Franco Frattini | |
|---|---|
 Frattini in 2001 | |
| President of theCouncil of State | |
| In office 28 January 2022 – 24 December 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Filippo Patroni Griffi |
| Succeeded by | Luigi Maruotti |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 8 May 2008 – 16 November 2011 | |
| Prime Minister | Silvio Berlusconi |
| Preceded by | Massimo D'Alema |
| Succeeded by | Giulio Terzi di Sant'Agata |
| In office 14 November 2002 – 18 November 2004 | |
| Prime Minister | Silvio Berlusconi |
| Preceded by | Silvio Berlusconi (Acting) |
| Succeeded by | Gianfranco Fini |
| European Commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security | |
| In office 22 November 2004 – 8 May 2008 | |
| President | José Manuel Barroso |
| Preceded by | António Vitorino |
| Succeeded by | Jacques Barrot |
| Minister of Public Function | |
| In office 11 June 2001 – 14 November 2002 | |
| Prime Minister | Silvio Berlusconi |
| Preceded by | Franco Bassanini |
| Succeeded by | Luigi Mazzella |
| In office 17 January 1995 – 22 March 1996 | |
| Prime Minister | Lamberto Dini |
| Preceded by | Giuliano Urbani |
| Succeeded by | Giovanni Motzo |
| Member of theChamber of Deputies | |
| In office 29 April 2008 – 14 March 2013 | |
| Constituency | Friuli-Venezia Giulia |
| In office 9 May 1996 – 22 November 2004 | |
| Constituency | Bolzano (1996–2001) Veneto (2001–2004) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1957-03-14)14 March 1957 |
| Died | 24 December 2022(2022-12-24) (aged 65) Rome, Italy |
| Political party | PSI (before 1994) Forza Italia (1996–2009) PdL (2009–2012) Independent (2012–2022) |
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
| Alma mater | Sapienza University |
| Occupation | Magistrate, politician |
Franco Frattini (14 March 1957 – 24 December 2022) was an Italian politician andmagistrate. He served as the President of theCouncil of State from January to December 2022.[1]
Frattini previously served asMinister of Foreign Affairs from 2002 to 2004 and from 2008 to 2011 in the governments ofSilvio Berlusconi[2] as well asMinister of Public Function from 1995 to 1996 and from 2001 to 2002, in the government ofLamberto Dini and Silvio Berlusconi.[3] From 2004 to 2008, he was also theEuropean Commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security in the firstBarroso Commission.
Frattini was born inRome in 1957. He attended the "Giulio Cesare" Classical High School in Rome and graduated inlaw in 1979 at theSapienza University.[4]
From 1984 he wasState Attorney andmagistrate of the Regional Administrative Court (TAR) inPiedmont. In 1986, Frattini was named member of theItalian Council of State and legal adviser of the Treasury Ministry. During these years, he served as secretary of the Federation of Young Italian Socialists (FGSI)[5] and member of theItalian Socialist Party (PSI).[6]
In 1990 and 1991, he worked as a legal adviser to the deputy secretary of the PSI,Claudio Martelli, in theAndreotti VI Cabinet.[4]
In 1994, Frattini was appointed Secretary General to thePresidency of the Council of Ministers during thefirst government ofSilvio Berlusconi. However, in January 1995, the government lost its majority in the parliament andLamberto Dini, an independent technocrat who was serving as Minister of Treasury, became the new Prime Minister. Frattini was appointedMinister for Public Function.[7]
In 1996, he joined Berlusconi'sForza Italia (FI) and was candidated in theupcoming election within thePole for Freedoms, the electoral coalition between FI,National Alliance and other minor conservative parties. He was elected in the northern constituency ofBolzano–Laives. However, the centre-left coalition ofRomano Prodi won the election and from 1996 to 2001, Frattini served as chairman of the parliamentary committee for the supervision ofintelligence (COPACO).[5] Moreover, from November 1997 until August 2000 he was also aCity Councillor inRome.[4]
In 2001, Frattini was a candidate for theChamber of Deputies in the constituency ofBolzano, supported byHouse of Freedom. From 2001, he took part in theBerlusconi II Cabinet as Minister for Public Administration. The so-called Frattini Act, namely Law no. 215/2004, on "Rules onconflicts of interest", approved by Parliament on 13 July 2004, received criticism from theCouncil of Europe'sVenice Commission on its compatibility with international standards onfreedom of expression and pluralism of the media.[8]
From 14 November 2002 to 18 November 2004, Frattini served asItalian Minister of Foreign Affairs: the appointment of Frattini followed ten months ofinterim by Berlusconi himself, after the resignation of the former ministerRenato Ruggiero due to his contrasts with the foreign policies of the government.[9]
During his ministerial tenure, Italy supported theinvasion of Iraq by theUnited States led by presidentGeorge W. Bush; Frattini called it a "legitimate intervention" even in the absence of aUnited Nations mandate.[10] Frattini authorized the overflight and the use of Italian military bases by the Anglo-American coalition. Frattini later sent an Italian military and police contingent to Iraq, in what he called a "humanitarian emergency intervention,"[11] of about 3,200 men. This force made Italy the 3rd largest participant in theCoalition of the willing[12] after the United States and the United Kingdom.
