Katia Bellillo | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Minister for Equal Opportunities | |
| In office 26 April 2000 – 11 June 2001 | |
| Prime Minister | Giuliano Amato |
| Preceded by | Laura Balbo |
| Succeeded by | Stefania Prestigiacomo |
| Minister for Regional Affairs | |
| In office 21 October 1998 – 26 April 2000 | |
| Prime Minister | Massimo D'Alema |
| Preceded by | Franco Bassanini |
| Succeeded by | Agazio Loiero |
| Member of theChamber of Deputies | |
| In office 30 May 2001 – 28 April 2008 | |
| Constituency | Orvieto (2001–2006) Piedmont (2006–2008) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1951-02-17)17 February 1951 (age 74) |
| Political party | PRC (1996–1998) PdCI (1998–2008) US (2009–2010) SEL (2010) |
| Alma mater | University of Perugia |
| Occupation | Politician |
Katia Bellillo (born 17 February 1951) is an Italian politician and former minister. She served in governments underMassimo D'Alema andGiuliano Amato between 1998 and 2001. Originally a member of theItalian Communist Party (PCI), she joined theParty of Italian Communists (PDCI) in 1998 and becameMinister for Regional Affairs. She later becameMinister for Equal Opportunities in 2000, in which role she successfully championed a range of issues includingLGBT rights andwomen's boxing. During the following year, she was physically and verbally attacked byAlessandra Mussolini during a live TV broadcast. After leaving government, in 2008, she was one of the founders of theUnite the Left movement and, after a long political hiatus, unsuccessfully ran for mayor ofPerugia in 2019.
Katia Bellillo was born in Foligno inUmbria on 17 February 1951.[1] After graduating in education and social work, specializing in family mediation, from theUniversity of Perugia, she was elected a regional councillor for Umbria from 1976. She served two terms as a member of theItalian Communist Party (PCI), and was raised to be vice president of the Regional Council.[2] She later became a city councilor in Perugia where she was part of the Board of Directors of the local public transport company and a member of the Management Committee of the local health authority. She became vice president of the Provincial Council of Perugia and councilor with responsibility for wildlife planning, social services, education, culture, sports and leisure, equal opportunities.[3] When the PCI dissolved in 1991, she joined the more radicalCommunist Refoundation Party (PRC).[4]
In 1998 she participated in the internal split in the PRC, becoming part of the newParty of Italian Communists (PDCI). The new party joined the coalition led by theDemocrats of the Left.[5] Bellillo joined thefirst D'Alema government, serving in both the first and second governments asMinister for Regional Affairs.[3] The end of the century saw upheaval in the government and after two crises in five months, Bellillo was given a new responsibility on 26 April 2000.[6] ReplacingLaura Balbo, she was appointedMinister for Equal Opportunities in the nextAmato cabinet.[7] In this role, she co-founded the Commission for Equalities and the Rights of Homosexuals, working with Balbo who had moved into an academic role at theUniversity of Milan. Among other achievements, the Commission enabled homosexuals to becomeblood and organ donors for the first time.[8] She also launched a national campaign to remove discrimination against female boxers and promote the sport ofwomen's boxing.[9]
At the 2001 general election she was elected to theChamber of Deputies in the single-member constituency ofOrvieto. She joined the XIV European Affairs Commission and was the member of the PDCI National Secretariat responsible for the Department of Civil Rights.[1]
During aPorta a Porta programme on sexual harassment broadcast in February 2001, Bellillo approachedAlessandra Mussolini, the granddaughter ofBenito Mussolini, and verbally accosted her. Mussolini responded by kicking Bellillo and calling her an "ugly communist". The furore did not harm either of their reputations.[10][11]
In 2005, both Bellillo and actressSabrina Ferilli supported thereferendum on assisted fertilisation. Ferilli later toldGente that despite respecting the practice, she personally preferred adoption. Bellillo denounced her in an interview inCorriere della Sera and was unsuccessfully sued by Ferilli due to parliamentary immunity.[12][13]
After the electoral defeat ofThe Left – The Rainbow coalition in the 2008 elections, she joined withUmberto Guidoni to found theUnite the Left movement.[14] The movement, initially part of the PDCI, became independent and merged intoLeft Ecology Freedom (SEL) in 2010. Bellillo left the party shortly afterwards.[15] In 2013, she joined the RadicalSocialist Movement association, becoming its national spokesperson. In 2019, she reentered politics and ran for mayor of Perugia.[16] She was unsuccessful, receiving 1.77% of the vote.[17]
| Election | House | Constituency | Party | Votes | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | Regional Council of Umbria | Perugia | PCI | 3,537 |  YElected | |
| 1980 | Regional Council of Umbria | Perugia | PCI | 7,388 | YElected | |
| 2001 | Chamber of Deputies | Orvieto | PdCI | 42,247 | YElected | |
| 2006 | Chamber of Deputies | Piedmont 1 | PdCI | –[a] | YElected | |
Katia Bellillo | |||||||||||||
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