability to lead... It has been suggested that Suicide and culture be merged into this article or section. ... Bettino Craxi, viewed by many as the symbol of Tangentopoli, leader of the Italian Socialist Party, is greeted by a salvo of coins as a sign of loath by protesters contesting him. ...

Mario Chiesa, the "villain"

Tangentopoli began in February 17, 1992, when judge Antonio Di Pietro had Mario Chiesa, a member of the Italian Socialist Party, arrested. It was the start of his Mani pulite (clean hands) investigation. News of political corruption began spreading in the press. February 17 is the 48th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... Antonio di Pietro Antonio Di Pietro (born Montenero di Bisaccia, Italy, October 2, 1950) is an Italian Senator and was a magistrate in the team of the so-called Mani Pulite. Born to a poor rural family of Molise, very young he went Germany to work as a waiter in... Bettino Craxi, longtime secretary of the party and for many a symbol of corruption. ...

Bettino Craxi, denying speculation about nationwide corruption, called Mario Chiesa mariuolo, or "villain", a "wild splinter" of the otherwise clean Italian Socialist Party. Bettino Craxi Bettino Craxi (born Benedetto Craxi in Milan, Italy on February 24, 1934, died in Hammamet on January 19, 2000) was an Italian politician. ... Bettino Craxi, longtime secretary of the party and for many a symbol of corruption. ...

Extension of Anti-corruption Investigations

In the 1992 elections, the DC party lost many votes, but managed to keep a small majority, while the opposition gained votes. There was however no opposition leadership, and many votes went to Lega Nord, a party that was not inclined to alliances at the time. The resulting parliament was therefore weak and difficult to bring to an agreement, and new elections arrived as soon as 1994. 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... The Northern League (Italian: Lega Nord) is an Italian political party that advocates autonomy for a part of Northern Italy called Padania. It is a personality-driven party led by Umberto Bossi. ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ...

During April 1992, many industrial figures and politicians, especially from the majority parties but also from the opposition, were arrested on charges of corruption. While the investigations started in Milan, they quickly spread from town to town, as more and more politicians confessed. A grotesque situation occurred when a Socialist politician confessed immediately all his crimes to two Carabinieri that had come to his house, only to later discover they had come to deliver a simple fine. Look up April in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The Carabinieri is the shortened (and common) name for the Arma dei Carabinieri, an Italian military corps of the gendarmerie type with police functions, which also serves as the Italian military police. ... A fine is money paid as a financial punishment for the commission of minor crimes or as the settlement of a claim. ...

Fundamental to this exponential expansion was the general attitude of the main politicians to drop support for minor politicians who got caught; this made many of them feel betrayed, and they often mentioned many other politicians, who in turn would mention even more.

On May 23 1992, judge Giovanni Falcone, in charge of the antimafia pool, was murdered with his wife and three bodyguards by a bomb underneath the highway from Palermo's airport to the city. A few months later, his colleague Paolo Borsellino was assassinated in a car bomb via d'Amelio. Mafia boss Salvatore Riina was arrested in 1993 and, with Giovanni Brusca, was imprisoned for both murders. May 23 is the 143rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (144th in leap years). ... Giovanni Falcone Aerial view of the ambush site Sheets exposed in solidarity with Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino. ... Nickname: Palermu Motto: Official website: http://www. ... Paolo Borsellino (January 19, 1940 Palermo - July 19, 1992 Palermo) was an Italian anti-mafia judge. ... A car bomb is an improvised explosive device that is placed in a car or truck and is intended to be exploded while there. ... Salvatore Riina Salvatore Riina, also known as Totò Riina (born November 16, 1930) is one of the most infamous members of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Giovanni Brusca (born 1957 in San Giuseppe Jato) is a former member of the Sicilian Mafia. ...

On September 2, 1992, the socialist politician Sergio Moroni, charged with corruption, committed suicide. He left a letter pleading guilty, declaring that crimes were not for his personal gain but for the party's benefit, and accused the financing system of all parties. His daughter, Chiara Moroni, is today a member of the Italian Chamber of Deputies in Silvio Berlusconi's majority. September 2 is the 245th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (246th in leap years). ... The Italian Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Parliament of Italy. ... (help· info) (born September 29, 1936) is the current Prime Minister of Italy. ...

Effect on National Politics

In the local December elections, DC lost half of their votes. The day after that, Bettino Craxi, leader of the Italian Socialist Party, was officially accused of corruption. After many other politicians were accused and jailed, Craxi eventually resigned. Bettino Craxi Bettino Craxi (born Benedetto Craxi in Milan, Italy on February 24, 1934, died in Hammamet on January 19, 2000) was an Italian politician. ... Bettino Craxi, longtime secretary of the party and for many a symbol of corruption. ...