Italian forces took part inOperation Ancient Babylon which began in July 2003 together with British forces in the southernDhi Qar province, centered in the town ofNassiriya; the ItalianBarbara Contini was charged with civilian administration by the Coalition Provisional Administration.A suicide attack there killed 19 Italians, among military and civilians.[13]
During the Italian military presence in the south of Iraq, eight Italians were kidnapped, of whom two were later murdered: the mercenaryFabrizio Quattrocchi and the journalistEnzo Baldoni,[14][15][16] in addition to theSISMI agentNicola Calipari, killed by U.S. soldiers during the liberation of kidnapped journalistGiuliana Sgrena. It remains unclear whether Italy offered a ransom for the release of the other six hostages. The killing of Quattrocchi was reported live on the late night Italian television programPorta a Porta, at the time of which Frattini was a guest in the studio, which raised criticism of Frattini for the lack of tact in not informing the victim's family in advance.[17][18][19] Frattini was later also criticized for saying Quattrocchi "died bravely, I would say as a hero".[20]
In 2004, Frattini had to leave office at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which passed toGianfranco Fini following a government reshuffle.[21] Italy's participation in the post-war occupation of Iraq remained unpopular within the Italian public opinion. At the beginning of 2006, the Berlusconi III government announced its intention to withdraw the Italian contingent from Iraq by the end of the year, a decision confirmed by thenew government of Romano Prodi that succeeded it.[22]
On 4 November 2004, Frattini was named by Berlusconi to take up theJustice and security portfolio in theEuropean Commission, replacing the controversialRocco Buttiglione, whose appointment had been rejected by theEuropean Parliament. The appointment of Frattini as European Commissioner for Justice, Freedom, and Security raised concerns from the British Liberal Democrat MEPSarah Ludford, due to accusations of belonging toFreemasonry, raised by Buttiglione himself towards Frattini and denied by the latter.[23] Frattini was also afforded one of the five seats as vice-president of the European Commission.[24]
In February 2006, during theDanish cartoons row, Frattini defended the media's freedom of speech, though he did express disagreement with subject of the cartoons.[25] In November 2006, the commissioner's concern for child welfare extended to video games, calling for tougher controls; anything relating to stricter self-regulation to an outright ban.[26] In 2007, Frattini called for a ban on the horror titleRule of Rose, and criticised theEU-endorsedPEGI system for granting the game a 16-years-or-over age rating. Reports onGameSpot showed he was seeking a Europe-wide ban on violent videogames. On 6 February 2007, during the Safer Internet Day 2007, Frattini recalled the need to protectchildren's rights, saying: "I am deeply concerned at this potential harm by the internet to children. This could involve people preying on them or children accessing racist, cruel or violent material."[27][28]
At the start of 2007, Frattini backed an Italian push for EU support of a worldwide ban on thedeath penalty, while in April 2007, he asked for more powers to be given toEurojust, advocating the power to initiate prosecutions with aEuropean Public Prosecutor.[29] Moreover, following the2007 Glasgow International Airport attack, he criticised the handling of Islam by member-states and called for a "European Islam".[30] Interviewed byReuters he declared his intention to promote online communications monitoring andcensorship of "dangerous words" like "bomb, kill, genocide or terrorism".[31]
As European Commissioner, he promoted a "visa facilitation agreement between the European Community and theRussian Federation" (2007/340/EC: Council Decision of 19 April 2007), which however led to the expulsion of countless citizens Europeans domiciled for a long time in Russia[32] on the basis of annual visas, which due to the introduction by the agreement of a limit of stay in the territory of maximum 90 days out of 180 were forced to leave the country, not being able to reside on the spot on the basis of unlimited annual visas as happened in the past. Article 5 of the law of the Russian Federation 25 July 2002 n.115, provides in fact the limit of 90 days of stay only to those who are not subject to the visa regime, but the agreement drawn up by Frattini extends this limit to all the citizens of the Union.[33]
In 2008, Frattini joined the newly formedPeople of Freedom (PdL) and left onunpaid leave as Commissioner to run for election in Italy. He did not directly resign from his Commissioner post, to avoid that his successor be appointed by the out-goingProdi II Cabinet. He only resigned as Commissioner after taking up the position of Foreign Minister in theBerlusconi IV government. The role of European Commissioner from Italy was then assigned toAntonio Tajani, another member of PdL, with responsibility for transports rather than for justice.[34] Frattini was the second ever European Commissioner from Italy to choose Italian over European politics, after the resignation ofFranco Maria Malfatti in 1972.
