Gianni De Michelis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 23 July 1989 – 28 June 1992 | |
| Prime Minister | Giulio Andreotti |
| Preceded by | Giulio Andreotti |
| Succeeded by | Vincenzo Scotti |
| Deputy Prime Minister of Italy | |
| In office 13 April 1988 – 22 July 1989 | |
| Prime Minister | Ciriaco De Mita |
| Preceded by | Giuliano Amato |
| Succeeded by | Claudio Martelli |
| Minister of Labour and Social Security | |
| In office 4 August 1983 – 17 April 1987 | |
| Prime Minister | Bettino Craxi |
| Preceded by | Vincenzo Scotti |
| Succeeded by | Ermanno Gorrieri |
| Minister of State Holdings | |
| In office 4 April 1980 – 4 August 1983 | |
| Prime Minister | Francesco Cossiga Arnaldo Forlani Giovanni Spadolini Amintore Fanfani |
| Preceded by | Siro Lombardini |
| Succeeded by | Clelio Darida |
| Member of the European Parliament | |
| In office 20 July 2004 – 14 July 2009 | |
| Constituency | Southern Italy |
| Member of theChamber of Deputies | |
| In office 5 July 1976 – 14 April 1994 | |
| Constituency | Venice–Treviso |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 26 November 1940 |
| Died | 11 May 2019(2019-05-11) (aged 78) |
| Political party | PSI (1960–1994) PS (1996–2001) NPSI (2001–2007) PSI (2007–2009) RI (since 2011) |
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) |
| Spouse | Stefania Tucci |
| Children | 1 |
| Alma mater | University of Padua |
| Profession | Politician |
Gianni De Michelis (26 November 1940 – 11 May 2019) was an Italian politician, and a member of theItalian Socialist Party (PSI), who served as minister in many Italian governments in the 1980s and early 1990s.[1]
De Michelis was born inVenice in 1940.[2] He graduated in 1963 in Industrial Chemistry at theUniversity of Padua and began his academic career, first as an assistant and then as a lecturer, becoming an associate professor of Chemistry in 1980 at theCa' Foscari University of Venice. After a long leave due to political and institutional commitments, he returned to university teaching from 1994 to 1999.
He started his political career with the Italian Socialist Party, where he was elected to the municipal council of Venice. He got elected for the first time to theItalian Parliament in 1976 and was elected again in 1979, 1983, 1987, 1992 and 2006. He was Minister of State Holdings from 1980 to 1983. He then became Minister of Work in 1986 (withBettino Craxi as President of the Council). However , he reached the peak of his political career with his nomination to the Vice-Presidency of the Council in 1988-1989. He became Minister for Foreign Affairs in 1989 and kept that post until 1992.
Between 1993 and 2001, during the so-called "judicial storm ofMani Pulite", he was accused of corruption along with many of the socialists MPs and regional administrators. Within more than 35 different trails, apart from the numerous favorable verdicts, he was convicted ofcorruption and sentenced to 1 year and 6 months (negotiated) inVenice for highways bribes inVeneto and to 6 months for illegal financing (Enimont bribe, also negotiated).
In 1996, De Michelis founded a political movement named theSocialist Party withUgo Intini and other formerItalian Socialist Party (PSI) members, which later was joined by theSocialist League ofClaudio Martelli andBobo Craxi to form theNew PSI in 2001. He was elected secretary of the new party at the first congress.
De Michelis was elected at the2004 European elections as aMember of the European Parliament (MEP) for Southern Italy with the NPSI, and was therefore aNon-Inscrit in theEuropean Parliament whilst awaiting the acceptance of his party's request of membership in theSocialist Group. He sat in theCommittee on Industry, Research and Energy, and was a substitute for theCommittee on Legal Affairs, a member of the Delegation for relations with thePeople's Republic of China and a substitute for the Delegation to the Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly.
His leadership however had been contested in the congress of October 2005 where the son ofBettino Craxi,Bobo Craxi claimed to have been declaredsecretary after De Michelis had left the hall declaring the Congress void. This led Bobo Craxi to open a judicial case. The judge, on the second verdicts, gave unquestionably confirmed the right to use the symbol and the secretary to Gianni De Michelis.
At the2006 Italian general election he was elected MP for the Italian parliament but gave his seat toLucio Barani since he decided to stay in the European Parliament. In October 2007, De Michelis joined the newly formedSocialist Party, made up of the diaspora of the historical PSI. At this time, De Michelis along with fellow former NPSI MEPAlessandro Battilocchio were admitted into theparliamentary group of theParty of European Socialists.
De Michelis died inVenice on 11 May 2019 at the age of 78.[2][3]
De Michelis was a great lover of dance and discos. In 1988, he wrote a book entitled "Dove Andiamo a Ballare Questa Sera?" (English:Where to Go Dancing this Night?) in which he reviewed 250 Italian dance nightclubs.[4]
| Election | House | Constituency | Party | Votes | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Chamber of Deputies | Venice–Treviso | PSI | 18,736 |  YElected | |
| 1979 | Chamber of Deputies | Venice–Treviso | PSI | 13,647 | YElected | |
| 1983 | Chamber of Deputies | Venice–Treviso | PSI | 26,892 | YElected | |
| 1987 | Chamber of Deputies | Venice–Treviso | PSI | 31,338 | YElected | |
| 1992 | Chamber of Deputies | Venice–Treviso | PSI | 23,720 | YElected | |
| 2004 | European Parliament | Southern Italy | NPSI | 33,908 | YElected | |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
.svg)
.svg)