On March 5, 1993, the Italian government of Giuliano Amato and his justice minister Luigi Conso tried to find a solution with a new law for party financing, removing penal charges for many crimes and introducing instead small civil charges; this would have resulted in an amnesty for most corruption charges. Among public outrage and nationwide rallies, the Italian president of the Republic Oscar Luigi Scalfaro refused to sign the law, deeming it unconstitutional. The following week, a US$250 million affair involving Eni, the government-controlled national energy society, was revealed. The stream of accusation, jailing and confessions continued. March 5 is the 64th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (65th in leap years). ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... Giuliano Amato (Torino May 13, 1938) is an Italian politician. ... Ente nazionale idrocarburi http://fr. ...

On March 25, 1993, the Italian parliament changed the electoral law in favor of a majoritarian system, as a consequence of a batch of popular referendums. Still shocked by the recent events, the Parliament was unable to produce a new government. Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, former governor of the national bank, was appointed head of the government and produced a technical government without political influences. In the meantime, the investigation of Craxi was blocked by the parliament. Several members of the government, having been in office just three days, resigned in protest; among them was Francesco Rutelli, minister of the Environment. In new local elections on June 6, 1993, DC again lost half of its votes. The socialist party virtually disappeared. The Lega Nord, a protest movement with some ideological elements ranging from xenophobia and racism to independence from the rest of Italy and a general loath of the political system, became the strongest political force in Northern Italy. The left opposition was approaching majority, but still lacked unity and leadership. March 25 is the 84th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (85th in leap years). ... A referendum (plural: referendums or referenda) or plebiscite is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. ... Carlo Azeglio Ciampi (born in Livorno, 9 December 1920) was elected as the tenth President of the Italian Republic on May 13, 1999. ... A technical government is a non-party government made up of unelected technocrats such as civil servants, magistrates or experts from outside the political circle such as bankers instead of members of the countrys legislature. ... Francesco Rutelli (Rome, June 14, 1954) is an Italian politician, formerly mayor of Rome. ... June 6 is the 157th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (158th in leap years), with 208 days remaining. ... The Northern League (Italian: Lega Nord) is an Italian political party that advocates autonomy for a part of Northern Italy called Padania. It is a personality-driven party led by Umberto Bossi. ... Xenophobia denotes a phobic attitude toward strangers or of the unknown and comes from the Greek words ξένος (xenos), meaning foreigner, stranger, and φόβος (phobos), meaning fear. ... It has been suggested that Scientific racism be merged into this article or section. ...

Eventually, all four parties in government in 1992 disappeared, at different times in different ways: the Christian Democracy, the Italian Socialist Party, the Italian Socialist Democratic Party, and the Italian Liberal Party. The Italian Communist Party, the Italian Republican Party and the Movimento Sociale Italiano were the only surviving national parties; the Republican party is the only one that has maintained its name since, and the only one that had participated in a national government. 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... SITO ISTITUZIONALE DELLA DEMOCRAZIA CRISTIANA Christian Democracy, (Democrazia Cristiana), the Christian democratic party of Italy, commonly called the democristiani or DC, dominated government for nearly half a century until its demise amid a welter of corruption allegations in 1992-94. ... Bettino Craxi, longtime secretary of the party and for many a symbol of corruption. ... The Italian Social Democratic Party (Italian: Partito Socialista Democratico Italiano, often shortened to , PSDI) was founded in 1952 by the union of two parties: the Unitarian Socialist Party and the Workers Socialist Party. ... The Italian Liberal Party (Italian: Partito Liberale Italiano, PLI) was an Italian free market liberal party. ... The Partito Comunista Italiano (PCI) or Italian Communist Party emerged as Partito Comunista dItalia or Communist Party of Italy from a secession by the Leninist comunisti puri tendency from the Italian Socialist Party (PSI) during that bodys congress on 21 January 1921 at Livorno. ... The Italian Republican Party (Partito Repubblicano Italiano) is an old left liberal party in Italy, with roots to Giuseppe Mazzini. ... The Italian Social Movement (Movimento Sociale Italiano) (MSI) was a neo-Fascist party formed in the post-World War II period by supporters of the executed dictator Benito Mussolini. ...

The Cusani trial

On July 20, 1993, the former Eni president, Gabriele Cagliari, committed suicide in jail. His wife later gave back $3 million of illegal funds. Meanwhile, the trial on Sergio Cusani begun. Mr. Cusani was accused of crimes connected to a joint venture between Eni and Montedison, named Enimont. It was broadcast on national television, and was a sort of showcase of the old politics being brought to their responsibilities. While Cusani was no big figure himself, the connection of his crimes to the Enimont affair called in all the nation's major politicians as witnesses. July 20 is the 201st day (202nd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 164 days remaining. ... Ente nazionale idrocarburi http://fr. ...