During his term as European Commissioner, Frattini was also appointed byPrime Minister Berlusconi to the coordinate assistance from the government for the conduct of theWinter Olympics in Turin 2006.[4]
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At the2008 snap election Frattini ran in north-eastern constituency ofFriuli-Venezia Giulia and was elected to theChamber of Deputies. From 2008 to 2011, Frattini once again served as foreign minister.[35]
During the first summer of his second foreign ministry the "Treaty of friendship between Italy andLibya" was signed (so-called Benghazi agreement); with this treaty, Libya underMuammar Gaddafi agreed to repatriate the boats ofsub-Saharan migrants from the Libyan coast to Italy. Cooperation between the two coast guards started in May 2009, with protests from international groups for the protection of human rights, which criticized the return of migrants – including eligible asylum seekers – to Libya, which had not ratified the UN Convention on Refugees; the policy was subsequently suspended but not officially repudiated. Frattini had openly supported the policy ofrespingimenti, contrary to the international humanitarian law principle ofnon-refoulement,[36] describing such policy as a "due application of European rules",[37] and stamping as "unworthy" the 2010 report byAmnesty International that highlighted the critical nature of this policy in light of international and European law.[38]
In September 2010, on the occasion of the second visit ofGaddafi to Rome, Frattini declared "We have blocked the trafficking of illegal immigrants", despite the figures showing the continuation of migratory flows, and despite being mainly people entitled to forms of international protection.[39] In February 2011, in a set-up changed by theArab spring uprisings, Frattini claimed to want to "mobilize the Mediterranean countries" and the EU, through theFrontex agency, for patrols and refoulements.[40] However following the fall of the governments ofZine El Abidine Ben Ali inTunisia and Gaddafi in Libya, the number of migrants attempting to reach Italy and Europe surged.[41][42] Italy's response to these migrants has been criticized by organizations including Amnesty International[43] and theUnited Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.[44]
TheEuropean Court of Human Rights, in theHirsi v. Italy ruling of 23 February 2012, condemned Italy for breach of the convention, in particular with regard to Article 3 (prohibition of torture andinhuman and degrading treatment) and Article 4 of Protocol IV (prohibition of collective expulsions); in this case, 200 Somali and Eritrean migrants had been rejected in Libya under the Benghazi agreement, without having the possibility of applying for asylum in Europe.[45]
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The reaction of Italian diplomacy, led by Frattini, to the revolts of theArab spring and the Libyan civil war was defined as "reactive" and "unrealistic" by the ISPI-IAI 2012 report edited by Alessandro Colombo and Ettore Greco.[46]
Like other Western countries, Italy was completely taken aback by the Arab uprisings, and after a first moment at a loss for words it tried to frame the phenomenon in the reassuring discourse ofdemocratization, reassured by the absence of Islamist symbols or anti-Western slogans. If the initial hesitations and the abrupt U-turn on theQaddafi regime can constitute an element in common with other countries, Italy is the only international actor who long sought to "cling to its own imaginary role of mediator ", for which however lacked both power and necessary authority.[46] With the evolution of the conflict, Frattini and Italian diplomacy resorted to the "usual option to follow the stronger allies", facilitated in this by the "dilution of Franco-British unilateralism in the multilateral framework ofNATO" and by the guarantee of U.S. participation.[46]
