Generation Italy

Generation Italy (Generazione Italia, GI) was a faction within Future and Freedom (FLI), a political party in Italy, and earlier The People of Freedom (PdL).

Although most of its members came from the conservative National Alliance (AN) and were earlier members of the Italian Social Movement (MSI), GI was a social liberal wing within the PdL. The faction's members identified themselves as close supporters of Gianfranco Fini, former leader of MSI/AN and frequent critic of Silvio Berlusconi from his post of President of the Chamber of Deputies. During the years, the former post-fascist leader had taken controversial stances on stem cell research, end of life issues, advance health care directive and immigration. Fini was also an outspoken supporter of the principle of separation of church and state and of a more structured party organisation. Although most Finiani, such as Bocchino, Adolfo Urso, Fabio Granata, Carmelo Briguglio, Flavia Perina and Giulia Bongiorno, were perfectly in line with Fini on moral issues and immigration, many others, including Andrea Ronchi, took a very different approach on these issues. In fact most Finiani were southern conservatives who opposed Berlusconi's leadership, his firm alliance with the once-separatist Lega Nord, the party's economic policy and federal reform.

Generation Italy was launched in December 2009 by Italo Bocchino, deputy-leader of the PdL in the Chamber of Deputies, in order to better represent Fini's views within the party and push for a different party organisation, which was thought to be too dependent on Berlusconi's personality. Bocchino explained that it was not his intent or Fini's to undermine the party, while he wanted to promote internal democracy through debate and strengthen the party, especially in the North, where it had suffered a big blow from Lega Nord in 2010 regional elections. Despite this, however, the faction soon caused a major upheaval within the party. On 15 April Fini posed a sort of ultimatum to Berlusconi and hinted the formation of separate parliamentary groups from the PdL in Parliament. Some Finiani even proposed the formation of a new party outside the PdL. After some tense days, it looked likely that Fini and his group would remain in the party as a minority faction.

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