A high note was reached in the Cusani trial when former head of government Arnaldo Forlani, answering a question, simply said "I don't remember"; he also happened to be very nervous and did not notice that sweat was accumulating on his lips, and that image was by many considered symbolic of the people's disgust for the corruption system. Bettino Craxi, instead, admitted that his party received $93 million of illegal funds. His defense was that "everyone was doing this" anyway. Arnaldo Forlani (born Pesaro, Marche December 8, 1925) was Prime Minister of Italy from October 18, 1980 through May 26, 1981. ...

Even the Lega Nord was brought in the trial; secretary Umberto Bossi and former treasurer Alessandro Patelli were convicted for receiving 200 millions lire of illegal funding (approx. $100,000 at the time). Umberto Bossi, with a green Padania-inspired handkerchief. ...

A bribe to the Italian Communist Party was alleged, but it was not established who had committed the offence. As prosecutor Antonio Di Pietro stated, "Penal responsibility is personal. I cannot bring here a person with first name Communist and last name Party". The Partito Comunista Italiano (PCI) or Italian Communist Party emerged as Partito Comunista dItalia or Communist Party of Italy from a secession by the Leninist comunisti puri tendency from the Italian Socialist Party (PSI) during that bodys congress on 21 January 1921 at Livorno. ... Antonio di Pietro Antonio Di Pietro (born Montenero di Bisaccia, Italy, October 2, 1950) is an Italian Senator and was a magistrate in the team of the so-called Mani Pulite. Born to a poor rural family of Molise, very young he went Germany to work as a waiter in...

The Enimont trial itself was carried out after the Cusani trial, with much less public interest.

Investigations on Other Fronts

In the meantime, the investigation expanded outside the political range: on September 2, 1993, the Milan judge Diego Curtò was arrested. On April 21, 1994, 80 financial policemen and 300 industry personalities were charged with corruption. A few days later, the secretary of the large Fiat industry admitted the corruption with a letter to a newspaper. September 2 is the 245th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (246th in leap years). ... April 21 is the 111th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (112th in leap years). ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... The present Fiat logo The old Fiat logo, still commonly seen, used from 1969 to 1999 Fiat S.p. ...

In 1994, Silvio Berlusconi entered politics by storm and won the elections. Many think that this move was to preserve his many industries from possible corruption charges. This suspicion was reinforced on February 11, when Berlusconi's brother, Paolo, admitted to corruption crimes. On July 13, 1994, the Berlusconi government made a new law to avoid jail time for most corruption crimes. The law was carefully timed as Italy had defeated Bulgaria in the 1994 Football World Cup's semifinals, and it is likely that the government expected to exploit an eventual victory to pass the law under silence in a football-crazy country. However, as Roberto Baggio shot high the last penalty against Brazil, and the news was showing images of hated, corrupt politicians getting out of jail, the public opinion became enraged; the images of Francesco De Lorenzo, former minister of Health, were especially striking, since the general public perceived stealing money from hospitals an especially hateful act. (help· info) (born September 29, 1936) is the current Prime Minister of Italy. ... February 11 is the 42nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... July 13 is the 194th day (195th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 171 days remaining. ... The 1994 Football World Cup held in the USA was won by Brazil who beat Italy 3-2 on penalty kicks after the game and extra time ended 0-0. ... Football is the name given to a number of different, but related, team sports. ... Roberto Baggio Roberto Baggio (born February 18, 1967 in Caldogno, Italy) is a legendary Italian football player, considered to be among the best forwards in the world throughout the 1990s. ...

Just a few days before, the arrested policemen had been talking about corruption in the Fininvest media industry, the biggest Berlusconi family property. Most of the Mani pulite investigation pool declared that they would respect the state's laws, but they could not work in a situation where duty and conscience were to conflict: they requested therefore to be reassigned to other duties. Since the government could not afford to be seen as an adversary of the popular judge pool, the decree was hastily retreated and marked a "misunderstanding"; minister for internal affairs Roberto Maroni from Lega Nord maintained that he had not even had the occasion of reading it. While the minister of Justice was Alfredo Biondi, allegations that Cesare Previti, a lawyer from Berlusconi's company Fininvest, had written it, are at least credible. On July 28, Berlusconi's brother was arrested and immediately released. Fininvest is a financial holding company that controls all of Silvio Berlusconis companies, e. ... Roberto Maroni (born March 15, 1955 in Varese) is the Italian Minister of Welfare and a member of the Northern League. ... The Northern League (Italian: Lega Nord) is an Italian political party that advocates autonomy for a part of Northern Italy called Padania. It is a personality-driven party led by Umberto Bossi. ... Alfredo Biondi was Secretary of the Italian Liberal Party from 1985 to 1986, and later president of the same party. ... Cesare Previti (born on October 21, 1934) is a former Italian Defence Minister. ... July 28 is the 209th day (210th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 156 days remaining. ...