As far as European politics is concerned, according to Colombo and Greco, the reaction capacity of the Berlusconi IV government proved to be "totally insufficient", in the absence of a coherent long-term and vulnerable strategy to the internal divisions of the majority and to a "persistent underestimation of risks ". According to Colombo and Greco, the attitude of the Berlusconi IV government over the EU was "particularly erratic", pointing to the Union from time to time as a mandatory external constraint, the cause of national evils, or the only source of salvation. This volatility led to the projection of an image of an unreliable Italy in Europe.[46]Frattini and Italian diplomacy also lost the initiative in proposing themselves in Europe as an engine or co-star of pro-integration coalitions, dealing with Europe only in an "occasional and distracted" manner, and rather caring for important bilateral relations (with Russia and Turkey, for example), regardless of the international and European context, according to a "small cabotage" policy. All of this, coupled with theMerkel-Sarkozy duo's inclination to leave other actors out, led to Italy's exclusion from the main European policy initiatives.[46]This deficit of attention to the European Union, resulting in a growing isolation, has also had implications in other areas of foreign policy: the difficulties in relations with the United States, for example, are traced by Colombo and Greco to the widespread overseas perception of a growing marginalization of Italy in the European context.[46]
During theRussian invasion of Georgia in the summer of 2008, Frattini was on vacation in theMaldives. The representation of Italy during the urgent meetings of EU foreign ministers was ensured by the undersecretaryVincenzo Scotti.[47] While at the end of December 2008, duringIsrael's war on Gaza (Operation Cast Lead), Frattini was on holiday again. Frattini's live interview withTG1 in a skiing suit raised controversy over inappropriate and disrespectful clothing.[48][49]
In November 2010, Frattini dubbed theWikiLeaks revelations as the "September 11 of diplomacy"[50] and stated thatJulian Assange "wants to destroy the world".[51] The U.S. ambassador in Italy,Ronald Spogli, informed Washington, in a confidential cable distributed by WikiLeaks, of how Berlusconi "constantly refuses the strategic advice of his Foreign Ministry, demoralized, devoid of resources and increasingly irrelevant". Frattini's weakness was detected by the United States particularly with regard to Italian-Russian relations.[52]
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In 2011 Frattini was briefly president of theAlcide De Gasperi Foundation and from 2011 he was president of the Italian Society for International Organization (SIOI), an emanation of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Frattini was the first politician to hold SIOI chairmanship, until then reserved for diplomats and academics of the highest level.[53] He later joined the "Institute of Eurasian Studies" and served as its president.[54]
In December 2012, Frattini left the PdL, later defining the leadership of the new party,Forza Italia, as "extremists".[55] In 2012, Frattini received thehonorary citizenship of the city ofTirana.[56]
Frattini did not run for the2013 Italian general election,[57]while supporting the "AgendaMonti" andScelta Civica.[58]Frattini later recovered his position as a member of the judiciary and Chamber President of theItalian Council of State.[59][60]
Since 2013, Frattini was a consultant to the Serbian government ofAleksandar Vučić for the European integration of Serbia, succeedingDominique Strauss-Kahn andAlfred Gusenbauer.[61][62][63]
Since 2014, Frattini was a member of the high court of sports justice of CONI, a court of last resort of the Italian sports system.[64] He exercised his function as judge for theParma case, decreeing in May 2014 that the Emilian soccer team could not play in theEuropa League.[65]
In May 2014, Frattini was awarded an honorary degree from theDiplomatic Academy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation for his commitment to the development of “mutual understanding and relations” between Italy and Russia.[66][67]
Frattini was a candidate to succeedAnders Fogh Rasmussen for the post ofNATO'ssecretary general in October 2014, but the post was given toJens Stoltenberg.[68][69]
In 2018, on the occasion of the Italian presidency of theOSCE, Foreign MinisterAngelino Alfano appointed Frattini as "Special representative of the OSCE presidency for the process of resolving the conflict inTransnistria".[70] Among his credentials, Frattini said: "I have excellent relations with the Russian authorities, which undoubtedly played a fundamental role in the resolution [of the conflict] in Transnistria,"[71] in addition to reminding all of his own role in starting the process of liberalization of Schengen visas forMoldova.[72]
In 2020, while holding a sport judge position in the trial of the doping case of PRC swimmerSun Yang, it was revealed that Frattimi had made comments about dog meat eating in China and used derogatory terms against the Chinese people on social media over a number of years. Concerns over his anti-China bias persuaded the federal court that Frattini should not have presided over banning the PRC swimmer.[73][74]
Franco Frattini was an honorary professor at the Diplomatic Academy of the Russian Foreign Ministry.[75] As of September 2020, he was a member of the ItalianAspen Institute.[76]
Interviewed byReuters in 2007, Frattini said it was his intention to investigate technical possibilities for implementing internet monitoring of "dangerous words" such as "bombs", "killing", "genocide", and "terrorism". The project did not see the light of day.[77][78]
In 2007, Frattini was censured by the European Parliament for his statements against the freedom of movement of people in the EU. In the interview granted and published on 2 November 2007, Frattini stressed that, to respond to the security problem, "what is to be done is simple: you go to a nomad camp in Rome, for example on the Christopher Columbus, and to those who are there you ask" what's your life? If all year 'I do not know', you take it and send it back to Romania. This is how the European directive works: simple and without escape." The motion of censure, presented by the European left, was voted to a large extent: 306 yes, 86 no, and 37 abstentions.[79]
In March 2009, Frattini condemned the 2009Durban Review Conference, terming the final document unacceptable, since it included positions that emerged in the 2001 conference, which qualifiedZionism as a form ofracism.[80]
Frattini later made declarations againstmulticulturalism,[81]but in favour of the administrative vote for regular migrants,[82] and pleaded for a common European policy on migration.[83]
In November 2009, he called "suggestive"Roberto Castelli's proposal for a constitutional amendment to include a cross in theItalian flag: "For now we wish to defend the right to keep thecrucifix in our [school] classes, later we'll see if we can do more." He added: "There are nine European countries that have the cross in their flag, it's an absolutely normal proposal."[84]
On 22 October 2010, he declared to theOsservatore Romano thatJudaism,Christianity, andIslam should ally to fightatheism, which he defined, in the same interview, as a "perverse phenomenon" on a par with extremism.[85] These statements raised criticisms of numerous commentators and members ofUAAR, who requested his resignation.[86] Frattini reiterated in 2017 thatrelativism is the third threat to Europe after religious extremism and militantsecularism.[87]
In November 2010, he defined the revelations ofWikiLeaks as "the 9/11 of world diplomacy".[88] and said thatJulian Assange "wants to destroy the world".[89]
Frattini died of cancer on 24 December 2022, at the age of 65.[90]
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| Election | House | Constituency | Party | Votes | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Chamber of Deputies | Bolzano | FI | 36,510 |  YElected | |
| 2001 | Chamber of Deputies | Bolzano | FI | 32,171 |  NNot elected | |
| Veneto 2 | FI | –[a] | YElected | |||
| 2008 | Chamber of Deputies | Friuli-Venezia Giulia | PdL | –[a] | YElected | |
| 1996 general election (C):Bolzano | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Coalition or Party | Votes | % | |
| Franco Frattini | Pole of Freedoms | 36,510 | 46.8 | |
| Ennio Chiodi | The Olive Tree | 34,914 | 44.8 | |
| Others | 6,531 | 8.4 | ||
| Total | 77,955 | 100.0 | ||
| 2001 general election (C):Bolzano | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Coalition or Party | Votes | % | |
| Claudio Bressa | The Olive Tree–SVP | 37,577 | 49.0 | |
| Franco Frattini | House of Freedoms | 32,171 | 42.0 | |
| Cristina Zanella | Italy of Values | 4,003 | 5.2 | |
| Achille Chiomento | Bonino List–Pannella List | 2,922 | 3.8 | |
| Total | 76,673 | 100.0 | ||
Frattini receivedMedaglia Teresiana atUniversity of Pavia in 2008.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Minister of Civil Service and Regional Affairs 1995–1996 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of Public Function 2001–2002 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of Foreign Affairs 2002–2004 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Italian European Commissioner 2004–2008 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | ||
| Preceded by | European Commissioner for Justice 2004–2008 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of Foreign Affairs 2008–2011 | Succeeded by |
| Legal offices | ||
| Preceded by | President of the Italian Council of State 2022 | Succeeded by Luigi Maruotti |
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