Escalating conflict between Berlusconi and Di Pietro

What began then is what has been described by many as the "Berlusconi-Di Pietro battle". While Berlusconi industries were being investigated, "inspectors" were sent from the government to the Milanese judges' office to look for formal irregularities. No irregularity were ever found, but this tactic, coupled with Berlusconi's firm grip on the information system, helped spread what is described in other environments as FUD. The battle ended without winners: on December 6, Di Pietro resigned. Two weeks later, the Berlusconi government resigned before a critical confidence vote in the Parliament, which was clearly going to be in Berlusconi's disfavour. FUD is an abbreviation for Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt, a sales or marketing strategy of disseminating negative but vague or inaccurate information on a competitors product. ... December 6 is the 340th day (341st on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...

During 1995, many investigations were started against Di Pietro, who was years later cleared of all charges, while Berlusconi received other charges of corruption. It was later found that the main prosecutor of Di Pietro in these times, Fabio Salamone from Brescia, was the brother of a man that Di Pietro himself had prosecuted, and who was sentenced to 18 months of jail for various corruption charges. It took however some time before the authorities realized this and ordered Salamone to other duties. 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Location within Italy Brescia is a city in the region of Lombardy in northern Italy with a population of around 200,000. ...

After being cleared, Di Pietro started a political career, a thing he had previously excluded on the grounds that he did not want to exploit the popularity gained doing what he perceived to be just his duty. His movement is named Italia dei Valori ("Italy of values"). This article is part of or related to the Liberalism series Categories: Politics stubs | Liberal related stubs | Liberal parties | Italian political parties ...

In 1998, Cesare Previti, former manager of Fininvest and then sitting in parliament after the Berlusconi government, avoided jailing thanks to parliament intervention, even though Berlusconi and his allies were in the opposition. Craxi accumulated several years of jailing in definitive convictions and had to escape to Tunisia, where he remained until his death on January 19, 2000. 1998 (MCMXCVIII) is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... Cesare Previti (born on October 21, 1934) is a former Italian Defence Minister. ... Fininvest is a financial holding company that controls all of Silvio Berlusconis companies, e. ... January 19 is the 19th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year 2000. ...

Statutory term strategy

After 1994, the danger of trials being cancelled due to the expiration of statutory terms was becoming very real. This was clear to the judges and to the politicians, and the latter ones (with no distinction between Berlusconi's coalition and the Olive Tree, especially under the leadership of Massimo D'Alema) either ignored the pleas of the judiciary system for more funding to buy equipment, or passed laws that made the painstakingly slow Italian trials even slower and subject to earlier prescription. For the Italian political alliance see Olive Tree, and the color, olive (color). ... Massimo DAlema Massimo DAlema (born on April 20, 1949 in Rome, Italy), the son of Giuseppe DAlema (an esteemed communist politician), is an Italian journalist and politician, a former prime minister and a former national secretary of the PDS, Partito Democratico della Sinistra. ...

Furthermore, the intricate nature of Italian laws allowed cunning lawyers to use many delaying tactics: an instructive example was a prosecution of Silvio Berlusconi, where he was accused of misappropriation of funds of his own company, Fininvest, in order to prepare black funds that could have been used for bribes or other illegitimate purposes; on the last possible day, a lawyer from Fininvest appeared in court and complained that his company had not been formally notified of the trial. While this trial was well publicized in the media (and also in Fininvest's media themselves), the formality forced the trial to be restarted from scratch, and Berlusconi was finally acquitted by expiration of statutory terms. Being acquitted in this first trial, he could later benefit from a general reduction of terms for other trials, which in turn expired earlier with a domino effect. The domino effect is the idea that some change, small in itself, will cause a similar change nearby, which then will cause another similar change, and so on in linear sequence, by analogy to a falling row of dominoes standing on end. ...

After Berlusconi's victory in 2001, the gradual campaign against judges reached the point where it is not only openly acceptable to criticize judges for having carried out Mani pulite, but it has become increasingly difficult to broadcast opinions favorable to Milan's pool. This is an impressive 180° cultural turn from 1992, when no politician was believed and no judge was contested, in which the Berlusconi's power in media has undoubtedly played an important role. Even Umberto Bossi, whose Lega Nord once made a statement bringing and showing a hanging rope in a parliamentary session, has become highly critical of judges, even though there are still occasional frictions between Lega Nord and former Christian Democrat or Socialist allies in Berlusconi's coalition. 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... Umberto Bossi, with a green Padania-inspired handkerchief. ... The Northern League (Italian: Lega Nord) is an Italian political party that advocates autonomy for a part of Northern Italy called Padania. It is a personality-driven party led by Umberto Bossi. ...